Secure Communities Turns Immigrants into Criminals
Immigration Matters
New America Media, Commentary, Sarahi Uribe, Posted: Nov 23, 2009
This month the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) celebrated one year of Secure Communities. The program, which checks the immigration status of detainees in jails by comparing their booking information to DHS’ databases, is dangerously misnamed since it actually endangers rather than improves community security.
In its press release, DHS gloated that it “identified more than 111,000 criminal aliens in local custody during its first year.” The department hailed the program as an effective way of deporting “dangerous criminals that pose a threat to public security.” So who are these alleged criminals?
A closer look reveals the program’s first fallacy: DHS includes people simply “charged” with a crime in its definition of “criminal aliens.” People are labeled criminals before they are given a chance to defend themselves in court. A cornerstone of our criminal system is that a person is innocent until proven guilty. Yet under Secure Communities, people are put into deportation proceedings even if they are innocent of criminal charges or if the arrest was simply a pretext to check a person’s immigration status.
The lack of due process sets the stage for racial profiling without any real consequences for abusive police agents. DHS maintains that since immigration checks happen electronically, the program is virtually immune to racial profiling. Consequently, DHS does not collect data that would reveal whether racial profiling is happening. The attempt to divorce police officers’ motivations for arresting individuals and DHS’ subsequent actions after the booking phase makes no sense. As the program is currently designed, a police officer can make a pre-textual arrest and later drop the charges, but an individual can still be placed into deportation proceedings.
The second misrepresentation of the program is found in DHS’s definition of “serious crimes.” The Department highlights that 100,000 of those identifies were convicted of level 2 and 3 crimes, “including burglary and serious property crimes.” What DHS omits is that while “arson” is a level 2 offense, so are “traffic offenses.” If the controversial 287(g) program which fervently targeted people with “broken tail-lights,” is any indicator, Secure Communities is a strategy for deporting anyone DHS can get its hands on—even law-abiding people who could be months away from adjusting their immigration status.
Essentially, DHS’ message is this: Being an immigrant makes you a criminal. This dangerous conflation not only promotes abusive policing practices, such as racial profiling, but also creates divisions and distrust in communities. It hurts public safety because immigrant communities are less likely to report crimes or cooperate with police for fear of deportation. It also disturbingly dehumanizes people who are an integral part of our communities and our national identity.
Last week Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano spoke about the need for immigration reform while trumpeting the successes of Secure Communities and other enforcement programs. But if the word “criminal” can replace “immigrant,” then her declaration that “We are a nation of immigrants” rings hollow.
Related Articles:
Immigration Reform:The Phone Call Heard Around the Country
Immigrant Rights Movement Fights On, Despite Obstacles
Anti-Immigrant Groups: A Chorus of Intolerance
DREAMers: Taking the Reins of their Cause
Law Enforcement Officials Call for Immigration Reform
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User Comments
Jsmith on Nov 25, 2009 at 08:37:19 said:
I fail to understand how this makes America less secure. If these people are illegal aliens, they should be deported immediately. No trial is required because they're not being deported for the crime they committed -- they're being deported for violating immigration laws.
Sudeep Motupalli Rao on Nov 24, 2009 at 15:40:32 said:
Sarahi Uribe raises some valid points in the Nov 23, 2009 commentary on New America Media's website, incorrectly titled "Secure Communities Turns Immigrants into Criminals" but the analysis lacks integrity in many aspects. Yes, Dept. of Homeland Security cannot and must not label a person who's simply charged, as a criminal until they're found guilty of the crime because that would be a double standard in the application of justice. However, until we change immigration laws, the fact that someone is in the country without valid papers or permits makes that person a criminal in DHS' eyes and discovering that individual in the process of charging them on an unrelated crime is not as ridiculous as the reporter makes it out to be. Yes, we must check for racial profiling and not simply bury our head in the sand because this program can also be abused but stating that this actually promotes racial profiling is just inflammatory and lacks evidence. But Media (even New America Media, in this case) is losing its credibility by trying to fan the flames; the title of this article could have included the word "undocumented" before "immigrants" so that it's not misleading. I am an immigrant myself and I am not opposed to immigration, in fact I believe that we must have more free movement of people but in a meaningful, realistic manner such that as a society we can plan and account for it all and maintain a system that allows us to do it in a fair, just manner. There are disparities across national borders in laws, economies, rights, opportunities etc and people have worked hard to create an attractive country, in some aspects. We need to be realistic and practical in our efforts to integrate our divided nations and our global people. The commentator's so-called "law-abiding people who are months away from adjusting their immigration status" have technically broken the law in the first place. And no, I disagree strongly with Sarahi Uribe's erroneous conclusion that Dept. of Homeland Security equates immigrants with criminals. It is media's inaccuracy and irresponsibility in its reporting that leads to dangerous conflation, divisions and distrust. Let's work for justice and fairness for all including potential immigrants by changing our system for the better but let's not cast a stone unfairly or abdicate our responsibility to shine an educating light on matters of public policy and importance.
Sudeep Motupalli Rao on Nov 23, 2009 at 13:04:48 said:
Sarahi Uribe raises some valid points in the Nov 23, 2009 commentary on New America Media's website, incorrectly titled "Secure Communities Turns Immigrants into Criminals" but the analysis lacks integrity in many aspects. Yes, Dept. of Homeland Security cannot and must not label a person who's simply charged, as a criminal until they're found guilty of the crime because that would be a double standard in the application of justice. However, until we change immigration laws, the fact that someone is in the country without valid papers or permits makes that person a criminal in DHS' eyes and discovering that individual in the process of charging them on an unrelated crime is not as ridiculous as the reporter makes it out to be. Yes, we must check for racial profiling and not simply bury our head in the sand because this program can also be abused but stating that this actually promotes racial profiling is just inflammatory and lacks evidence. But Media (even New America Media, in this case) is losing its credibility by trying to fan the flames; the title of this article could have included the word "undocumented" before "immigrants" so that it's not misleading. I am an immigrant myself and I am not opposed to immigration, in fact I believe that we must have more free movement of people but in a meaningful, realistic manner such that as a society we can plan and account for it all and maintain a system that allows us to do it in a fair, just manner. There are disparities across national borders in laws, economies, rights, opportunities etc and people have worked hard to create an attractive country, in some aspects. We need to be realistic and practical in our efforts to integrate our divided nations and our global people. The commentator's so-called "law-abiding people who are months away from adjusting their immigration status" have technically broken the law in the first place. And no, I disagree strongly with Sarahi Uribe's erroneous conclusion that Dept. of Homeland Security equates immigrants with criminals. It is media's inaccuracy and irresponsibility in its reporting that leads to dangerous conflation, divisions and distrust. Let's work for justice and fairness for all including potential immigrants by changing our system for the better but let's not cast a stone unfairly or abdicate our responsibility to shine an educating light on matters of public policy and importance.
Dave A on Nov 23, 2009 at 10:27:05 said:
If someone gets pulled over for a broken traffic light and they are in the country illegally, why shouldn't they be deported?
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