Well, I've certainly been in a cheery mood as of late, haven't I? Maybe I should switch up my game a bit, talk about something a little more upbeat. Maybe I should get out of this funk and discuss something uplifting and happy. Go back to my roots and speak on motivation and drive rather than real world issues and depression. Make something that puts a smile on your face... or I can talk about Arizona's new law regarding immigration.
Yes it's been the talk of the internet for a while now, a bill that takes some unorthodox methods of enforcement. The bill has struck up massive amounts of controversy all over the country, people are angry, and the level of foolishness is really growing on both sides here. The bill basically states that all immigrants within the state must carry their residency card and identification on them at all times. It goes on to state that a police officer may question any person they believe to be an illegal immigrant at any time without cause. The logic here is that this will help cull on the number of illegal immigrant's within the state, and dissuade laborer's from hiring illegals.
The counter is quite obvious. They scream racism, they make remarks to Nazi Germany, they are in a word, upset. The two sides of the argument have become so overblown I really did not want to throw my hat in and associate with either side of this debate, the people in this argument are so red faced, they seem to be blinding themselves to their own interpretations. People at the heart of this argument lobby insults and accusations over the line from the hip, they don't allow themselves to calm, they just try and shout over each other.
I'm going to say this point blank, this law isn't racist. I know, you're shocked, how can it not be Racist? It's a bill that specifically targets Mexican Immigrants, and that's Racist. Well, no... The problem is that I see no real intent, and without intent, it's not racism. What it is, though, is profiling. Now you may say that profiling is just a stones throw away from racism, there is a vast difference between the two. Here we have people bleating that this is an attack against Mexicans, against Latinos, against a people! No, it's not. Stop saying that.
This is not an attack on Latinos, it is an attempt to better spot people living in this illegally. Now, say what you will about your opinions on illegal immigrants or undocumented workers, whatever term you prefer, but the simple truth of the matter is they are not here legally. These are people who are not paying taxes, people who tend to send money back to Mexico and not here which does not aide the Economy, and undercut legal working wages by so much that legal citizen's cannot get certain employment. Now, what to do with this, whether we send them all back or legalize all immigrant's currently living here is a completely different issue. This is about a bill that is not racist...
It's just stupid.
I'm not sure what they were thinking over there in Arizona, but this law is just massively wrong. The difference between racism and profiling may be great, but they're both generally wrong. Here we have a police officer that can now, at any time, walk up and accost you without cause. They can demand you to hand over identification and proof of citizenship or residency. This is of course a massive invasion of privacy and civil rights. The cops cannot do anything to you without cause, otherwise would be persecution without evidence, which is very much wrong.
I can see what this law is trying to accomplish. The problem is that illegal immigration is such a heavy issue, with so many sides and complexities that it cannot just be solved. You cannot give yourself the unjust power to search these people out and throw them on a truck back home, especially not when this power is a direct injustice to people who are here legally, and therefore have the right to be protected from the government sticking their nose into their lives without just cause.
Honestly, the people on both sides of this issue annoy me somewhat. With people screaming racism and fascism without even realizing that illegal immigration, whatever your viewpoint of it is, is illegal. The other side throws back the need to protect the working class citizen, to keep employers from hiring illegally, without even contemplating that the ends do not justify the means. It's all mind numbingly insane, and makes me just want to shake my head until it all blows over.
But then, Manda made me talk about it today.
1 comment:
One little fact check for you... It seems you must have read the bill in its original form instead of the ammendment that was made to it a few days later. Police can now only ask for proof of residency when they're already investigating you for a separate crime. The ammendment even goes so far as to say that the initial investigation must not have any regards to race as the basis for starting the investigation. In other words, the police officer must already have an entirely different reason for questioning you that has absolutely nothing to do with race before they can ask you to prove you're here legally.
My own take on it... Everybody ALREADY has to prove they are a legal citizen of this country. Have you ever had to show your driver's license to a cop that pulled you over? This is no different whatsoever.
As for the people that say it's too much work to become a legal citizen... If people from other countries that come here with the sole purpose of blowing something up on our own land are able to become legal US citizens, it can't be that difficult.
Anyway, thank you for writing about this. You make some interesting points. --Jonathan
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