Maricopa County, Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio is known for housing inmates in tent cities in the desert and making them wear pink clothes as humiliation, but also for allegations of racial profiling and abusive treatment of Latinos, inside and outside of his jailhouse.
On September 2, 2010, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the Sheriff’s Office, challenging Arpaio’s refusal to demonstrate that his office is complying with federal civil rights laws. Specifically, the suit alleges that the Sheriff’s Office has violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on race or ethnicity by institutions, like the Sheriff’s Office, that receive federal funds, and requires them to document their compliance.
For the most part, it's been a good week for immigration reform. The Senate approved a measure that will end the "Widow Penalty," which rescinded applications for U.S. residency if one's spouse of two years or less years dies, and on Tuesday, as RaceWire reports, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors passed legislation that restores the right of due process to immigrant youth.
After the shadowy Bush years, the emergence of reasonable policy can be a little surprising. Immigration law has suffered from a lack of planning and is often influenced by fear rooted in the Sept. 11 attacks. But the national dialogue on immigration has begun to grow healthier. Activists, immigration advocacy groups and Latino and Asian American communities dug in and are working toward reform. Right wing and anti-immigration voices have less sway. This week we see two tangible and positive developments on this front: An announcement from the White House regarding detention policy reform and a letter against aggressive enforcement sent to the White House from the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.
Since the Obama administration came into power, the absence of movement on immigration issues has made activists on both sides of the debate anxious. Most reasoned that there was so much on the new President’s agenda, critical issues would have to wait for their turn.
One of the themes President Obama spoke about in his speech the other night was returning to the America we grew up knowing--returning to the America which we believe in. In addressing the nation, President Obama reminded us that "living our values doesn't make us weaker. It makes us safer, and it makes us stronger."
With this message resonating in our ears, it's difficult to hear about what a Sheriff in Arizona has been doing recently. Relying heavily on racial profiling, Sheriff Jeff Arpaio has been pulling over "Latino-looking" drivers have been pulled over for minor violations and asked to produce Social Security cards. He's focused his efforts on sidewalk "crime sweeps" in low-crime neighborhoods--detaining those who cannot prove their citizenship status on spot, while ignoring the real issues our communities face.
Finally, earlier this month Sheriff Arpaio was getting ready to round up immigrant men and women and march them off to separate "tent cities" surrounded by electric fences.
Our friend's at America's Voice have a made a video detailing some of these affronts on basic human dignity. You may view and sign a petition being sent to the Attorney General demanding an investigation of Sheriff Arpaio here.
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