Cross-Posted at Jack and Jill Politics:
Imagine every cop in your state was forced to do their job like that controversial Sheriff Joe Arpaio or risk getting sued?
That’s what a new bill in Arizona, which could be signed into law by the Governor in a matter of days, would do! It would force cops to interrogate — even jail — people, based on whether or not people “look” like they have their papers in order.
Really, who judges what an undocumented immigrant looks like? Do I look undocumented, just because I have brown skin, eat guacamole, and listen to Carlos Santana? Do you?
I’m sorry, but that’s called racial profiling. That’s discrimination, period. We have a chance to stop it, but only if we raise our voices now.
This bill would push undocumented immigrants deeper into the shadows and make our communities less safe as victims and community members become more unwilling to report crime. Today, too many Arizonans are afraid to call 911 because of the tactics of Sheriff Joe Arpaio and others like him. S.B. 1070 would make this problem even worse.
The L.A. Times reported yesterday that the Arizona ACLU fears this could easily be used to racially profile U.S. citizens who simply “have an accent” and “leave their wallet at home.”
