This being my last column for The Daily, I’m no doubt expected to a) reflect on my two years of opinion writing, b) thank previous and present editors for the opportunity to do so and, most importantly, c) thank “the readers” — those faceless students who I and all writers hope actually exist, for exposing themselves to, thinking about and perhaps even discussing some of my columns.

So a) it’s been great having a vehicle to voice my opinions and put my fanatical consumption of news to some level of use, b) thank you, editors, for the part you played in allowing me to bloviate and c) thank all of you out there who read one of my columns.

Now, with that formality complete, let’s talk about Arizona.

Last Friday, the state’s governor, Jan Brewer, signed into law an immigration bill that makes it illegal to be in the country illegally, requires legal immigrants to carry paperwork proving their status and directs police to question anyone who they “reasonably suspect” of being in the country illegally.

And, believe it or not, I can honestly say that I support the majority of the law.

Regarding the first provision, it’s indefensible to argue that it should not be a crime to be an illegal immigrant in this country, just as it is in virtually every other country in the world. Millions of immigrants who first came to America by way of Ellis Island had to commit their time and money in order to become legal citizens of this country, and things should be no different for immigrants today. Also of note, even if the oft-stated allegation that illegal immigrants do the work that no American citizens will do is 100 percent true – something that I find very hard to believe given the hundreds of thousands of Americans currently unemployed – that’s no reason that they should be able to reap the social benefits of this country, for example public education for their children and emergency room treatment, without contributing tax payments to the nation’s ever-dwindling social safety net.

As for the second provision, I’m all for the requirement that legal immigrants carry paperwork proving their guest worker status, citizenship, or what have you. Indeed, since we’re all immigrants of some form or another, it seems completely rational that we all carry something to prove our status. While it’s unlikely that this is the actual intention of Arizona’s congressmen – that is, that all Americans of all ages and all last names travel with this paperwork at all times – the text of the bill requires “all legal immigrants”  to possess papers, and it’s about time that Arizona and every other state begin the process of implementing a national identification card.

Now, for that last third of the law with which I can in no way agree: Asking police to objectively arrive at a “reasonable” level of suspicion as to whether or not individuals are likely documented or not represents the most obvious violation of civil rights that’s been legislated in a long time.  And no, I’m not just saying this because I believe it will likely open the door for many policemen to practice racial profiling by disproportionately questioning people who appear to be Hispanic, and, in a state that abuts Mexico, therefore provide them with a defensible reason for suspicion.

No, I’m against this provision because it actually makes racial profiling part of each and every Arizona policemen’s job duties, whether they like it or not. Because it provides them with few guidelines or boundaries, and because law officers are required to equally apply the laws, the legislation effectively asks them to question any and all individuals who look like those who’ve been found to be in Arizona illegally over the last years. As Reverend Samuel Rodriguez, president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, concisely and correctly put it, it thus means that “If you are Hispanic in Arizona, you just became a suspect and open to police harassment.”

In addition, it ignores the fact that Arizonan Latinos, the vast majority of whom are legal residents of the United States, have played a profound role in the state’s history and development; portends a likely decline in the state’s coffers due to, among other things, a reduction in tourism and trade (especially with Mexico); and promises to exacerbate, rather than reduce, the state’s ever-increasing crime levels by diverting police’s time and energy from their actual crime-fighting duties.

In sum, this is flat out bad legislation; granted it’s two parts good and one part bad, but that’s no excuse for it to survive.

Instead, Congress should take this opportunity to act now, when national attention is turned to the topic and before any other states pass their own bills, and work towards comprehensive federal immigration legislation that, with a strong emphasis on punishing those who hire illegal immigrants and profit greatly from their labor, will become the law of the land.

Steve Adams is a graduate student in journalism and mass communication from Annapolis, Md.