Thursday, October 20, 2011
Secure Communities, the anti-illegal immigrant deportation program embraced by the Obama administration, has removed Latinos from the United States in disproportionate numbers.
Ninety-three percent of the individuals arrested through Secure Communities have been Latinos, even though they only comprise 77% of the undocumented population, according to researchers at the UC Berkeley Law School. It is estimated that 57% of illegal immigrants are male, but men account for 93% of Secure Communities deportees.
The researchers also found that annual deportations have increased more than 400% since 1996, and more than a million people have been deported from the U.S. since the beginning of the Obama administration.
Currently, nearly 300,000 individuals are awaiting deportation.
Secure Communities was established under President George W. Bush in March 2008 to search out violent felons among the immigrant population by checking fingerprints collected from local law enforcement.
Critics have accused immigration officials of using the program to locate and deport non-criminal illegal immigrants.
About 39% of immigrants arrested through Secure Communities have a spouse or child who is a U.S. citizen.
-Noel Brinkerhoff
Secure Communities by the Numbers: An Analysis of Demographics and Due Process (by Aarti Kohl, Peter Markowitz and Lisa Chavez, Chief Justice Earl Warren Institute on Law and Social Policy) (pdf)
Latinos Said to Bear Weight of a Deportation Program (by Julia Preston, New York Times)
FY 2011: ICE Announces Year-End Removal Numbers, Highlights Focus on Key Priorities Including Threats to Public Safety and National Security (Immigration and Customs Enforcement)
Homeland Security Accused of Hiding Details of Immigrant Fingerprinting Program (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)
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