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Sunday, September 27, 2009

No Sanctuary in Racial Politics

By AdriÁN Pedroza
The Albuquerque Partnership
          For many, New Mexico is a sanctuary where we choose to raise our families, work, indulge in green chile and stare at the vivid sunsets. In the past two election cycles in Albuquerque, however, many of our political candidates have given us a misleading definition of "sanctuary" to include the words "criminal" and "immigrants" in the same sentence, essentially blaming immigrants for the increased crime in Albuquerque. Far fetched?
        These tactics are not unique to Albuquerque. We have only to look to the heated debate about health care on Capitol Hill for similar examples. We have seen many members of Congress — on both sides of the aisle — tripping over themselves to marginalize and demonize immigrants and attempting to turn nasty politics into bad policies at the expense of Hispanic communities. The question is, are we going to let the same tactics work in New Mexico?
        Let's get the facts straight. The word "sanctuary" is being used to describe Albuquerque's non-discrimination policies. One passed in City Council in 2000 with bipartisan support, and the other is the Albuquerque Police Department's policy which allows officers to question a person's immigration status only if it is pertinent to a criminal investigation. In other words — a police officer should not ask a person to prove their citizenship just because they get the "feeling" that they are not from here. After all, how many New Mexicans walk around with documentation proving their citizenship?
        There is nothing in Albuquerque's current policies that provides any protection for immigrants from deportation. Thousand of families in our city have faced the devastation, fear and despair when their parents, siblings or family members are deported by Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE). As a result, I doubt that the immigrant community here can say that they feel they live in a "sanctuary" city.
        Current policies are conducive to public safety and are meant for everyone to feel safe approaching the police, regardless of their appearance or language. These policies are vital for community policing to take place. Victims of crime should never be put in a situation where they feel they have to choose between being safe and potentially being deported. Police cannot keep a community safe that fears them.
        We only have to look to our neighbors to the west in Maricopa County, Arizona, to provide a cautionary tale as to the dangerous course we want to avoid in Albuquerque. Since Sheriff Joe Arpaio, now under investigation by the Justice Department, implemented his politically driven agenda to rid his county of undocumented immigrants, there has been evidence that actual crime-fighting is suffering. Immigrant victims are less likely to come forward, precious resources are being used to inquire into immigration status instead of actually focusing on those truly putting the community at risk, and Hispanics are feeling targeted and falling prey to racial profiling. So much for their public safety argument.
        The Hispanic population in New Mexico is 45 percent, three times that of the national Hispanic population of 15 percent. Even with prominent numbers, a 400-plus year history for native Hispanics and a long history of cyclical migration from the south, Hispanics are still victims of racial profiling.
        Here is a more personal example of this:
        In October 2005 amidst a heated national debate on immigration, I drove my abuela (grandmother) to cast her vote in a municipal election. A poll worker approached her to ask what seemed like a simple question, "Where are you from?" My abuela, having lived in New Mexico 50 years and having earned her U.S. citizenship, gave her simple answer in her heavy accent, "I am from here, Albuquerque." The poll worker responded, "then why don't you speak good English? You are not from here." My abuela turned red in the face with embarrassment. Since that incident, she prefers to vote absentee from her home to avoid another similar experience.
        Are we going to let divisive, short-sighted political tactics further contribute to racial profiling in Albuquerque? Our answer has to be a resounding "No!"
        New Mexico has a long, proud history of valuing language, culture, diversity and integration. Crime is something that we are all concerned about, and we must come together to look for real solutions that hold those who have harmed our communities accountable. We will not, however, allow immigrants and Hispanics in our communities to be blamed for all crime. The journey ahead of us is to get to a place where we all feel safe and welcomed, a community, a "sanctuary" — in the true sense of the word.
        Adrián Pedroza is executive director of the Albuquerque Partnership, a nonprofit that works to organize communities, fight substance abuse and improve education.