When Senate Bill 1070 became law in Arizona in 2010, the controversy that came after was felt across the state.
As Arizona was boycotted across the country — and the Mexican government condemned the bill — Arizona businesses felt the repercussions of what was seen by many as an anti-immigrant law that encouraged racial profiling.
Today, the debate over immigration surrounds the proposed building of a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border — and its effect on the business world is still at the center of the conversation.
FWD.us is an organization started in 2013 by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and Bill Gates, as well as other leaders in the tech community. It aims to keep the business community involved in the discussion over immigration reform.
They say to keep America competitive in the global economy common sense immigration reform is key.
Today, they’re launching a new Arizona Coalition that includes groups like the Arizona Farm Bureau, the Arizona Technology Council and the Greater Phoenix Chamber of Commerce.
Andrew Moriarty, deputy organizing director with FWD.us., talked about why they’re creating a coalition here in Arizona and why now.
In Arizona, the growing tech community has had some hurdles to overcome when it comes to the immigration debate since SB1070, according to Steve Zylstra, president and CEO of the Arizona Technology Council.
Zylstra is one of the people speaking on a panel with FWD.us today about the role that our state’s tech leaders want to have in shaping immigration reform. He said that role should be an important one.
