The Laken Riley doesn't address the crime against her: Violence Against Women
Deporting criminals is a no-brainer. But the Laken Riley Act isn't about that. | Opinion: Elvia Díaz, Arizona Republic
Anyone brown becomes a target, including U.S. citizens. And undocumented immigrants will go underground, refusing to report crimes against them or anyone else. Nobody is safe when that happens.
Deporting criminals, including shoplifters, is a no brainer. But the Laken Riley Act isn’t that simple.
The legislation cruising through Congress does not just expand deportation of nonviolent offenders but also strips due process and clears the way for states to meddle with immigration enforcement.
A lot of attention is on the fact that Democrats, including Arizona U.S. Sens. Ruben Gallego and Mark Kelly, are eagerly backing – and in Gallego’s case, even championing – the bill.
Why are Democrats turning on migrants now? Because being tough on migrants is suddenly en vogue in Donald Trump’s America, regardless of the broader and unintended consequences.
Laken Riley Act isn't what it seems
Selling the legislation as merely deporting criminals is politically convenient. Americans will eat that up in one gulp. After all, who can possibly defend criminals?
But don’t be fooled by sound bites.
The legislation, which cleared the House last week with the support of 48 Democrats and will almost certainly pass the Senate, is a lot more complex than simply locking up and deporting low-level criminals.
The Laken Riley Act grew from the killing of a Georgia nursing student in February by an undocumented immigrant from Venezuela.
The reasoning here is that the 22-year-old would still be alive had her murderer been kicked out of the country when he was first caught shoplifting.
I sympathize with that sentiment and understand the importance of not letting anyone off the hook for stealing or committing any other type of crime.
Nevertheless, this legislation is bad as written.
Laken Riley Act offers no due process
Where is the presumed innocence until proven guilty?
The bill requires the Department of Homeland Security to lock up anyone here illegally who is accused of burglary, theft, larceny or shoplifting.
The key word here is “accused.” It means detaining or deporting without due process, without letting the criminal justice system adjudicate each case, which is a cornerstone of America.
Who cares, if these people shouldn’t be in the United States in the first place?
Because it undermines the application of justice selectively. Once we erode that, there’s no telling what comes next for others.
States can interfere with immigration enforcement
Immigration enforcement has been the sole responsibility of the federal government. This legislation changes that.
It allows any state to sue the feds for “alleged failures” in immigration enforcement or if the “failure caused the state or its residents harm.”
Vanessa Cárdenas of America’s Voice argues that the legislation empowers “anti-immigrant zealots … to overturn longstanding precedent” and “take the reins of federal immigration policy and throw our out-of-date immigration system into more chaos.”
This could lead to inconsistent immigration enforcement policies across states, undermining federal authority. It might not happen overnight, but that still can’t be good.
States would have veto power over federal immigration visas
Still think the legislation is just about deporting shoplifters? Think again.
Under this legislation, states could seek to ban visas from countries like China and India if such countries delay or don’t accept their deported nationals.
The strategy is clearly designed to further terrorize undocumented immigrants and root them out, which would work to an extent. Especially because many local authorities can stop them for anything, including a broken taillight, and turn them over to immigration.
With that kind of enforcement usually comes racial profiling of entire communities. We’ve seen it. Anyone remember former Sheriff Joe Arpaio and what he did in Maricopa County?
Anyone brown becomes a target, including U.S. citizens. And undocumented immigrants will go underground, refusing to report crimes against them or anyone else.
Nobody is safe when that happens.
Republicans and now Democrats, too, want you to believe that the Laken Riley Act is about deporting shoplifters.
Don’t be fooled.
It’s a power grab by states to dismantle federal authority over immigration enforcement.
Elvia Díaz is editorial page editor for The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com, where this column originally appeared.
The murder of Laken Riley is being used by Republicans to promote a false narrative about crime committed by legal immigrants and illegal immigrants in America. In addition, they have dismissed the crime which is at the core of this murder: violence against women. They dare not address crimes against women because it would undermine their systemic attack against women in their policies and by the very members of their party, led by the adjudicated rapist Donald J Trump.
For more information about immigrant crime:
Undocumented Immigrant Offending Rate Lower Than U.S.-Born Citizen Rate
Debunking the Myth of the ‘Migrant Crime Wave’
Debunking the Myth of Immigrants and Crime
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and now for something interesting from a decent human being and politician, a link to Jimmy Carter's speech: Why I believe the mistreatment of women is the number one human rights abuse
