Comunidades Seguras generan ‘terror’ – IMPRE

Programas como Comunidades Seguras tienen “errores fundamentales”, son aplicados con “desproporción” y “dañan la credibilidad” de las agencias federales de seguridad de EE.UU. ante los inmigrantes, criticaron diversos grupos activistas. El programa Comunidades Seguras y otros como el 287g, que persiguen a inmigrantes con antecedentes penales, suponen que cualquier detención o contacto con la policía por parte de un inmigrante pueda causar que se remita de manera inmediata información a la Oficina de Inmigración y Aduanas (ICE). En algunos casos, estos procesos pueden culminar en la deportación. “Esto ha generado un estado de terror” en comunidades con alto número de inmigrantes indocumentados, aseguró Adelina Nichols, directora de un grupo latino de derechos humanos en Georgia. – IMPRE 03.01.2012

Protesters: 287(g) Policy Erodes Trust – KUHF

“We feel that there’s enough evidence to show that these programs damage communities and so, we wanted to put those concerns before the sheriff, and ask him to desist from this effort to give credibility to the 287g program.”          She claims the law empowers local law enforcement — trained by federal immigration authorities — to intercept, interview and hold foreigners, who are suspected of being in this country illegally. “Our concerns deal with the fact that 287(g) has been a very harmful program to communities.” – KUHF 02.29.2012

Federal Judge Blocks Anti-Day Laborer Portions of SB 1070

A federal judge blocked police in Arizona from enforcing a section of the state’s 2010 immigration enforcement law that prohibited people from blocking traffic when they seek or offer day labor services on streets.

U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton ruled Wednesday that groups seeking to overturn the law will likely prevail in their claim that the day labor rules violate the First Amendment.

New round of immigration battles set in the South – LA Times

The Deep South, already the nation’s hottest illegal immigration battleground, will see more action in the coming days, with Mississippi considering an Alabama-style immigration crackdown bill and a federal appeals court set to consider Thursday whether the Alabama law, and a similar one in Georgia, are constitutional. The legislation and the courtroom battle will serve as a prelude to April 25, when the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments over Arizona’s SB 1070, the controversial 2010 law that triggered a wave of state-level efforts nationwide to get tough on illegal immigrants. – LA Times 02.29.2012

Activists: Both 287g and Se Communities must go – Univision

A move by the Obama administration to phase out some federal agreements that give local police authority to take part in immigration enforcement doesn’t go far enough, a diverse group of advocates and law enforcement experts said in a conference call Tuesday. The administration indicated in this year’s budget that it would put an end to portions of the 287g program in favor of implementing Se Communities nationwide, but the group says doing so will do little to address the problems that arise when local law enforcement officers act as immigration agents. The programs, summarized the call’s moderator, Patty Kupfer of America’s Voice, deteriorate community policing and trust. They translate into a growing fear of police in the immigrant community and tell immigrants that contact with police, even sometimes to report a crime, could lead to deportation, she said. – Univision 02.29.2012