In ruling on Arizona’s immigration law, the Supreme Court upheld racial profiling as legal in the United States.
The Court was unanimous on this part of the ruling, including all of the Liberal wing except Justice Kagan who disqualified herself.
My Congressman, Luis Gutierrez, made clear the meaning of today’s court ruling.
Experience has shown us that police are highly unlikely to stop an individual with the last name of Kennedy or Roberts on suspicion of not being a legal U.S. citizen, but if you are a Gutierrez or Martinez, watch out. The express goal of the authors of Arizona’s SB1070 is to target immigrants for harassment and make their lives miserable, and a key tool in that effort was upheld by the Court.
Gutierrez predicts a strong reaction in the Hispanic community and a boost for the president, which he said is unfounded.
“More people have been rounded up in the last four years … than ever before in the history of the United States,” he said. “There are fewer people crossing that border. In the state of Arizona, if you look, you will find that their crime rate is actually going down. The border has never been safer. “
Fred Klonsky 