H.S. basketball team's Arizona trip axed

HIGHLAND PARK, Ill., May 12 (UPI) -- An Illinois high school girls basketball team's trip to an Arizona tournament has been canceled because of Arizona's new immigration law, officials say.

The Highland Park High School Giants had planned to play in the tournament in December and had been holding bake sales to raise money for the trip, the Chicago Tribune reported. But after deciding to call off the Arizona trip, officials in District 113 are now searching for a tournament in another state.

Assistant Superintendent Suzan Hebson said the decision was based partly on safety and partly on principle. She said no one knows yet how Arizona will enforce its law, which requires police to check the papers of anyone they suspect of being an illegal immigrant.

But she also said traveling to Arizona "would not be aligned with our beliefs and values."

Since Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer signed the law, there have been calls for a boycott of the state, some of them coming from opponents of the law inside Arizona. Picketing recently greeted the Arizona Diamondbacks when they played in Chicago.

Parents of the girls on the Highland Park basketball team, however, said they do not think the decision should be a political one.

"I disagree personally with the Arizona legislation, but I also feel strongly about young women's rights," Cynde Munzer said. "They don't want to get involved in politics."