FARMERS BRANCH -- Farmers Branch city councilmembers unanimously approved three controversial ordinances Monday night designed to discourage illegal immigrants from living or working in the city limits.
The first ordinance designates English as the official language of Farmers Branch. The second calls for the training of local law officers to enforce federal laws on immigration. The third punishes any business owners who employ illegal immigrant or landowners who rent to them.
The votes were made in a room in City Hall packed with people who clapped as the votes were tallied in favor of the measures. In a parking lot outside, hundreds of protesters against the rules hoisted American flags and sang the Pledge of Allegiance in English before the votes were taken.
Dozens of protesters showed up before Monday's 6:30 p.m. meeting, waving signs and American flags. Opponents presented more than 80 signatures to the mayor's office in a petition urging the city not to pass the restrictions.
The vote came up in a public meeting Monday evening after an all-day closed meeting with the city attorney where council members discussed the legal ramifications of the proposals.
Attorneys for the ACLU say the local ordinances could contradict federal laws against discrimination.
"This is really the federal government's bailiwick," said Becky Burdnhardt of the ACLU.
She says the ordinance would put local business owners in a legal tug-of-war.
"They could violate the local ordinance on one end, or violate anti-discrimination laws on the other end," she said. "It's an impossible position to put local business people in."
More than 50 municipalities nationwide have considered, passed or rejected similar laws, but until now that trend hasn't been matched in the Lone Star State.
Such sentiments and the proposed ordinances trouble many people in Texas, where many Latino families can trace their roots here to the era before statehood.
Since 1970, Farmers Branch has changed from a small, predominantly white bedroom community with a declining population to a city of almost 28,000 people, about 37 percent of them Hispanic, according to the census. It also is home to more than 80 corporate headquarters and more than 2,600 small and mid-size firms, many of them minority-owned.
"They're afraid that Farmers Branch is becoming Hispanic," said Christopher McGuire, a resident of the city and spokesman for a group called United Farmers Branch. "It's going to happen, and that's not a bad thing."
The local debate over illegal immigration began in August and spawned demonstrations by both sides.
More than 50 municipalities nationwide have considered, passed or rejected similar laws, but until now that trend hasn't been matched in the Lone Star State.
Farmers Branch councilman Tim O'Hare, who proposed the ordinances, admitted the English-only ordinance is largely symbolic.
"But it also prohibits the city from printing materia or putting up signs in any language but English," said O'Hare. "[It also] prevents the city from not hiring anyone because English is the only language they speak."
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