Recent immigration legislation has potential impacts on migrant education and Mexican American education. The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 was passed after nine years of intense debate. The heart of so-called immigration reform is employer sanctions, which seek to restrict migration to the United States by prohibiting employers from hiring workers without proof of U.S. citizenship or work authorization. This paper presents evidence that the government's continuance of employer sanctions may be ill-founded. A law suit by the American Friends Service Committee related to this matter and to issues of religious freedom is also examined. As in other countries where they have been tried, employer sanctions in the United States have had little impact on the influx of unauthorized labor. Rather, they seem only to push illegal immigrants underground and to increase their vulnerability to abusive employment practices. Undocumented workers do not displace U.S. citizens from jobs, but have historically played a key role in U.S. production and economic growth by filling jobs unattractive to the domestic labor force. In addition, undocumented immigrants have benefited local economies by enabling low-wage industries to expand and by purchasing consumer goods and durables. Research demonstrates that labor flows across our borders are fundamentally a result of international dynamics rooted in deep-seated economic and political inequality between the United States and developing countries. A serious critical evaluation of employer sanctions is warranted. This paper contains 45 references. (SV)