In Tampa, legal immigrants watch closely

TAMPA - Tampa is a city with a very large population of legal immigrants who are watching every step of this new law.

The reaction to a judge's explosive ruling to block parts of the Arizona's immigration law was immediate and emotional.

In Tampa, immigration advocate and attorney Mayra Calo believes the judge's decision was the right one.

Calo says like Arizona, Florida has an immigration problem. But she says Arizona's law does more damage than good.

"We don't need to live in fear that I'm going to get arrested cause I'm not carrying my papers," she said. "It would be racially profiling, not just for illegal aliens but also for lawful residents, lawful aliens and U.S. citizens as well."

While Arizona's governor claims most illegal immigrants that sneak into her state are drug smugglers, that's not the case everywhere. In Plant City, where field workers are finding it tougher and tougher to find jobs in a bad economy, some head back to Mexico. But one man said he is here illegally, and is risking everything to find work.

Meanwhile, some opposed to the law say immigration in a federal issue, not a state issue, and Wednesday's ruling backs that up.

"The immigration laws in this country are the most complicated, second only to the internal revenue code, so it's not something that's going to be done overnight. But the proper way to get it done is in Washington," Calo said.