Highbrow Magazine - racial profiling https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/racial-profiling en Judge: Arpaio Is Guilty of Racial Profiling https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/2473-judge-arpaio-guilty-racial-profiling <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Tue, 05/28/2013 - 10:07</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/mediumarpaio.jpg?itok=hATLO7v4"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/mediumarpaio.jpg?itok=hATLO7v4" width="480" height="268" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> From <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/2013/05/judge-discrimination-at-arpaios-office-came-from-the-top-down.php">New America Media</a>:</p> <p>  </p> <p> PHOENIX -- A federal judge ruled on Friday that Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio engaged in racial profiling of Latinos, violating their constitutional rights in his crackdown on illegal immigration. Civil rights advocates expect the ruling to send a chilling message to other law enforcement agencies that are planning to engage in immigration enforcement.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “The order today will have national importance in deterring others across the country,” said Dan Pochoda, one of the prosecuting attorneys with the American Civil Liberties Union in a lawsuit brought by the ACLU and the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF).</p> <p>  </p> <p> In his ruling, U.S. Federal District Judge Murray Snow found that sheriff’s deputies engaged in a pattern and practice of discrimination against Latinos during immigration sweeps and enforcement of state immigration laws.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Snow said in the decision that the Sheriff’s Office had “failed to have a clear policy that required execution of the saturation patrols and other enforcement efforts in a race-neutral manner; made no efforts to determine whether its officers were engaging in racially-biased enforcement during its saturation patrols, and failed to comply with standard police practices concerning record-keeping maintained by other law enforcement authorities engaged in such operations.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> Arpaio’s attorney Tim Casey said the Sheriff's Office would comply with the order but that he would appeal the decision.</p> <p>  </p> <p> The long-awaited decision in a trial that ended last July represents a pivotal moment for Arizona civil rights organizations and immigrant rights groups that spent the last five years denouncing Arpaio’s high-profile crusade against undocumented immigrants.</p> <p>  </p> <p> At the heart of the trial was proving that Arpaio’s agency had the intent to discriminate during its immigration operations or “crime suppression patrols” and that it has engaged in a practice of racial profiling of Latinos that remains to this day.</p> <p>  </p> <p> The ACLU and MALDEF are not seeking monetary relief but say they want to end racial profiling by the Sheriff’s Office. Among the changes they may ask for are the development of a policy to ban the practice of racial profiling, active monitoring of deputy conduct and record-keeping for traffic stops.</p> <p>  </p> <p> The lawsuit was brought by several U.S. citizens and Manuel de Jesus Ortega Melendres, a Mexican tourist who was detained by deputies during a traffic stop when he was a passenger in a vehicle.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Arpaio started what he called his “crime suppression operations” in 2007, shortly after signing an agreement with the federal government – known as 287(g) -- that gave his deputies the legal authority to enforce federal immigration laws.</p> <p>  </p> <p> <img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/mediumsb1070_1.jpg" style="width: 600px; height: 335px;" /></p> <p>  </p> <p> The immigration raids and sweeps that followed created an uproar from Latinos who felt they were being targeted because of the color of their skin. That sparked a Justice Department civil rights investigation and subsequent litigation, the ACLU-MALDEF lawsuit, and the announcement by Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano that the federal government was revoking its 287(g) agreement with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office.</p> <p>  </p> <p> In response to the uproar over the immigration raids, conservative politicians in Arizona, backed by Arpaio, crafted an unprecedented piece of state legislation -- the Support our Law-Enforcement and Secure Neighborhoods Act, or SB 1070 – that was signed into law in 2010, making it a state crime to be an undocumented immigrant.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Arpaio’s testimony as the head of the agency was essential to the trial because attorneys were trying to prove that the discrimination came from “the top,” and that it was fueled in part by the sheriff’s public statements and his inaction in taking steps to avoid the alleged violations.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Part of the evidence presented by the ACLU included letters from constituents in Maricopa County that encouraged Arpaio to racially profile. The letters were used to underscore prosecutors’ argument that there was discriminatory motivation at the heart of Arpaio’s immigration enforcement tactics.</p> <p>  </p> <p> One of the letters, received on June 19, 2008, read: “If you have dark skin, then you have dark skin! Unfortunately, that is the look of the Mexican illegals who are here ILLEGALLY […] They bring their unclean, disrespectful, integrity-less, law breaking selves here […] I am begging you to come over to the 29thSt/Greenway Pkwy area and round them all up!...They crawl around here all day and night.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> Arpaio kept a copy of this and many other letters in an immigration file. He sent his constituents thank you notes for their support, and in some cases, like this one, he wrote notes to his staff: “Have someone handle this.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> An immigration sweep was later conducted in that area.</p> <p>  </p> <p> <strong>What lies ahead</strong></p> <p>  </p> <p> The ruling brought a sigh of relief to many immigrants in Arizona who for years have been fearful of the Sheriff’s Office’s practice of conducting sweeps in neighborhoods and places of employment. Yet ACLU attorney Daniel Pochoda warned that there is still another phase of the trial, in which the court will decide how to make sure the judge’s injunction is enforced properly.</p> <p>  </p> <p> In his ruling, Snow said that Arpaio’s agency had failed to comply with a previous order by the court not to use the suspicion of someone being in the country illegally as a reason to pull people over or initiate an investigation.</p> <p>  </p> <p> With today’s ruling, and an effort to recall Sheriff Joe Arpaio underway, momentum seems to be building in opposition to the controversial figure.</p> <p>  </p> <p> But whether this could spell relief for those who were arrested in Arpaio’s sweeps remains unknown.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “While today's court ruling is undeniably a victory, real justice will come when the victims of Arpaio see their rights fully vindicated,” said Carlos García, director of the Phoenix-based PUENTE Movement, which advocates on behalf of immigrants. “At a bare minimum, the White House should respond by immediately suspending deportations throughout Maricopa County.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/2013/05/judge-discrimination-at-arpaios-office-came-from-the-top-down.php">New America Media</a></p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/sherrif-arpaio" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">sherrif arpaio</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/racial-profiling" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">racial profiling</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/case-against-arpaio" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">case against arpaio</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/maricopa-county" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">maricopa county</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/arizona" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Arizona</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/court-case" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">court case</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Valeria Fernández</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-photographer field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Photographer:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">New America Media</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Tue, 28 May 2013 14:07:18 +0000 tara 2924 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/2473-judge-arpaio-guilty-racial-profiling#comments Notes From New York’s ‘Stop and Frisk’ Trial https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/2462-notes-new-york-s-stop-and-frisk-trial <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Thu, 05/23/2013 - 12:55</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/2mediumstopandfrisk_0.jpg?itok=8fyMMV6o"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/2mediumstopandfrisk_0.jpg?itok=8fyMMV6o" width="480" height="268" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p>  </p> <p> From <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/2013/05/from-the-jury-box----thoughts-on-the-stop-and-frisk-trial.php">New America Media</a>:</p> <p>  </p> <p> <strong>Commentary: </strong></p> <p>  </p> <p> NEW YORK -- It was one word that struck me. More than any other word spoken over the past 10 weeks of court testimony in Floyd v. City of New York, the civil trial questioning the New York Police Department’s policy of “Stop, Question and Frisk." “No.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> In over 8,000 pages of official court transcripts from the trial that ended on Monday, it is spoken time and time again by sergeants, precinct commanders and current and former high-ranking officers within the police department. The question being replied to was a variation on this: “Does it bother you that in the vast majority, nine out of 10 stops, no enforcement action was taken? No summons, no arrest, no weapons found?”</p> <p>  </p> <p> “No.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> This is perhaps the heart of the case that the Center for Constitutional Rights brought to Judge Shira Scheindlin’s courtroom on the 15th floor of the federal courthouse in lower Manhattan. Authorities see no wrongdoing, despite the fact that over the past decade, NYPD officers have conducted nearly 4.5 million stops in a city of 8 million. Eighty-five percent of those stopped were black or Latino, meaning that many people have been stopped more than once.</p> <p>  </p> <p> During the bench trial, members of the press were seated in the jury box, a metaphor not lost on me. As a New Yorker of color, and one who has been stopped by the police, I had an intense personal interest in the trial. Perhaps it’s also because I have spent much of the past 10 years outside the country as a foreign correspondent, watching from afar as my city and country changed after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 to prize security above nearly all else. Back in New York for a few months, I decided to spend some time observing the trial.</p> <p>  </p> <p> When I was stopped, on a train platform after visiting my mother’s house in central Brooklyn, two white officers came up to me and asked if they could look in my bag. There had been a robbery, they explained, and were looking for a suspect. I knew my rights. I could have refused to consent to a search of my bag. I also wanted to get home and my train was coming. If I refused, would they hold me anyway? Would they ask me for my ID and run a background check? Maybe, maybe not. At that moment I didn’t want to deal with the hassle, so I agreed. They didn’t find anything, politely thanked me for my time and moved on. No form was filled out. Apparently, I fit a description.</p> <p>  </p> <p> <img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/mediumstopandfrsiktrial.jpg" style="width: 600px; height: 335px;" /></p> <p>  </p> <p> Both in the press and in the courtroom, the city’s lawyers as well as NYPD officials defended Stop-and-Frisk as an important law enforcement tool that gets guns off the streets and stops crime.</p> <p>  </p> <p> However, less than 1 percent of all stops results in the discovery of a weapon and only 0.14 percent of all stops results in finding a gun. This, despite the fact that “suspicious bulge” or “furtive movement” is the box ticked off on the form that officers are required to fill out in a large percentage of stops.</p> <p>  </p> <p> As a journalist, I’ve had my fair share of encounters with NYPD officers. A few of those instances weren’t what I would have wanted them to be. But in reporting multiple series on the 28th precinct in Harlem and after spending many days riding in radio cars, standing on rooftops and walking the streets with a variety of policemen and women, I can say I have a broader perspective on the department than most. Most officers and commanders care deeply about the communities they serve. That’s why they became cops.</p> <p>  </p> <p> But as we learned in the trial, the NYPD is, among other things, a bureaucracy. The plaintiffs claim that this bureaucracy is obsessed with numbers and passed that obsession down to the rank and file through “performance goals,” which they claim is just another way to say quota.</p> <p>  </p> <p> When the recording that Officer Pedro Serrano made of his superior Deputy Inspector Christopher McCormack telling the officer that he needed to stop “the right people” was played, eyebrows were raised. When pressed by the officer to tell him who these people were, McCormack’s response was “male blacks 14 to 20, 21.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> The department denies this was a blatant call for racial profiling but instead a commander telling his staff to address a specific problem. They have repeatedly told us that while a high number of blacks and Latinos are being stopped, the vast majority of perpetrators, as well as victims of crime, are black and Latino -- so it makes sense that these people would also be stopped and questioned.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Missing from that logic is the fact that in order for a stop to be legal, the officer must have a reasonable suspicion that a crime has just happened, is in progress, or will in the near future be committed. Putting aside the frightening idea of “future crime” for a moment, this suspicion must also be specific to the person being stopped. Simply being a black male in an area where black males commit crime is not enough.</p> <p>  </p> <p> We'll soon discover whether or not Judge Scheindlin agrees.</p> <p>  </p> <p> <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/2013/05/from-the-jury-box----thoughts-on-the-stop-and-frisk-trial.php">New America Media</a></p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/stop-and-frisk" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">stop and frisk</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/stop-and-frisk-trial" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">stop and frisk trial</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/nypd" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">NYPD</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/new-york-city" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">New York City</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/mayor-bloomberg" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Mayor Bloomberg</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/racial-profiling" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">racial profiling</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/police-0" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">the police</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Damaso Reyes</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-photographer field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Photographer:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">New America Media</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Thu, 23 May 2013 16:55:18 +0000 tara 2905 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/2462-notes-new-york-s-stop-and-frisk-trial#comments Three Years After SB 1070, Fear of Police Remains Rampant https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/2301-three-years-after-sb-fear-police-remains-rampant <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Fri, 03/29/2013 - 09:43</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/2mediumsb1070.jpg?itok=1N6go1J_"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/2mediumsb1070.jpg?itok=1N6go1J_" width="480" height="268" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p>  </p> <p> From <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/2013/03/fear-distrust-of-police-rampant-three-years-after-sb-1070.php">New America Media</a>:</p> <p>  </p> <p> PHOENIX, Ariz. -- Police pulling people over for minor infractions and asking for documents, rape victims too afraid to call the police, children living in fear of having their parents taken away. These were some of the stories shared by community members and immigrant advocates in Arizona, who testified before a state civil rights board this week on the enforcement of a state immigration law that they say has increased racial profiling and police mistrust.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “SB 1070 is being used as a tool to intimidate and hurt communities," said Lydia Guzman, the national chairman of the League of United Latin American Citizens’ (LULAC) Immigration Committee, to the board.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Almost three years after the bill was signed into law making it mandatory for police to contact immigration authorities if they suspect someone is in the country illegally, the Arizona Civil Rights Advisory Board (ACRAB) heard testimony from undocumented immigrants themselves.</p> <p>  </p> <p> The board is a volunteer group of bipartisan members appointed by the governor that has the power to make recommendations to different state agencies, but doesn’t create policy.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Dan Pochoda, an attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), said that a pronouncement from the board could have a deterrence effect, helping to curb racial profiling by law-enforcement agencies in the state.</p> <p>  </p> <p> For example, in 2008, the board wrote a letter to the Department of Justice (DOJ) urging an investigation into alleged racial profiling by the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office. It also asked immigration authorities to rescind a 287(g) agreement that allowed deputies to act as immigration officers. In both cases, pressure from the board as well as others yielded results, prompting a DOJ investigation and the reversal of the 287 (g) agreement.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “They can put pressure and make public statements, even if they can’t order a particular sheriff to change practices,” said Pochoda. Pochoda urged the board to recommend that law enforcement start tracking data and statistics of traffic stops to detect racial profiling and have policies to prohibit the referral of victims and witnesses of crimes to immigration authorities.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Board chairman Jeff Lavender said he would look into the possibility of making such a recommendation. Pochoda also addressed the situation of Dreamers, who are in the process of applying for deferred action, and sometimes are subject to detention by police officers who are unclear about their immigration status due to SB 1070 provisions.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Cesar Valdes, was pulled over by Phoenix police over his car’s registration – that turned out not to be expired- but was held for almost a full day until immigration could confirm he was applying for deferred action.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “There has to be something in place, because I’m not the only one,” said Valdes in his testimony. “There’s been several cases of Dreamers like me [who] have been detained and put in detention for more than 20 hours.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> Dulce Juarez, a coordinator of the immigrant rights project for ACLU, said the group has documented over 500 calls through its hotline since the implementation of SB 1070.</p> <p>  </p> <p> The ACLU has identified cases in which police questioned witnesses and victims of crimes about their immigration status, and passengers in vehicles with no reasonable suspicion of any crime being committed.</p> <p> <img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/mediumundocumentedimmigrants_0.jpg" style="width: 600px; height: 398px;" /></p> <p>  </p> <p> <strong>State of Fear </strong></p> <p>  </p> <p> The board heard a wide array of testimony that emphasized how SB 1070 has been used as an excuse to racially profile people or an intimidation tactic.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Guzman from LULAC testified about the case of an 11-year-old girl who was raped. The rape went unreported, and her pregnancy carried on as she lived under the threat that her rapist was going to report her family to immigration authorities. The case was finally reported to police when it come to Guzman’s attention.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “This could have been caught earlier,” Guzman said.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Several mothers testified about feeling unsafe. “I’m scared of taking my child to school, and I’m also afraid to go to the store. I’m worried about my husband when he goes to work, because I don’t know if he’ll return,” said Rosalba Posadas, an undocumented immigrant.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Others like Maria Vargas, are worried about the safety of their children in school. “We’re afraid of these people [who] are volunteers of the sheriff. We don’t know who they are and they’re patrolling our children’s schools,” said Vargas, referring to the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office posse that mobilized in response to school shootings.</p> <p>  </p> <p> The majority of the testimonies detailed encounters with police officers by Latino citizens and immigrants, where the reason for the stop was a minor traffic violation or no violation at all. For those who are undocumented, it triggered a process of deportation.</p> <p>  </p> <p> SB 1070 was enjoined as soon as it took effect on July 29, 2010 by federal judge Susan Bolton in the District Court of Phoenix, blocking several parts of it including a provision that made it a state crime to be an undocumented immigrant. Another part -known as section “2b”- took effect after the U.S. Supreme Court lifted the injunction on June 2012, making it mandatory for police to ask for documents.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “It become very clear that the section 2b was really a legalization [of] racial profiling,” said Isabel Garcia, attorney and director of the pro-immigrant coalition Derechos Humanos in Tucson, Arizona.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Garcia added her voice to that of several other civil and human rights groups like the ACLU that have hotlines to document allegations of racial profiling and other forms of police abuse connected to immigration enforcement.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “The difference between Phoenix and Tucson is that in Tucson you’re deported within 2 hours,” she said, due to the proximity to Mexico and the presence of a Border Patrol station.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “We heard some very powerful stories, so many brave people [who came] here and admitted their status to us, “ she said. Flores was appointed to the board by former Democratic governor and now secretary of Homeland Security, Janet Napolitano.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “I didn’t even know that there was a board,” said Viridiana Hernández, a founder of Team Awesome, a Latino vote mobilization group and a Dreamer. “What I hate about this forum is that we come and talk, it happens year [after] year. My question is what are you going to do as a Civil Rights Advisory Board?”</p> <p>  </p> <p> <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/2013/03/fear-distrust-of-police-rampant-three-years-after-sb-1070.php">New America Media</a></p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/sb-1070" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">SB 1070</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/arizona" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Arizona</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/arizona-immigration-laws" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">arizona immigration laws</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/immigration-laws" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">immigration laws</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/illegal-immigrants" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">illegal immigrants</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/police" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">police</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/detaining-illegal-immigrants" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">detaining illegal immigrants</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/us-mexico-border-0" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">us-mexico border</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/racial-profiling" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">racial profiling</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Valeria Fernandez</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-photographer field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Photographer:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">New America Media</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Fri, 29 Mar 2013 13:43:08 +0000 tara 2601 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/2301-three-years-after-sb-fear-police-remains-rampant#comments Stop-and-Frisk Trial Sheds Negative Light on Mayor Bloomberg https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/2296-stop-and-frisk-trial-sheds-negative-light-mayor-bloomberg <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Thu, 03/28/2013 - 12:39</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/2mediumstopandfrisk.jpg?itok=kGCWCQ_j"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/2mediumstopandfrisk.jpg?itok=kGCWCQ_j" width="480" height="268" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p>  </p> <p> From <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/2013/03/stop-and-frisk-trial-puts-bloomberg-in-ugly-glare.php">New America Media</a>:</p> <p>  </p> <p> NEW YORK -- Mayor Bloomberg boasts that when New York does something, like banning super-size soft drinks, the world pays attention. Now a class-action lawsuit against the New York Police Department (NYPD)'s stop-and-frisk tactics is putting him and a policy he championed in an ugly glare.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Filed in 2008 by the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), <em>Floyd et. al v. City of New York </em>charges that the NYPD interdicted millions of ordinary people on the city's streets merely for being people of color -- or "walking while black," in the words of the <em>New York Times</em>. As many as 5 million people were subjected to searches over a period of several years as they walked home or walked to the store or simply hung out in front of their homes, according to statistics compiled by the ACLU.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Last year, the CCR won another federal class-action case against the city for racial bias in its failure to promote black firefighters. On March 8, 2012, a federal judge ruled the New York Fire Department had to pay $128 million in back pay to the plaintiffs.</p> <p>  </p> <p> What would happen if CCR's federal lawsuit prevails against the NYPD?  As precedent, the CCR points to the 2002 Cincinnati Collaborative Agreement which resulted from a settlement after the ACLU joined with the Cincinnati Black United Front to file suit alleging racial profiling and discriminatory law enforcement. Enacted in April 2002 with a five-year time frame, the agreement aimed to improve police-community relations as well as education, hiring practices and accountability within the police department.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Other cities are dealing with similar legal challenges to abusive police behavior. The Special Litigation Section of the Justice Department is opening an investigation of the use of force by police officers in the Cleveland police department.</p> <p>  </p> <p> And the Justice Department is currently negotiating a consent decree to settle a federal lawsuit against the City of New Orleans. A federal consent decree means that a court can order timely injunctive relief against a city and maintains jurisdiction over the case to ensure that the settlement is followed. Failure to obey the order can cause a court to find the party in contempt and impose other penalties.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Plaintiffs in lawsuits generally prefer consent decrees because they have the power of the court behind the agreements; defendants who wish to avoid publicity also tend to prefer such agreements because they limit the exposure of damaging details. Critics of consent decrees argue that federal district courts assert too much power over the defendant.</p> <p>  </p> <p> <em>Floyd et. al v. City of New York</em> is the culmination of years of protests, lawsuits, and demonstrations by New Yorkers to abolish stop and frisk. Hundreds of thousands of people marched in silent protest on Father's Day last June 17, passing Mayor Bloomberg's residence. On March 18, activists from organizations like Communities United for Police Reform, who have worked to educate people about how to deal with repressive police stops, rallied at Foley Square to mark the trial's start.</p> <p>  </p> <p> <img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/mediumbloomberg%20%28Wiki%29.jpg" style="width: 400px; height: 600px;" /></p> <p>  </p> <p> Mayor Bloomberg and Police Commissioner Ray Kelly defend the policy as key to the city's crackdown on crime. CCR's Executive Director Vincent Warren, speaking at the Foley Square rally, rebutted their claim, pointing out that less than 1 percent of stop-and-frisk interdictions resulted in gun confiscations.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Djbril Toure, a member of the Malcolm X Grass Roots Movement, which organized cop watch patrols and workshops to teach people their rights when stopped by police, said the trial "vindicates decades of our work."</p> <p>  </p> <p> Toure underscored the life and death consequences of "repressive police policies" by reading off the names of New Yorkers gunned down by police -- like Sean Bell, Adamadou Diallo, Abner Louima, and Kimai Gray (shot on March 10 by police officers who claimed he pointed a gun at them.) Sixteen-year-old Gray's death sparked a major civil disturbance described by news reports as a riot in East Flatbush, Brooklyn.</p> <p>  </p> <p> NY City Council member Jummane Williams, who represents Brooklyn, warned that anger is bubbling up and that "every proper leader in New York" should address the problem before it goes too far.</p> <p>  </p> <p> A week into the trial, City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn announced at a press conference in front of the police department headquarters that the Council had agreed to create an inspector general to oversee the police department. And the Legal Services of NY filed its own federal class-action lawsuit against the NYPD, alleging "routine discrimination against immigrant New Yorkers who seek police assistance in times of crisis.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> Perhaps most damaging to the Mayor's credibility on stop and frisk was testimony by two whistleblower police officers about the pressure officers face to make a certain number of stops. If you didn't make your quota, said one, "you'll become a pizza delivery man."</p> <p>  </p> <p> <strong>Author Bio:</strong></p> <p> <em>Greg Morris is a veteran reporter who teaches journalism at Hunter College</em>.</p> <p>  </p> <p> <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/2013/03/stop-and-frisk-trial-puts-bloomberg-in-ugly-glare.php">New America Media</a></p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/nypd" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">NYPD</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/new-york-police" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">New York Police</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/mayor-bloomberg" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Mayor Bloomberg</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/stop-and-frisk" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">stop and frisk</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/stop-and-frisk-lawsuit" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">stop and frisk lawsuit</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/racial-profiling" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">racial profiling</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Greg Morris</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-photographer field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Photographer:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">New America Media</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Thu, 28 Mar 2013 16:39:06 +0000 tara 2592 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/2296-stop-and-frisk-trial-sheds-negative-light-mayor-bloomberg#comments Where Do We Stand? The State of Justice and Equality in America https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/2126-where-do-we-stand-state-justice-and-equality-america <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Mon, 02/11/2013 - 10:46</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/mediumjessejackson%20%28NAM%29.jpg?itok=OkAVpiVV"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/mediumjessejackson%20%28NAM%29.jpg?itok=OkAVpiVV" width="480" height="268" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p>  </p> <p> From <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/2013/02/the-state-of-equality-and-justice-in-america-america-stands-at-a-crossroads.php">New America Media</a> and <a href="http://www.triceedneywire.com/">TriceEdneyWire.com</a>:</p> <p>  </p> <p> <strong>Opinion</strong></p> <p>  </p> <p> America stands at a crossroads. We can take the high road toward equal access to high-quality public education, reaffirm our commitment to democratically elected public officials, end the failed war on drugs, recommit to the right of workers to bargain for better conditions, lower our dreadful rate of hyper-incarceration and implement the Affordable Care Act. Or we can travel in the opposite direction and move the nation away from equal opportunity and justice.</p> <p>  </p> <p> One reason our political bodies are so sharply divided is over this question of justice. Some Americans seem to believe that we have done enough to achieve justice. Others understand that the struggle for justice and equality is a continuing American project that requires patience and perseverance.</p> <p>  </p> <p> There are some disturbing trends. A decade ago there were 40 million uninsured people. Today the number is closer to 50 million. There is greater income inequality and more poverty. Average Americans have lost trillions of dollars in family wealth – largely the result of unregulated real estate markets. We have not yet regulated exotic Wall Street investments like derivatives. Our incarceration rate continues to grow; we imprison more people than any other developed nation in the world, per capita, while drugs are more plentiful and lower priced than they were a decade ago. Fewer boys are finishing college and the rate at which we produce engineers is dropping. We rank lower in health outcomes than much poorer nations. These trends must be addressed and reversed if we are to continue to prosper and lead the world.</p> <p>  </p> <p> We seem fatigued with questions of racial and ethnic justice. Affirmative action is under attack, again. Racial profiling, abuse of prosecutorial discretion, excessive use of police force, runaway juries, disparate sentencing and selective prosecution are generally accepted as normal, not exceptional. While we celebrate the promise of the Lillie Ledbetter Act, too much race discrimination lurks in our work places. Instead of looking at our immigrant population as a strength to be cultivated, we ignore, or pander to them.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Our civil rights apparatus is fraying. There is a trend away from joining and supporting organizations – churches, unions, and civil rights organizations. Rugged individualism is no substitute for institutional voices for justice and equality. Noah built an ark to withstand the flood. Those who could swim died outside the ark. Those who could not swim survived inside the ark. Good swimmers can’t swim 40 days and 40 nights. We need strong institutional bulwarks to protect us from exclusion and prejudice.</p> <p> <img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/mediumjusticestatue%20%28Roland%20Zumbeuhl%20Wiki%29.jpg" style="width: 400px; height: 600px;" /></p> <p>  </p> <p> Perhaps the most disturbing trend is away from the universal franchise. The right to vote secures every other right. We are encountering stiff headwinds that threaten to undermine democracy itself. Despite “Citizens United”, money is not speech. Our elections should not be bought and sold like vacation homes and yachts. Latter day, politically driven obstacles – voter suppression – is un-American. There is no political goal that justifies dishonest schemes to disenfranchise American citizens. America is not a race, or a religion, color or language. America is built on a set of noble, but fragile premises: All men are created equal; one person-one vote; majority rule. It is these principles that make the American experiment work – undoing them could unravel the fabric of the nation.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Yet, I remain optimistic. Our union has been in the process of perfecting itself throughout its entire existence. America has been a laboratory experiment in justice and equality. The enslaved never adjusted to being considered less than human. Women never adjusted to second-class citizenship. Workers refused to acquiesce to exploitation. Seniors refused to accept the indignity of poverty after a life of industry. Young people refused to be seen and not heard. That is the genius of the American experiment – we become a better, stronger nation when we insist that the nation live with its conscience.</p> <p>  </p> <p> <strong>Author Bio:</strong></p> <p> <em>Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. is President/CEO of the Chicago-based Rainbow/PUSH Coalition. This article – the fourth of a 20-part series -- is written in commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. The Lawyers' Committee is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization, formed in 1963 at the request of President John F. Kennedy to enlist the private bar's leadership and resources in combating racial discrimination and the resulting inequality of opportunity - work that continues to be vital today. For more information, please visit <a href="http://www.lawyerscommittee.org/">www.lawyerscommittee.org</a>.</em></p> <p>  </p> <p> <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/2013/02/the-state-of-equality-and-justice-in-america-america-stands-at-a-crossroads.php">New America Media</a></p> <p>  </p> <p> <em><strong>Photos: New America Media; Roland Zumbeuhl (Wikipedia Commons).</strong></em></p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/rev-jesse-l-jackson" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">rev. jesse l. jackson</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/reverand-jesse-jackson" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">reverand jesse jackson</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/rainbow-coalition" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">rainbow coalition</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/equality" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">equality</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/justice" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">justice</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/discrminiation" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">discrminiation</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/obama" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Obama</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/affirmative-action" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">affirmative action</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/racial-profiling" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">racial profiling</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/minority" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">minority</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/equal-opportunity" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">equal opportunity</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Rev. Jesse L. Jackson </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-photographer field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Photographer:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">New America Media</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Mon, 11 Feb 2013 15:46:30 +0000 tara 2339 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/2126-where-do-we-stand-state-justice-and-equality-america#comments Supreme Court Justices Question Arguments Against Controversial Ariz. Immigration Law https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/1131-supreme-court-justices-question-arguments-against-controversial-ariz-immigration-law <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Sun, 04/29/2012 - 17:35</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/mediumarizona_0.jpg?itok=ZEKT1lV-"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/mediumarizona_0.jpg?itok=ZEKT1lV-" width="480" height="318" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p>  </p> <p> From <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/news/">New America Media</a>:</p> <p>  </p> <p> WASHINGTON – U.S. Supreme Court justices expressed skepticism over the federal government’s arguments April 25  in a hearing on Arizona’s controversial immigration law SB 1070. The justices could issue a decision as early as June.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Among the key questions at the heart of the case is whether states can enforce their own immigration laws.</p> <p>  </p> <p> During the hearing, justices questioned the argument used by the Obama administration’s Solicitor General Donald Verrilli that Arizona law would interfere with federal priorities for immigration enforcement whose stated focus is on criminals.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Justices examined four provisions of the Arizona law that were enjoined by lower federal courts. These include the requirement for law enforcement to inquire about an individual’s immigration status based on “reasonable suspicion,” penalties for not having legal documents to be in the state, making it a crime to seek employment as an undocumented immigrant, and the authorization of warrantless arrests of individuals.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Verrilli tried to persuade the justices to look at the overall impact the law could have when all of its provisions work together, leading to “massive incarceration of people who are illegally present” and raising concerns over U.S. relations with other countries.</p> <p>  </p> <p> The argument didn’t seem to convince some of the justices.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “Why don’t we avoid foreign international problems by simply deporting these people?” asked Justice Antonin Scalia.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Justices paid particular attention to the provision that mandates local police to ask about someone’s immigration status during a traffic stop. Alabama’s immigration law HB 56 has a similar provision that, unlike SB 1070, has gone into effect.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Chief Justice John Roberts pointed out that mandating local police in Arizona to run immigration checks by calling immigration authorities wouldn’t interfere with federal priorities, since the decision of whether to take the person into custody for removal was still left up to the federal agencies.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “It seems to me the federal government doesn’t want to know who is here illegally or not,” said Roberts.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Justice Anthony Kennedy, considered to be the swing vote, didn’t seem to buy into the federal government’s argument either.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “Can we say that a state must accept within its borders a person that is illegally present under federal law?” he asked.</p> <p>  </p> <p> <strong>Not ‘selling well’</strong></p> <p> Justice Sonia Sotomayor observed that the federal government’s argument wasn’t “selling well” and inquired mostly about the constitutional implications of detaining a person for an indefinite period of time in order to determine his or her immigration status.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Paul Clement, a former solicitor general under President George W. Bush, argued on behalf of the state of Arizona, saying it has been disproportionately affected by illegal immigration and has a right to take action when the federal government hasn’t.</p> <p>  </p> <p> The other aspect of SB 1070 that took the center stage was the provision that makes it a state crime to fail to carry legal documents by not registering with the federal government.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Virrilli argued that asylum-seekers and victims of domestic violence could be subject to detention and incarceration for not having documents, even though the federal government doesn’t consider them removable from the country.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Clement argued that the state could obtain that information from the federal government and it could be proven in court.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Sotomayor pointed out to Clement that his answer played into the federal government’s concern that this would take away resources by forcing them to spend time trying to figure out a person’s immigration status.</p> <p>  </p> <p> <strong>‘A little surprised’</strong></p> <p> Daniel Ortega, chairman of the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), said a decision can’t be inferred from the justices’ questions.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “Where they ultimately are going to end up is very difficult to say,” said Ortega, who is co-council in another pending lawsuit against SB 1070 brought by the Mexican American Legal Defend and Educational Fund (MALDEF) and several other civil rights organizations.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “But I was a little surprised at the number of justices [who] say if the state of Arizona wants to be cooperative in apprehending people who commit crimes on a federal level, they should be able to do so.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> The line of questioning seemed to please SB 1070 supporters who were present at the hearing, like Arizona’s Republican Governor Jan Brewer and the bill’s author, former state senator Russell Pearce.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “I thought it went very well. I think the justices made it very clear,” said the former Republican senator. Pearce was recalled in a special election last year, when he lost his seat to another Republican who took a less hardline stance on immigration.</p> <p>  </p> <p> <strong>Missing from the hearing</strong></p> <p> The issue of racial profiling raised in other pending lawsuits against SB 1070 was not addressed in the federal government’s challenge of the law.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “The argument that this is racial profiling and discriminatory and violates portions of our Constitution was never made here, and I think this is unfortunate,” said Democratic Congressman Luis Gutiérrez (D-Ill.).</p> <p>  </p> <p> Virrilli did make reference to similar policies in Arizona that have led to racial profiling. Currently the Department of Justice (DOJ) is considering suing the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office for violating Latinos’ civil rights during its immigration sweeps.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Justice Scalia shut down the issue by asking a rhetorical question: “What does this have to do with federal immigration law? You must be talking about citizens and other people.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> <strong>‘An impetus to other states’</strong></p> <p> Five other states besides Arizona have similar bills on the books -- Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, South Carolina and Utah. All face challenges in federal courts. After Arizona Gov. Brewer signed SB 1070 into law on April 23, 2010, a federal judge blocked four portions of the bill. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that decision. Brewer challenged the decision, taking the case to the Supreme Court.</p> <p>  </p> <p> It is unclear whether or not the highest tribunal will rule on other aspects of SB 1070 that are already in effect. Among these is a provision that allows citizens to sue a law-enforcement agency if it imposes policies to discourage cooperation between police and federal immigration officials.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “This would give an impetus to other states to follow the model adopted in Arizona, if this is found constitutional,” said Jack Martin, special project director for the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), a national organization that has supported a wave of local immigration bills across the country. According to a report by the Southern Poverty Law Center, FAIR leaders also have ties to white supremacist groups.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “There are provisions that have been found legal by the courts, and what is at stake at the present time is simply the injunction of certain provisions of the Arizona law going into effect. The full case would be heard by the Supreme Court eventually even if this injunction is sustained,” said Martin.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Last year, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of another Arizona immigration bill known as the employer sanctions law. That decision had an impact on a similar law that had been declared unconstitutional in Hazelton, Penn. A federal appeals court there vacated its previous ruling that declared the law unconstitutional, opening the door for new legal arguments.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Whether other courts in Georgia and other states do the same will depend on how broad the Supreme Court’s ruling in this case is.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “It could be a landmark case depending on how they write their opinion,” said Thomas Saenz, president and general counsel of MALDEF.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Saenz stressed that other immigration bills across the country have different provisions from SB 1070 that are not currently on the radar of this case.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Justice Elena Kagan recused herself from the case presumably because of her role as a former solicitor general for the Obama administration. This opens the door for a 4-4 split decision. In the case of a tie, the lower court ruling would stand. But that would mean the Supreme Court would not issue an opinion elaborating on its reasoning, leaving no legal precedent for other states to follow.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Pending lawsuits related to racial profiling could potentially come before the Supreme Court at a later date.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “Even if they lift the injunction, there are still possibilities of the injunction being reinstated on other grounds,” said Saenz.</p> <p>  </p> <p> <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/2012/04/fed-case-against-sb-1070-not-selling-well-in-supreme-court.php">New America Media</a></p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/arizona-immigration-law" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Arizona immigration law</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/sb1070" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">SB1070</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/supreme-court" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Supreme Court</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/racial-profiling" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">racial profiling</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/immigrant-communities" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">immigrant communities</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/arizona" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Arizona</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Valeria Fernandez</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-photographer field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Photographer:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">New America Media</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Sun, 29 Apr 2012 21:35:31 +0000 tara 860 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/1131-supreme-court-justices-question-arguments-against-controversial-ariz-immigration-law#comments Legislation Offers Solution to End Racial Profiling https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/1121-legislation-offers-solution-end-racial-profiling <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Thu, 04/26/2012 - 20:26</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/2mediumracialprofiling%20%28RichardVallejo%20Flickr%29.jpg?itok=V0R_8tvt"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/2mediumracialprofiling%20%28RichardVallejo%20Flickr%29.jpg?itok=V0R_8tvt" width="480" height="359" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p>  </p> <p> From <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/news/">New America Media</a>:</p> <p>  </p> <p> No one denies – at least openly – that racial profiling is bad practice. The question at hand, and one raised during a Senate Committee hearing on civil and human rights earlier this week, is how to end it.</p> <p>  </p> <p> On April 17, the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Human Rights listened to testimony from legislators, legal experts, law enforcement officials, and advocates expressing their views on the state of racial profiling in America.</p> <p>  </p> <p> The issue has taken on a heightened sense of urgency in the wake of the shooting death of 17-year-old African-American Trayvon Martin by a neighborhood watch volunteer in Florida. The shooter, George Zimmerman – who is of Jewish and Hispanic descent – is now on trial for Martin’s death.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Members of the committee debated the merits of The End of Racial Profiling Act of 2011 – which supporters say would help strengthen ties between minority communities and law enforcement agencies that are supposed to serve them.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Opponents describe the bill, first introduced last October by Senator Benjamin Cardin (D-MD), as an insult to police officers everywhere.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Captain Frank Gale, with the Denver Sheriff’s office, says the bill would only “make matters worse.” The language, he argues, is “too broad” and calls for policies that are “in real life not practical.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> Gale, who is the National Second Vice President with the Fraternal Order of Police, also took aim at the bill’s financial consequences. The legislation, he says, “threatens to penalize local and state law enforcement agencies” by withholding federal funding unless these agencies comply with the requirements of the bill.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Those requirements include providing training to all officers on racial profiling issues, collecting racial and other sociological data in accordance with federal regulation, and establishing an independent audit program to ensure appropriate response to allegations of racial profiling.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “How can we fight the battle if we also propose to deny these funds to agencies that need them,” asked Gale, “because they can’t afford training or personnel to document allegations of racial profiling issues?”</p> <p>  </p> <p> Roger Clegg, President and General Counsel for the conservative think-tank Center for Equal Opportunity, echoes Gale’s concerns.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Claiming that the frequency of racial profiling is often “exaggerated,” he urged committee members to exercise caution when analyzing related date. His later remarks caused a stir.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “I am opposed to profiling, particularly to profiling in the traditional law enforcement context where frequently it is African-Americans who are the victims of that profiling,” he said. “Nonetheless, I think we have to recognize that it’s going to be tempting for the police and individuals to profile so long as a disproportionate amount of street crime is committed by African-Americans.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> Legal analysts and supporters of the bill argue Clegg’s comment misses the point, which revolves not around street crime but around the need to build community trust.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “The issue is how we deploy our street officers in ways that are effective, fair, and carry out the most important ideals of our society,” said University of Pittsburg Professor David Harris.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-Miami) spoke passionately about the treatment of minority youth, especially African-American males, at the hands of law enforcement, referencing the Trayvon Martin case as a “textbook example of racial profiling.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> “When my son learned how to drive, I bought him a cell phone because I knew he would be profiled… and he was,” she said.</p> <p>  </p> <p> In Illinois, said U.S. Senator and Subcommittee member Richard Durbin (D-Ill.), “Hispanic motorists are two to four times more likely to be searched and African-Americans are two to three more times as likely to be subject to consent searches than white motorists.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> Pointing out that white motorists were “89 percent more likely than Hispanic motorists and 26 percent more likely than African-American motorists to have contraband in their vehicles,” the statistics around incidents of racial profiling “made no sense from a law enforcement” point of view, he added.</p> <p>  </p> <p> The debate has reignited a level of intensity around the topic of racial profiling that has not been seen since the days and months following the 9/11 terror attacks, when Muslim-Americans across the country complained of being targeted for their religious and ethnic backgrounds.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Many who testified at this week’s hearing argued that ensuring a strong relationship between Muslims and law enforcement is critical, especially in the continued fight against homegrown terror. Most recently, an Associated Press series documented the New York Police Department’s spying on the Muslim community.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Citing the scandal, Congresswoman Judy Chu (D-CA) reminded fellow lawmakers that “the only thing they were guilty of was practicing Islam.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> Sen. Cardin ended the hearing by recognizing the differing viewpoints and stressing that at its core, the issue is one of “accountability.” “We serve the public,” he said, and whether elected or appointed, “accountability has to be part of that service.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> The debate around the bill, meanwhile, is expected to continue.</p> <p>  </p> <p> <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/2012/04/legislating-an-end-to-racial-profiling.php">New America Media</a></p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/end-racial-profiling-act" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">The End of Racial Profiling Act</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/trayvon-martin" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Trayvon Martin</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/subcommittee-constitution" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Subcommittee on the Constitution</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/civil-rights-and-human-rights" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Civil Rights and Human Rights</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/racial-profiling" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">racial profiling</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Suzanne Manneh</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-photographer field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Photographer:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Richard Vallejom, Flickr</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Fri, 27 Apr 2012 00:26:29 +0000 tara 847 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/1121-legislation-offers-solution-end-racial-profiling#comments Why did Prosecutor Norm Wolfinger allow George Zimmerman to Walk Free? https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/1086-why-did-prosecutor-norm-wolfinger-allow-george-zimmerman-walk-free <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Sun, 04/08/2012 - 19:17</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/mediummartincase_0.jpg?itok=iYtccmy9"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/mediummartincase_0.jpg?itok=iYtccmy9" width="480" height="268" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p>  </p> <p> From <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/news/">New America Media</a>:</p> <p>  </p> <p> The call to action in rallies across the country following Trayvon Martin’s death is a wake-up call for the country to confront racial profiling in our communities. Racial profiling may have killed Trayvon Martin, but it is the so-called prosecutorial discretion that allowed, and may still allow, his killer to escape justice.</p> <p>  </p> <p> It must be pointed out that his killer, George Zimmerman, has until now not been charged with murder because of Florida’s Stand Your Ground self-defense law that allows people who feel threatened to use deadly force in self-defense and says they have no duty to retreat. The law has been at the center of the Feb. 26 shooting of Martin.</p> <p>  </p> <p> As the tragedy of his death calls the country to examine the racial inequities of the criminal justice system, it must go beyond our common, and justified, focus on the racist zealots or inept police officers. It has to go where the real power lies – with the prosecutors – the ones who control the levers of the system in counties and states across the country. In Martin’s case, it was prosecutor Norm Wolfinger who allowed his killer to walk free. It is Wolfinger’s face that should be on signs, posted next to George Zimmerman in news articles, whose name should be woven into chants for justice.</p> <p>  </p> <p> And just as Zimmerman …represents a real threat to America, so too does Wolfinger – a prosecutor who’s given the completely subjective discretion to deliver or deny justice without any explanation or measure of accountability to the public.</p> <p>  </p> <p> The term “prosecutorial discretion” has the ring of legal jargon that would only be used by lawyers and judges, but it is a power that extends out of the courthouse and into the streets. As such, it needs to be worked into the vernacular of any civil rights movement that is hoping to bring justice to the Trayvon Martins of America, and bring accountability to the criminal justice system.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Prosecutorial discretion describes the authority given to a prosecutor to review the initial investigation of a crime and decide if charges should be filed or not, and if so, which charges. In cases like Martin’s, where a youth of color is the victim of a horrible crime, a community calling for justice is at the mercy of this prosecutorial power to decide whether or not a case should enter the justice system.</p> <p> <img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/mediumzimmermanprosecutor.jpg" style="width: 500px; height: 279px; " /></p> <p> And this is where communities of color end up in a bizarre dynamic with the criminal justice system – relying on the fairness and impartiality of the prosecutors, despite every statistical reason not to. The truth of the matter is that prosecutorial discretion is mostly used to target and incarcerate Americans who look like Martin, rather than attempting to secure justice for his memory.</p> <p>  </p> <p> After the firestorm that erupted once Martin’s murder became national news, Wolfinger recused himself and Florida Governor Rick Scott appointed another prosecutor, Angela Corey, to decide if Zimmerman should be charged. Through their attorney, the Martin family wrote a letter to the U.S. Justice Department to review the investigation for possible wrongdoing by Wolfinger's office. Wolfinger responded that he was “outraged” by the letter.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Corey has a grand jury scheduled for Zimmerman, but there are no guarantees that the wheels of justice will take it from here. That there is even a grand jury, versus a direct filing of a charge from the prosecutor, is telling.</p> <p>  </p> <p> A common hypothetical that is heard at Martin rallies and by pundits in the media is, “What if the roles of Zimmerman and Martin were reversed?” Civil rights leader Van Jones posed this question on John Stewart's “Daily Show” last weekend. He concluded to a roaring audience that a black man who shot an unarmed white man would be detained by police. This is true, but the other reality is that the hypothetical black man would be facing criminal charges from a direct filing by the prosecutor. No grand jury needed.</p> <p>  </p> <p> That another prosecutor has been given the case does not ease the concerns of many who bore witness to such injustices similar to the Martin case. In an opinion piece written for New America Media, political columnist Earl Ofari Hutchinson worried that a prosecutor such as Corey, “whose gear is stuck in overdrive when it comes to the hardest line prosecution of young black males can switch gears” and be totally unbiased.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Across America, prosecutors are taught to use four standards to determine if they will be charging someone. One: Was a crime committed? Two: Do we know who did it? Three: Are we confident we can prove it beyond a reasonable doubt? Four: Is it the right thing to do? (The fourth standard is to give some discretion around charging where the direction of the law does not match the context of the situation: such as offering some leniency for a person who stole bread to feed his family.)</p> <p>  </p> <p> Who knows if Wolfinger went through the protocol of those questions when allowing Zimmerman to walk? But what Wolfinger likely did count on is that the scrutiny of the public would not likely befall his office. Prosecutors are rarely looked at when the justice system fails. And if they are exposed for misconduct, rarely are they held to account.</p> <p>  </p> <p> In California, the Northern California Innocence Project showed startling numbers around prosecutorial misconduct. In their 2010 report they write, “Judges in California are casting a blind eye to prosecutors who place their thumbs on the scale of justice.” In a study that spanned over a decade, they examined “707 cases in which courts had found prosecutorial misconduct in the 11-year period. Of all of those cases, only six prosecutors were disciplined.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> [It is necessary…to} address the systemic racism and unexamined power of prosecutorial discretion that allowed Zimmerman to avoid the justice he must be held to answer to.</p> <p>  </p> <p> <strong>Author Bio:</strong></p> <p> Raj Jayadev is the director of the nonprofit organization, <a href="http://www.siliconvalleydebug.org/">Silicon Valley De-Bug</a>, and directs the Albert Cobarrubias Justice Project -- an organizing model for families and communities to navigate and have impact on their local criminal justice systems.</p> <p>  </p> <p> <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/2012/04/for-trayvon-martin-justice-hinges-on-prosecutorial-discretion.php">New America Media</a></p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/trayvon-martin" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Trayvon Martin</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/george-zimmerman" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">George Zimmerman</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/norm-wolfinger" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Norm Wolfinger</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/prosecutorial-discretion" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">prosecutorial discretion</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/racial-profiling" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">racial profiling</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/stand-your-ground" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Stand Your Ground</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/florida" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Florida</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/angela-corey" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Angela Corey</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Raj Jayadev</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-photographer field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Photographer:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">New America Media</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Sun, 08 Apr 2012 23:17:05 +0000 tara 761 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/1086-why-did-prosecutor-norm-wolfinger-allow-george-zimmerman-walk-free#comments Smartphone App Aims to Track Instances of Racial Profiling https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/smartphone-app-aims-track-1046-instances-racial-profiling <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Fri, 03/09/2012 - 14:15</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/2mediumApp.jpg?itok=-dFgIdEU"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/2mediumApp.jpg?itok=-dFgIdEU" width="480" height="268" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> From <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/news/">New America Media</a>:</p> <p>  </p> <p> PHOENIX -- A group of pro-immigrant rights activists in Arizona aim to develop a smartphone application that would help immigrants notify friends, family and their attorney if they are detained and arrested during a traffic stop.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Arizona was the first state to pass a law to make it a crime to be an undocumented immigrant (SB 1070), leading to an increased crackdown and climate of fear among immigrants. A recent Department of Justice investigation on racial profiling of Latinos by the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office found that Latinos were four to nine times more likely to be pulled over in a traffic stop than non-Latinos.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “When someone gets pulled over the first thing to worry about is the family,” said Lydia Guzman, the president of the nonprofit Respect/Respeto.</p> <p>  </p> <p> For years, the nonprofit’s emergency hotline has monitored cases of possible civil rights violations against Latinos by local law enforcement, provided information about rights, and tracked down missing family members in immigration custody after undocumented drivers are detained.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “It’s difficult. We try to get all of this information from them to reach their family, while at the same time we’re trying to advise them about their rights,” she said.</p> <p>  </p> <p> It was Guzman’s experience with Respect/Respeto and the increased crackdown on undocumented immigrants by local police using state laws that inspired her friend Todd Landfried, a spokesperson for Arizona Employers for Immigration Reform, to come up with an idea for a smartphone app that could do what the group does and more.</p> <p>  </p> <p> The app will allow users to notify family, friends, attorneys and even their consulate when they get pulled over by law enforcement or when they are facing an emergency situation that puts their safety or civil rights at risk.</p> <p>  </p> <p> With the touch of a button, Landfried says, the “Emergency Alert and Personal Protection” app will send a pre-set list of people information about the person’s location using GPS technology and date and time of the incident. The app will also have an option to record audio and video, which is a common function on most mobile phones, but it will take it a step further by sending the audio and video to a “web interface” where the data can be stored and accessed by lawyers, for example.</p> <p>  </p> <p> It will also inform them, in English and Spanish, of their civil rights if they are arrested during a traffic stop; for example, reminding them that they have the right to remain silent and have an attorney present during questioning.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Guzman says the app could help people make split-second decisions at a crucial moment about who to call and how to get help. She says it would also provide immigrant advocates a starting point to search for undocumented immigrants once they are in the detention system – a search that can sometimes take days.</p> <p>  </p> <p> In order to take the app from idea to reality, Landfried and Guzman recently launched a 30-day crowdfunding campaign to support the development of the app. If they reach their goal of raising $225,000, they will work with a software developer to have the app ready by July. Donors would get the app, which will cost about $2, for free.</p> <p>  </p> <p> The app is similar to the “I’m Getting Arrested” app that launched in response to the arrests of protestors involved in the Occupy movement. Landfried and Guzman say their app would be designed to specifically address the situation of undocumented immigrants pulled over in traffic stops. They say it would consolidate functions on the phone to allow users to document, store and send photos, audio and video to web interface that can be used to document racial profiling or violations of civil liberties.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Landfried says he believes Latinos are well-positioned to make use of such an app based on recent trends of Latinos' usage of smartphones.</p> <p>  </p> <p> According to a 2010 Nielsen Company report, 45 percent of Hispanic mobile users have a smartphone compared to just over a quarter of white mobile users.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Landfried and Guzman say they hope the app can be a tool for tracking statistics of potential instances of racial profiling.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “Keeping in mind you have to protect the attorney-client privilege,” Landfried said. “If data was made anonymous, we can track how many times people hit the button for traffic stops and they can fill in later what the outcome was.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> “This is about protecting people. Everybody has rights, whether you like it or not,” he said.</p> <p>  </p> <p> <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/2012/03/im-getting-arrested-app-aims-to-help-those-detained-in-traffic-stops.php">New America Media</a></p> <p> <em><strong>Photo on main page: Silicon.com</strong></em></p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/smartphone-app" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">smartphone app</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/racial-profiling" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">racial profiling</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/department-justice" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Department of Justice</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/immigration" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">immigration</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/respect-respeto" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Respect Respeto</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/civil-rights" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">civil rights</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Valeria Fernandez</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-photographer field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Photographer:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">New America Media</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Fri, 09 Mar 2012 19:15:03 +0000 tara 623 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/smartphone-app-aims-track-1046-instances-racial-profiling#comments