At least 50,000 marched downtown Los Angeles on May Day in support of
immigration reform (Photo by Kevin Douglas Grant)

The Los Angeles City Council will vote Wednesday on a
resolution that calls for a boycott of the State of Arizona and condemns Arizona's new immigration legislation, which has sparked controversy
nationwide.

The new law, SB1070, requires law enforcement officers to
determine an individual's legal status whenever "reasonable suspicion" exists
that the person is an illegal immigrant. Signed into effect on April 24, it has been the subject of scrutiny: opponents say it is an invitation for racial profiling, and was the focus of
May Day protests across the country two weeks ago.

Councilmembers Janice
Hahn and Ed Reyes proposed the new Los Angeles resolution, which calls for the city to terminate all contracts with
Arizona-based companies and to stop doing business with Arizona. A
representative from Mayor Antonia Villaraigosa's office said preliminary
reports showed the city has
at least $7 million worth of contracts with Arizona companies.

Villaraigosa said last week that he supported the proposition for a boycott, and seven members of the City Council signed a proposal favoring a boycott. 

If passed, Los Angeles will follow the footsteps of other California cities that passed resolutions denouncing the Arizona law.

The West Hollywood City Council voted unanimously last Monday to suspend official travel to the state and to explore additional financial sanctions.Oakland followed suit last Tuesday, voting 7-0 in favor of a resolution that urges city officials not to enter into contracts with Arizona companies and calls for a review of existing contracts. And most recently, San Francisco supervisors passed a similar resolution Tuesday.

The Carson City Council, however, voted 3-2 last week to shelve a resolution calling for a boycott. 

Though many question the effectiveness of such a boycott; experts say that cancelling contracts and ceasing travel can have a serious
negative impact. One official from Phoenix said the city could lose as much as $90 million worth
of hotel and convention business. 

Despite negative reactions and these resolutions banning Arizona, recent polls show that the
majority of Americans support the new immigration law.