State and federal government coflict in immigration matters : the case of California and the proposition 187
Abstract
The essay looks and examines an uneasy relationship between the state and the federal power regarding the immigration issues. Over the decades and in fact centuries the state and federal policies collided on the issue of immigration.
Most of the time it was the federal laws that have been more lenient to the immigrants. Until the 1840s the states regulated and controlled the flow of immigration.
A change came in 1849 when the federal government took over this policy. However, individual states that are affected by immigration want to be involved in the decision-making process regarding the regulation and legislation concerning immigration.
Prime example of a state making itself heard is California and its Proposition 187 supported by the voters in 1994.