Opposition Growing Against Federal Immigration Enforcement Program

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, July 14, 2010

MEDIA CONTACT
Christopher Punongbayan
(415) 848-7723 or (310) 985-0577

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - Today, a broad coalition of advocates redoubled efforts to educate Bay Area immigrant communities about a problematic new federal immigration program, misnamed "Secure" Communities, or S-Comm. Latino, East Asian, South Asian, Southeast Asian, and African leaders, activists, and attorneys addressed ethnic media representatives and spoke out against the dangers to which S-Comm exposes immigrants and their families.

"This program is not federal law and has not been approved by Congress. ICE has forced this upon our sanctuary city under a shroud of secrecy and confusion," stated Christopher Punongbayan, Deputy Director of the Asian Law Caucus.

Immigration attorney Francisco Ugarte of the San Francisco Legal and Education Network noted, "For twenty years, San Francisco's Sanctuary Ordinance has helped undocumented immigrants contribute to and participate in our communities. Now that S-Comm is in place, I've been asked what that means for our local policies. On one hand, all immigrants should still be able to access services like libraries, enroll their children in school, and get treatment in hospitals without fear of deportation. However, I am extremely concerned about S-Comm's impact on police-community relations. S-Comm also opens the door to racial profiling by local law enforcement who may be incentivized to overcharge or falsely arrest innocent immigrant residents."

How it works: S-Comm compels local enforcement to automatically and instantly share with the Department of Homeland Security the fingerprints of any immigrant who is arrested, even if s/he is ultimately proven to be innocent of any wrongdoing or is guilty of an extremely minor offense, like not paying a traffic ticket. ICE holds are triggered at the point of fingerprinting and the jail is notified in just 30-45 minutes - not enough time to prove one's innocence.

Community reactions: "The Chinese community relies on the police to keep our neighborhoods safe," states Un Un Che, through an interpreter. She continued, "S-Comm breaks down the public's trust in law enforcement and threatens public safety for all." Che is a representative of Chinese for Affirmative Action.

"The effects of S-Comm on immigrant communities is clear: separation of families and increased deportations," remarked Veronica Nieto through an interpreter. "Domestic violence survivors will be discouraged from reporting abuse to the police if there is any possibility that they may be deported simply because they contacted the authorities." Nieto is a representative of the San Francisco- and Oakland-based group, Mujeres Unidas Y Activas.

Official ICE statistics reveal that nearly 90% of individuals referred to ICE under the S-Comm program's first year were arrested for less serious crimes, such as traffic offenses or misdemeanors. An alarming 5% of people identified by ICE through the program were actually citizens of the United States.

S-Comm was introduced to California in April 2009 and became active in San Francisco on June 8, 2010 despite serious objections from Sheriff Hennessey and 9 of 11 County Supervisors. As of July 7, 2010, S-Comm is present in 21 of 58 California jurisdictions, or about 36% of the state.

For additional information, visit the San Francisco Immigrant Legal and Education Network (SFILEN) website.

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