The News

American Indian Prisoner’s Religious Rights Up for Review, and Other News

Utah Bill Could Limit Immigrant Health Care
SB81, a state immigration enforcement law, will have a big impact on how undocumented immigrants get healthcare. Under the bill, agencies that provide certain government-funded health services will be required to verify their patients’ citizenship. Those patients who lie about their citizenship would face federal punishment. Salt Lake Tribune

Chicago Latino Groups Call for End to Overcrowding
The United Neighborhood Organization asked Illinois Governor Pat Quinn to invest federal stimulus money into building 28 new schools. The call for the new schools came after they published a report that found 78 percent of the 63,000 students who attend overcrowded schools are Latino. School officials are then forced to hold class in cafeterias, school hallways and storage closets. Chicago Breaking News

Report Puts Stats on Racial Profiling on U.S. Borders
The Asian Law Caucus of San Francisco reports that Middle Easterners, South Asians and Muslims are unfairly questioned and hassled at U.S. borders about their religious practices and political affiliations. UPI

Court Rules on American Indian Prisoner’s Religious Rights
A federal appeals court upheld some religious protections of Shawn Odneal, a Choctaw Indian incarcerated at the McConnell Unit of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Prison guards barred Odneal from wearing a small pouch during ceremony at the prison and prohibited him from growing a small patch of hair at the nape of his neck. Native Times

Posted at 10:02 AM, Apr 21, 2009 in News | Permalink | View Comments