Key Players

Who’s for and who’s against the Fremont effort to crack down on illegal immigrants:

For the ordinance

“It’s all about becoming a legal citizen, learning our language and assimilating to our society; that’s all we want. I don’t want drug dealers at my job; I don’t want other criminals in my town. I don’t want these people here. If they’re here illegally, they’re criminals. They’re breaking the law.” — John Wiegert, petition leader and ordinance supporter

Bob Warner, a former City Council member and retired construction superintendent. He touched off the controversy in 2008 when he proposed the ordinance, which would require Fremont employers to verify new hires’ residency documents and require renters to submit identification to police before they could sign a housing lease. Warner remains active in the campaign to adopt the ordinance through a public vote.

Fremont for Illegal Immigration Enforcement, founded by the leaders of the petition drive that succeeded in putting the proposed ordinance on the ballot after the City Council rejected it. Petition leaders Jerry Hart, a retired Internal Revenue Service worker; John Wiegert, an elementary school teacher; and Wanda Kotas, a nursing assistant, say they so far are relying on word of mouth and letters to the newspaper to get voters out, but they also are raising money to send information to registered voters before Election Day.

Nebraskans Advisory Group (NAG), an Omaha-based group that fights illegal immigration. NAG members assisted Fremont residents with the petition drive. About 20 volunteers are going door to door, making phone calls and handing out voter registration forms to support the Fremont ordinance.

Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), which has been involved in similar local ordinance efforts in towns such as Farmers Branch, Texas; Hazleton, Penn.; and Valley Park, Mo. A lawyer from FAIR’s companion legal group, the Immigration Reform Law Institute, Kris Kobach, helped draft the ordinance, defended the petitioners free of charge in the Nebraska Supreme Court case and said that if the ordinance were enacted, he would defend it in court for no charge.

Against the ordinance

“It’s a federal issue, and the federal government should take care of it. One of our concerns is it does promote racism. I don’t care what you say, it does promote racism, which is wrong.” — Don Hinds, co-chairman of business-backed committee opposing ordinance

Centsible Citizens say No, a business-backed group planning to mount a TV and radio ad campaign against the ordinance and hold informational breakfasts this week to warn business owners about its potential costs. It is headed by retired real estate agent Don Hinds and attorney Christina Boydston.

One Fremont, One Future, a committee with ties to an immigrant outreach effort, launched a radio ad campaign Tuesday. The campaign grew out of “Nebraska is Home Fremont,” an organization supported by the Nebraska Appleseed Center for Law in the Public Interest and led locally by Kristin Ostrom, a lawyer and trained mediator, and Gabby Ayala, an office manager and a Spanish-language interpreter. Ostrom and three other community volunteers are heading up the One Fremont campaign effort.

Bill Ekeler, who is co-owner of a small manufacturing company and was chairman of a task force established in August 2008 by Mayor Skip Edwards. The task force called for all Fremont employers to use the E-Verify system to confirm new hires’ immigration status and for a mostly educational approach to the illegal immigration issue. Ekeler laments that the recommendations approved by the City Council in February 2009 were not fully implemented.

The Fremont Area Chamber of Commerce issued a narrowly drawn resolution opposing the ordinance as “the wrong solution” to a widely recognized problem. Although some of its members are campaigning against the ordinance, the chamber itself is not contributing to the campaign, said executive director Ron Tillery.

The Fremont Area Ministerial Association, a multidenominational group composed of ministers at about three dozen Fremont churches, has issued a public statement against the ordinance. Scott Jensen, a hospital chaplain who represents the group, said the proposed ordinance would be divisive and harmful to the community.

United Food and Commercial Workers Local 22, the union representing workers at the Hormel Foods Corp. pork processing plant. Union representative Mike Marty said the union opposes illegal immigration and the exploitation of workers, but it also thinks a patchwork of local laws across the country will not solve the problem.

ACLU Nebraska opposes the ordinance and has said it will pursue legal action if voters adopt it. Lawsuits challenging similar ordinances in other states have resulted in multimillion-dollar legal bills for the cities involved.

— Leslie Reed

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