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The most damning proof that Alabama鈥檚 anti-immigrant law was born of xenophobia and vile stereotypes comes straight from the mouths of the lawmakers behind it.

This week, a federal judge issued a blistering court ruling that took the lawmakers to task. The judge didn鈥檛 rely on arcane legal arguments or theory. Instead, he used the on-the-record comments made by lawmakers as they passed the nation鈥檚 most draconian anti-immigrant bill, HB 56.

In a Dec. 12 ruling regarding a provision of the law, U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson described the legislative debate as 鈥渓aced with derogatory comments about Hispanics.鈥� He even went as far to say that it鈥檚 likely the entire law was 鈥渄iscriminatorily based.鈥� Over the course of the 108-page ruling, Thompson cited examples of lawmakers delving into ethnic stereotypes and using 鈥淗ispanic鈥� and 鈥渋llegal immigrant鈥� interchangeably.

鈥淭his use is dramatically reflected in how HB 56鈥檚 drafter, Representative [Micky] Hammon, conflated race and immigration status,鈥� Thompson wrote.

The most telling example is Hammon鈥檚 claim that Alabama was home to the second fastest growing population of undocumented immigrants in the nation. The claim was repeatedly cited by Hammon as he pushed the bill through the legislature. It sounded as if the state were facing a major crisis.

There was just one problem.

When a reporter asked Hammon for the source of his information, the legislator produced an article that showed the growth of the state鈥檚 Hispanic population from 2000 to 2010. The article 鈥渟ays nothing about unauthorized immigration whatsoever,鈥� the judge wrote in his ruling.

But Hammon wasn鈥檛 the only offender.

The judge noted that when Rep. Kerry Rich 鈥� a co-sponsor of the law 鈥� discussed the growth of the undocumented immigrant population, he also used Hispanic population figures. Apparently for Hammon and other legislators, there is a part of 鈥渋llegal鈥� they don鈥檛 understand 鈥� it鈥檚 not a synonym for all Latinos.

When legislative debate includes talk about seeing 30 undocumented immigrants get out of a car or visiting a poultry plant and seeing 鈥�4-foot Mexicans in there catching them chickens鈥� 鈥� two examples cited by the judge 鈥� it鈥檚 understandable that Latinos may worry about racial profiling.

And it鈥檚 understandable how the law produced in that environment can be a disaster for the state and wreak havoc in people鈥檚 lives.

Thompson鈥檚 ruling came in a Southern Poverty Law Center lawsuit challenging a provision of HB 56 that required people to prove their legal status when renewing their annual mobile home registration tags. The judge鈥檚 preliminary injunction temporarily prevents families from being pushed into the streets.

But despite court orders blocking various provisions, much of HB 56 remains in effect. And nothing changes the fact that lawmakers passed a shameful immigration law amid a debate rife with stereotypes, misinformation and bigotry 鈥� once again reminding the world of Alabama鈥檚 racist history.