FOX News seems to believe they've discovered some lefty hypocrisy in our concern over Arizona's immigration law. Turns out that people who are all up in arms about protecting illegal immigrants don't seem to be all that interested in protecting illegal immigrants. They're boycotting Arizona, but they aren't sending out engraved invitations to undocumented people.
It's been said that even a blind squirrel finds a nut every once in a while. Unfortunately for the visually impaired squirrels at FOX, this isn't one of those once-in-a-whiles.
First off -- and probably least important -- is that the term "sanctuary city" is probably misleading. A sanctuary city is one that won't assist federal immigration authorities without a warrant and won't enforce immigration laws on its own. According to a 2008 press release from San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom's office, "The Sanctuary Ordinance helps to maintain the stability of San Francisco communities. It keeps communities safe by making sure all residents feel comfortable calling the Police and Fire Departments during emergencies. It keeps families and workforce healthy by providing safe access to schools, clinics and other City services."
"As a Sanctuary City, San Francisco has and will continue to provide compassionate services to all immigrants, regardless of status," the release quotes city supervisor Tom Ammiano as saying. "When certain people are targeted and denied access to vital social services, the health and safety of the entire city is compromised."
So contagious people get treatment, fires get put out, crime gets reported -- all because people aren't afraid to call 911. Those screwy San Francisco hippies and their concern for their own city's welfare. What'll they come up with next?
But second and more importantly, the outrage of civil libertarians over Arizona's new law isn't about "protecting illegal aliens," as FOX's story seems to be suggesting. It's about the civil liberties of American citizens. Arizona has justice bass-ackward here; if police suspect you're committing a crime, you have to prove you're not. This just isn't the way America works. And, while supporters of the law argue that it isn't about racial profiling, I have my doubts that blond-haired, blue-eyed Bobby Whitebread is going to be asked to produce his birth certificate any time soon.
"SB 1070 does nothing short of making all of Arizona's Latino residents, and other presumed immigrants, potential criminal suspects in the eyes of the law," reports Vivek Malhotra for the American Civil Liberties Union. "It authorizes police officers to stop and ask people for their immigration papers based only on some undefined 'reasonable suspicion' that they are in the country illegally. Given that Latinos comprise an estimated 30 percent of Arizona's population, the law presents a pretty big target."
Vivek describes Arizona as a soon-to-be "police state" and he's not exaggerating. Even before Arizona passed this bill, law enforcement in that state were violating the civil rights of American citizens.
The Moras are American citizens who were picked up because they were Hispanics in the vicinity of an immigration raid. If that's not racial profiling, I'd like to know what is. New flash for FOX and other right wing idiots: I'm not mad because police were mean to illegal immigrants, I'm mad because police violated the civil rights of American citizens.
Now, if San Francisco and other sanctuary cities don't want to roll out the red carpet for illegal aliens, who can blame them? It's not what being a sanctuary city is about anyway. And the fact that San Francisco is boycotting Arizona doesn't mean that the city is trying to protect undocumented people -- it means they're trying to protect Americans.
Any random set on FOX News looks like Uncle Sam threw up all over it after going on a stars and stripes bender. They wear what they like to call their "patriotism" on their sleeve. But the fact that they don't care about American citizens in Arizona -- and further, go out of their way to ridicule those of us who do -- shows that this "patriotism" of theirs is as phony as the hypocrisy they want you to believe they've found at the Golden Gate.
-Wisco
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They may call themselves "sanctuary cities," but very few of them are offering sanctuary to the illegal immigrants in Arizona who now face possible arrest and deportation.
As San Francisco and other "sanctuary cities" declare war on Arizona over its new law cracking down on illegal immigrants, most state and local governments that provide a safe haven to undocumented workers refused to publicly roll out a welcome mat for the estimated 440,000 illegals in the Grand Canyon state.
It's been said that even a blind squirrel finds a nut every once in a while. Unfortunately for the visually impaired squirrels at FOX, this isn't one of those once-in-a-whiles.
First off -- and probably least important -- is that the term "sanctuary city" is probably misleading. A sanctuary city is one that won't assist federal immigration authorities without a warrant and won't enforce immigration laws on its own. According to a 2008 press release from San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom's office, "The Sanctuary Ordinance helps to maintain the stability of San Francisco communities. It keeps communities safe by making sure all residents feel comfortable calling the Police and Fire Departments during emergencies. It keeps families and workforce healthy by providing safe access to schools, clinics and other City services."
"As a Sanctuary City, San Francisco has and will continue to provide compassionate services to all immigrants, regardless of status," the release quotes city supervisor Tom Ammiano as saying. "When certain people are targeted and denied access to vital social services, the health and safety of the entire city is compromised."
So contagious people get treatment, fires get put out, crime gets reported -- all because people aren't afraid to call 911. Those screwy San Francisco hippies and their concern for their own city's welfare. What'll they come up with next?
But second and more importantly, the outrage of civil libertarians over Arizona's new law isn't about "protecting illegal aliens," as FOX's story seems to be suggesting. It's about the civil liberties of American citizens. Arizona has justice bass-ackward here; if police suspect you're committing a crime, you have to prove you're not. This just isn't the way America works. And, while supporters of the law argue that it isn't about racial profiling, I have my doubts that blond-haired, blue-eyed Bobby Whitebread is going to be asked to produce his birth certificate any time soon.
"SB 1070 does nothing short of making all of Arizona's Latino residents, and other presumed immigrants, potential criminal suspects in the eyes of the law," reports Vivek Malhotra for the American Civil Liberties Union. "It authorizes police officers to stop and ask people for their immigration papers based only on some undefined 'reasonable suspicion' that they are in the country illegally. Given that Latinos comprise an estimated 30 percent of Arizona's population, the law presents a pretty big target."
Vivek describes Arizona as a soon-to-be "police state" and he's not exaggerating. Even before Arizona passed this bill, law enforcement in that state were violating the civil rights of American citizens.
American Civil Liberties Union [PDF]:
On the morning of February 11, 2009, Julian Mora was driving to his place of work in southern Phoenix, accompanied by his teenaged son, Julio Mora. Julian Mora was taking his usual route and obeying all laws when a Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office ("MCSO") vehicle suddenly cut in front of him, forcing him to stop abruptly. Without any legal justification, MCSO deputies ordered Julian and Julio Mora out of their pickup truck, frisked them, and handcuffed them. The deputies then transported the Moras to Julian Mora's workplace where MCSO was in the process of conducting an immigration related raid. Over the course of the next three hours, MCSO deputies detained the Moras, forbade them from any contact with the outside world, and subjected them to painful and humiliating mistreatment resulting in emotional distress and injury. The Moras were effectively taken prisoner by armed MCSO personnel without any explanation for their arrest.
The Moras are American citizens who were picked up because they were Hispanics in the vicinity of an immigration raid. If that's not racial profiling, I'd like to know what is. New flash for FOX and other right wing idiots: I'm not mad because police were mean to illegal immigrants, I'm mad because police violated the civil rights of American citizens.
Now, if San Francisco and other sanctuary cities don't want to roll out the red carpet for illegal aliens, who can blame them? It's not what being a sanctuary city is about anyway. And the fact that San Francisco is boycotting Arizona doesn't mean that the city is trying to protect undocumented people -- it means they're trying to protect Americans.
Any random set on FOX News looks like Uncle Sam threw up all over it after going on a stars and stripes bender. They wear what they like to call their "patriotism" on their sleeve. But the fact that they don't care about American citizens in Arizona -- and further, go out of their way to ridicule those of us who do -- shows that this "patriotism" of theirs is as phony as the hypocrisy they want you to believe they've found at the Golden Gate.
-Wisco
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2 comments:
Migratory Slavery
Many Dems and Repubs are demanding that the practice of migrant slave labor continue in violation of the law. Illegal immigrants are a pool of cheap labor. No benefits. No Health care. No career path or promotions. Just cheap labor, forced to work below minimum wage. The work of these poor slaves is one benefit to the predator that uses them. And the extra social security and medicare/medicaid witholding is also a tidy extra sum to skim off, a slush fund for business and governments. Many Dems and Repubs want/need/like having those slaves, their labor and the stream of money they produce, and they are gonna fight hard to keep them and to sustain the infrstructure that gives them ready acces to 'men who are not quite men'.
So it has been throughout much of time. Predatores like their slave labor. Migratory slaves do not have full rights. 'Men who are not quite men' are not recognized as citizens, they are unable to go to the authorities to right wrongs, they don't get pensions. Slaves can be treated poorly and illegally, because they don't have the human rights that everyone else has. The practice is illegal. The slaves work and migrate illegally Yet the predators want and need to sustain the situation.
This illegal practice does harm to lower-mid income citizens, takes away jobs from citizens, and undercuts the wage structure. Migratory slavery has replaced most entry level positions, and part time jobs, denying Americans those jobs. Many excellent construction and seasonal jobs are simply no longer available to 'legal' citizens.
Want to create millions of jobs for citizens? End the illegal practice of migratory slavery.
The leeches living off the practice of slavery are powerful and will twist and contort and demonize, anything to try and keep their slaves. The party bosses are planning to supplement their regular MayDay celebrations with the additional message of saving the slavery. The irony of 'international workers' being told to demonstrate to undercut their own wages and to back an evil like slavery, is telling.
We just need to remember that slavery is an evil and the bosses are predators and slaveholders, who should be treated with contempt.
As a current resident of San Francisco, I not only appreciated your defense of the city against more of the usual slander, but also your explanation of what a "sanctuary city" is. So many people either don't understand or intentionally ignore what that actually means.
Really, sanctuary cities are just openly declaring that they will comply with existing immigration laws, as immigration is a federal matter and having a warrant is -supposed- to be a requirement.
I'm tired of people acting like San Francisco is just this city of CrazyCommunistLiberalHippies giving out handouts left and right to illegal immigrants and "the gays" in an attempt to undermine all that is American, just for the heck of it. I appreciate that my city puts my tax money towards real issues, like providing adequate public transit, public health, and a decent police force, rather than wasting it on some overblown perceived threat, ie illegal immigrants washing dishes or cleaning houses for dollars a day.
But that's just me.
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