Come with me. Down here. Close your eyes for a moment and imagine that you’re a predator, choosing victims. You want a family you can ingratiate yourself to, eventually molesting their children and emptying their bank account, or at least their coffee can. You want to sell fake insurance to an old woman, an empty computer tower to a school kid. You want to stalk and tackle a young woman walking home from a waitress shift. Whom do you choose?
If you’re doing it right, you’ll look for someone who probably won’t be believed or taken seriously if they dare to report whatever crime you’re planning against them; perhaps a person with perceived mental health issues, a disability, a reputation as a liar, or anyone on the fringe or disenfranchised. But if you’re really slick, you’ll go for someone who won’t say a damn thing in the first place- someone who won’t report. That’s already the case with people who fear reporting crime because of government backlash against them. For all the fear-mongering about the terrible things undocumented aliens do to US citizens (read: brown threatening white), the facts are most of them are here desperate to work and desirous of nothing but a very low profile. Because of that, they often keep quiet about crime and abuse within their own communities and whatever is forced upon them from without. It’s an age-old phenomenon, and it’s about to get a whole lot worse in Arizona.
I love Arizona. I’ve traveled every corner of this magnificent state and have found wonderful people, breath taking scenery and a diversity in nature that is all but unparalleled. I also lived in what the Mexicans call the Frontera, that is Northern Sonora where I learned the language and found a second family through a close childhood friend who now lives outside of Phoenix. I know the frustration on both sides of the border, and I can understand the deep-seated feeling by many Arizonans that the Federal government can’t or won’t provide the necessary border security that might make laws like SB 1070 less tempting. Regardless, the law is Constitutionally repugnant, mean-spirited, begging of abuse, and it stigmatizes and threatens further the Hispanic ethnic group, many of whom are citizens and legal aliens. These people might now feel panic nudging them when they realize they’ve forgotten their wallets and are on the street facing a police inquiry because of “reasonable suspicion.”
I don’t have room for a full criticism of the law; there’s no shortage of that out there anyway. What concerns me immediately is the further chilling effect this law will have on an already frightened and disenfranchised population when it comes to crime. I’ve studied the text of the law closely and I’m aware that police officers are not supposed to inquire about citizenship when it might impede or obstruct an investigation. I’ve worked with police officers for years and find the vast majority to be decent and conscientious, and I don’t fear police abuse, while it’s certainly possible, as much as others on my side of the political spectrum. Regardless, the message anyone will hear who is undocumented or could be mistaken for undocumented wherever cops are concerned is “back away and keep quiet.” Predators will act accordingly and target even more victims of (or near) these suspected groups.
Take, for instance, the 3.6 million people of Maricopa County who, if they are arrested, are held in the custody of Sheriff Joe Arpaio, among the most despicable people to bear responsibility for the custody of other human beings in recent American memory. Arpaio would be a perverse but harmless clown were he a consultant somewhere peddling his sick views to municipalities. Instead he is among the most important law enforcement officials in the state, and he is to law enforcement what Joe McCarthy was to patriotism. Arpaio’s jail system has been sued multiple times for human rights abuses; he is under an almost continuous state of investigation for mistreatment and mysterious, violent deaths that take place in his jails. His facilities are legendary for their lack of decent food and medical care, regardless of the fact that most of his inmates are awaiting trial and have been convicted of nothing. Arpaio brags about how harshly he treats his inmates and relishes in publicly humiliating them. This is all in the name of justice and deterrence, apparently, convincing his inmates that time in jail isn’t much fun. No sir, it’s not. It’s also not legally appropriate to punish someone who hasn’t been convicted of a crime. That would include arrested persons who are in the US legally but unable to overcome the remarkably totalitarian presumption of guilt if they forget their “papers” on the street some day. How long does it take to verify one’s legal status, or process them for deportation, while one languishes in Arpaio’s jail? We don’t know. What we do know is that most people will do or avoid doing almost anything to escape a sentence like that. But that’s exactly what they have to look forward to under this law in Arizona’s largest county. No conviction necessary.
So imagine an elderly undocumented man, brought to the US with family, wanting to tell someone about the auto mechanic who fleeced his son-in-law for a car that still won’t start. Imagine a 16 year-old undocumented girl, desperate to tell someone about the classmate who is stalking her, or the family member who is molesting her. Imagine an undocumented mother of a toddler, holding her child with trembling hands as she wonders what to do to comfort her after a worker at daycare has beaten and burned her for giggling at nap time. Imagine these people as victims, and not as human beings. If you’re still thinking like a predator, you’re smiling ear to ear.
© 2010, Roger Canaff. All rights reserved.
I always watch the cnn news, some weeks ago there was a special about something going on in mexico related to drugs(people were killed and nobody dared to talk)
I am a border citizin, I live near the border of belgium and germany. We cross the border all the time. Many people I know buy a house in belgium because it is more cheap or we go to the hospital in germany. Obviously we are at the same level more or less, while mexico is poor compared to USA, I can see why they do not want mexicans crossing the border, because they might not return and stay in usa.
We have a similar problem in Holland with the Polish people, who come here to work, illegal or legal.
Poland is very poor compared to us, so many polish people come here to work and then they want to stay
usually illegal.
Excellent article. Thank you.
Thanks for the kind words, Breigh- one thing that was brought to my attention by a colleague was the use of the word “illegal.” I think “undocumented” is a better word, and I’ve made the change. Again- thanks.
Yes, Mexico is remarkably poor compared with the US. Part of the problem is that US employers hire undocumented persons and then mercilessly exploit them once they are here. It’s a terrible system, and made worse by a segment of the population who believes in inviting them in with one hand (for cheap labor) while slapping them with the other.
“Come with me. Down here. Close your eyes for a moment and imagine that you’re a predator, choosing victims…Imagine these people as victims, and not as human beings. If you’re still thinking like a predator, you’re smiling ear to ear.” This is evocative imagery.
Difficult to imagine how much potentially destructive power this gives just the police officers & Hwy patrol.
Arizona’s law is going to create a thriving business in creating, stealing, and withholding people’s identification documents. Besides being able to sell stolen documents, criminals will be able to silence their victims and have even greater power over them if they steal, destroy or hide the very documentation they need to prove they are legal. Already many batterers who abuse women do this to isolate and disempower their victims. Likewise, those who traffic in prostitution often keep identification to prevent their victims from leaving.
Another problem with this legislation is that in those parts of Arizona where police have worked long and hard with the community to have good relations, those relations will fall apart once police start questioning people to see if they are lawfully here. Even police departments that do not question people will bear the fear that people will have from being questioned by other police.
The false information claimed by some of the bill supporters (namely, that aliens account for 70% of homicides in Utah) is refuted on that state’s senate website at http://senatesite.com/blog/2009/07/representative-chris-herrod-re.html.
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I can only empathize with your analysis Roger. However whether those individuals are “undocumented” or “illegal” the point still is that they are here against our laws. That point is the biggest loser in the path of this discussion. I’ll choose to speak towards the carrying your papers issue.
Respectfully I will agree to disagree with you considering this issue, especially about Sheriff Joe. (you don’t want to go to his jail don’t break the law, much like you don’t want a dui don’t drink) But to the point about carrying your papers… we’re all expected to do that either in the form of a drivers license/ssn card or a passport while abroad. I don’t see an issue to expect non-citizens to do the same in their H1B, green card, or other visa. Either side of the issue could trot out travesty after travesty with respect to someone getting the short end of the stick as opposed to not carrying out already settled law. But in the end, there is still a process to becoming a citizen.
Powerful post. Underreporting is already a huge issue with immigrant populations. I can only imagine what this law will do to increase unreported crimes. Like you said, somewhere out in Arizona a predator has figured this out and will be very happy. Thanks for shining a light on this.
Brian, thanks for the thoughtful comment. As you know, I’ve spent most of my career prosecuting some of the most dangerous and frightening criminals out there. I’m okay with punitive detention being a humane, but very stripped down and ascetic existence. My problem with Arpaio is first that he goes far beyond just stripped down. He withholds medical care, puts inmates at risk for serious diseases like MRSA because of deplorable sanitary conditions, and loses 10’s of millions in lawsuits for mysterious deaths in his jails.
But the much, much larger issue I have with him is that roughly 70% of the people he has custody (to my understanding) of are awaiting trial, not serving sentences. Arpaio is not a warden; he’s a jailer. He has custody of people who can’t afford to post bond and haven’t been convicted of anything. So respectfully, one can’t say “well, don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time in Joe’s jail.” It’s more like “don’t be unlucky enough to be arrested- correctly or not- if you can’t afford to post bond or don’t have the support to obtain pretrial release.” You don’t have to be found guilty of anything to be humiliated, beaten, bullied or even killed in what passes for a jail under Arpaio’s watch. You only have to be arrested and without the support, funds, community ties or whatever else to be punished in pretrial detention. That’s wrong by any measurement in a nation of laws. I don’t care that, as a practical matter, most people who are arrested are guilty. I know that’s true but it’s utterly beside the point. We simply don’t punish accused people. We may hold them in custody, and while we do so they don’t have to live in luxury. But we don’t punish them with humiliating outfits, 115 degree heat, old, unhealthy food and the possibility of violence, death or disease.
Arpaio’s notions of justice are also hideously unfair in economic terms: Those who can’t post bond and get out from under Arpaio’s thumb are almost always poor and disenfranchised. I have no doubt that Arpaio himself would love to punish a rich white kid accused or convicted of a crime as much as a poor kid of any color- that’s not my beef with him. But the fact is, the courts decide who goes to jail, either for punishment or pretrial detention, not Arpaio. He gets who he gets, and usually that’s people who are poor or otherwise unconnected. It’s very hard for middle class people to understand sometimes, particularly non-minorities, but it’s not that hard in some communities to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and end up being arrested on well-intentioned but false premises. When I was a DA in the Bronx we had a guy who was mistakenly picked out of a line-up by a well meaning but mistaken rape victim. DNA eventually exonerated that man, but not until he had spent 3 weeks in Rikers Island while I waited for a DNA report and worked with his attorney on investigating his alibi. Both held up and he was released. But that guy, while legally held in custody until we could sort out the crime, was guilty of nothing. Rikers is a scary place, but NYC Corrections at least doesn’t make a public relations campaign out of bullying and humiliating men and women the way Arpaio does. He’s a publicity hound and someone with zero concept of the rule of law. And while he’s saved the people of Maricopa County millions in the way of what he needs to properly house inmates, he’s paid out millions (41 million to date) in settlements for laws suits brought by inmates or the families of inmates who have died in his custody. Putting people in cages is the most important thing we do as a society. Men who view that job as a way to mete out their own personal justice- despite the law- and also to jump before a camera and sell books, shouldn’t be dog catchers in my view.
As for the law, I understand that illegal is illegal- I do not excuse or favor illegal immigration. But- for decades Arizona and all the border states have had a disturbing tradition of, as I said earlier, enticing them with jobs and enjoying their cheap labor and total inability to complain about things like workplace conditions or safety, while still slapping them around for staying here and drawing on services. We need another solution- a guest worker program, maybe. Either that or a serious federal response that will seal the borders in a serious way. Hunger, though, is a powerful thing. My guess is, they’ll find a way in. Again, my friend- thanks for writing.
Thanks, Jennifer- I appreciate the comment.
I am still amazed at the short sided view of the right when it comes to immigration.
A. We shut off legal pathways to most, especially Latinos.
B. Business owners all over looking for cheaper labor can’t wait to hire a sub contractor that uses un documented workers to pad profits. Mind you they don’t directly hire these people. They put that risk on someone else.
c. Most business would love to hire American citizens but cannot find physically, mentally fit people that would work as hard for the same rates of pay. You want a low skill job, get off the smack, lose 50 lbs, stop stealing everything you can, and stop complaining when the work gets hard.
D. Are you really ready to hunt down and pay to deport all that you can?
E. Jesus said that what you do to the least of us is what you do to him ( or something like that ). Christian right time to start living your creeds. Put down your swords and pick up your hearts. Get a message to your elected officials, reform immigration laws now. Give these hard working people a chance to make a better life for them and for you.
Gerry, thanks for the thoughtful reply. I agree with your assessment and with your evoking of Matthew 25:40 although I’m no Biblical scholar either. I know there are plenty of conservative Christians who are genuinely compassionate people, but I am often mystified at people-regardless of political affiliation- who claim to be deeply Christian but act in ways that are frankly not as charitable as Jesus would seem to have approved of- based on what we know of His words, anyway.
Without a doubt we need to stop (figuratively) sleeping with these folks at night and kicking them during the day. I’ve spent quite a bit of time in the border area of Arizona and I know much about how American businesses value cheap labor- despite whatever opinions they have on immigration.
Thank you Roger for a perspective on this bill that I had totally not considered.
Thanks, Mike- I understand the law is popular, and I can understand the frustration and concern that has bred support for it. I still think it’s a bad idea, but even generally good ideas have unintended consequences. This is one of them, in my view. Thanks for commenting.