In Arizona, 230% College Tuition Hike Comes With A Side Of Xenophobia

[pampango]

https://news.change.org/stories/in-arizona-230-college-tuition-hike-comes-with-a-side-of-xenophobia

"... a new 230 percent tuition hike for some Arizona community college students comes with a new, disturbing twist: xenophobia.

The Maricopa County Community College system - the largest in Arizona - announced in March a 230% tuition hike for out-of-state students. The kicker? Unlike some college tuition increases, this one isn't about tighter budgets - it's a veiled attempt to shut out undocumented students from college classes.

Here's the legal backstory: Arizonans in 2006 voted to prevent undocumented students -- even those who have lived in Arizona since childhood -- from in-state status, meaning they have to pay out-of-state tuition if they go to college. In 2009, state lawmakers pass HB 2008, barring any undocumented resident from receiving any "public benefit" -- i.e. food, housing and health services.

Are community college classes a "public benefit?" Maricopa County Community College officials say that they are, so they're hiking tuition for "out-of-state" -- read: undocumented -- students way up, claiming that this will ensure they're following the new law. In other words, they're helping anti-immigrant activists not only bar undocumented residents from emergency health care and food stamps, but education, too. (Of note: One of the board members who approved the hike, Debra Pearson, is a member of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, reports the Phoenix New Times.)

[classysassy]

1. Arizona the new South Africa/Mississippi

a state where racism is the main product.