Arizona Police State: Attrition Through Enforcement

By Mike Sanch

On April 23, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer signed one of the most controversial immigration enforcement laws in the United State’s history. The law, known as SB1070, mandates that all government agents and law enforcement officials will now be obligated to question a person and ask for their papers if they think the person may be an undocumented migrant.

The law literally requires for the state agent to question a person based on their appearances, opening up the door for rampant racial profiling at the discretion of armed agents of the Arizona state government.

According to the vague language of the law, the brown skinned peoples of America that happen to find themselves within the boundary lines of the state of Arizona, are now all subject to questioning on the suspicion they may be a  potential enemy of the state.

If the person in question cannot provide the documents to prove their migrant or legal status, they will end up being incarcerated for up to six months, and /or swiftly deported without warning or notice to family members. It’s important to note that in many cases, deportation leads to the tragic separation of families.

Arizona: A Police State?

In the past week since the controversy has stirred up, much uproar has been raised around the enforcement of the law. The focus of the debate deals with police power and the tactics that the state of Arizona has decided to use. Accusations launched at the “right-wing” Arizona government are associated with historical examples of police state extremes, as comparisons to the Gestapo and the Nazi regime are being used loosely by activists and those who oppose the bill.

State Senator Linda Lopez, a democrat from Tucson was a leading opponent of the bill within the republican dominated state legislature, focused on the potential for abuse by agents of the government in the form of racial profiling. “This bill actually legalizes racial profiling,” she said during the debates sessions of the bill.

Many would say that the opponents of the bill have been using exaggerated rhetoric to emphasize what they think are the dangers associated with the bill’s passing. Yet, any freedom loving person and believer in human rights will be disturbed by some of the language in the bill. Here are some excerpts:

“A law enforcement officer, without a warrant, may arrest a person…”
“The legislature declares that the intent of this act is to make attrition through enforcement the public policy…to discourage and deter the unlawful entry and presence of aliens…”
“Requires the person’s immigration status to be verified with the federal government pursuant to federal law.”

The reality is the law does greatly empower police officers, virtually turning every police officer in the state into a border patrol agent. It’s easy to imagine police officers going on a power trip and interrogating, and questioning anyone with brown skin and an accent, eventually leading to the countless incarcerations of the defenseless- all  just to satisfy their overzealous egos. (we all know from life that when you give someone power, they use it)

Enforcing the law will only lead to more abuse and the exploitation of immigrants, as they will be forced into the shadows of society. No longer will immigrants cooperate with police officers for the fear of being questioned and deported. No longer would an injured or starved immigrant seek help from authorities because of the fear of being deported or incarcerated. No longer will people want to help immigrants, as the law criminalizes any humanitarian efforts to assist immigrants.

Nationwide Response

The signing of the legislation spurred the ire of activists and everyday people alike, especially those among the Mexican-American and Hispanic communities. United States President Barack Obama called the bill “misguided”.
Students in Arizona were arrested for protesting the bill on Friday when the students had chained themselves to the capital- a symbolic demonstration that conveyed what they described as the “chaining and restriction of basic human rights.” Watch here

On Monday, a swastika symbol made from refried beans was also found on the entrance door to the capital as outrage over the bill is spreading across the nation. A Facebook page titled, “1 Million Strong Against S.B. 1070” has already garnered 600,000 fans. Join here

Also marches are being planned to coincide with the International Workers Day March on May 1st 2010, and is anticipated to be the largest march since the 2006 marches that drew hundreds of thousands of people in metros across the nation as people urged action on immigration reform.

Locally in San Antonio, a march organized by local non-profits and primarily the Southwest Workers Union is scheduled to begin at 2:00 pm at Milam Park in downtown San Antonio. More information here.

One silver lining in the passing of SB1070 is the fact that the bill has pushed the immigration issue to the fore front of the debate in Washington. The question now is whether the federal government will take advantage of the window of opportunity and seek comprehensive immigration reform.

We can only wait and see as congress and the senate have failed numerous times before on this issue. Considering the fact that mid-term elections are around the corner, it will be interesting to see if the issue is finally addressed in a fair and effective way.

Until then, we will keep an eye on how the Arizona experiment will materialize when it takes effect in August.