Immigration Task Force Meets in Arlington

By Isaac Arnsdorf, Updated: Wednesday, August 24, 3:30 PM

As a federal task force evaluating a key policy on immigration enforcement held its final public hearing in Arlington County on Wednesday night, critics of the controversial mandate were ramping up the pressure to end it.

The program, called Secure Communities, makes it possible for the FBI to share fingerprint data of people arrested by local and state authorities with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which can use the information to check for violations.

Groups representing immigrants, crime victims and police have argued since the program was implemented in 2008 that it discourages undocumented residents from cooperating with law enforcement for fear of deportation.

The National Day Laborer Organizing Network was planning a protest at Wednesday night’s hearing at George Mason University Law School in Arlington, the last of four such sessions scheduled this month across the country.

Hearings in other cities have been marked by walkouts and other demonstrations. In Chicago, 10 people were arrested after 200 protesters marched out of the task force hearing and blocked an intersection. Hundreds also walked out of the Los Angeles forum.

“There is a growing fear in the immigrant community, both documented and undocumented, of police and emergency personnel,â€