Thread: More Hand Wringing over LAPD Special Order 40 rule change

http://www.hispanicbusiness.com/news/ne ... p?id=22176

L.A. Hispanics Don't Want Cops Asking Them About Visas

April 7, 2005

Ivan Mejia

Leaders of Los Angeles's huge Central American community are speaking out against any eventual change of policy in the city's police department that would encourage officers, in the course of normal duties, to ask individuals if they have a visa or not.

Anti-immigration groups have been calling on the LAPD to revoke the regulation known as Special Order 40, which bars police officers from quizzing people about their immigration status.

Salvador Sanabria, the Salvadoran co-founder of El Rescate (The Rescue), a non-profit organization offering social services to Central American immigrants, said Wednesday that he wants to "establish a dialogue at the highest level, given that police chief (William) Bratton has declared he wants to rewrite some details of Special Order 40."

"We want to learn directly from him what those changes are that he wants to make," the community activist added.

El Rescate is sending Bratton a letter expressing "considerable concern" about signs of discrimination by the LAPD against Mexican and Central American immigrants and stressing the group's conviction that an individual's immigration status should not be a reason for "police action."

The missive goes on to invite the police chief to El Rescate's offices for a meeting with delegates from a dozen organizations representing the Salvadoran, Guatemalan, Nicaraguan and Honduran communities in Los Angeles.

Sanabria said the proposed gathering would address possible changes to the so-called SO40, as well as ways that the Central Americans could have some input in the process.

Julio Cardoza, executive director of Casa Nicaragua, strongly endorsed a joint approach to the LAPD on this issue.

"We definitely have to unite with other communities to energetically protest and denounce this further outrage they are imposing on Latinos," he said.

Referring to the much-publicized of vigilante border sentinels in southern Arizona, Cardoza complained: "It's not enough that there are armed people on the border trying to stop (illegal migrants) ... out of hatred, racism, trying to violate their rights and wreak revenge, but that is also happening here in the cities."

He then cited the case of an individual "who, for the mere fact of being a Latino and because he was not carrying his documents, was arrested and deported to Nicaragua, (despite) his being Salvadoran and a legal resident of California".

Cardoza maintained that if Special Order 40 is modified to allow police to question people about their visa status, "this is the type of problem with which we're going to have to contend daily."

Another community leader, Francisco Rivera of the Central American Roundtable, denounced the proposed change to SO40 as racial profiling.

"Because the attack is against Latinos," he said. "The attack is not against other undocumented people like Europeans, Asians or Africans. If there are going to be deportations let them be equal and don't let one community be the target."

Rivera ascribed talk of changing SO40 to police anxiety about the growing threat authorities see coming from gangs such as Mara Salvatrucha, which arose among Salvadoran expatriates in Los Angeles and now has a presence throughout Central American and in parts of the United States.

"They see there is a transnational organization of the gangs, that they are organized. And really what has occurred are isolated incidents in which a Salvadoran was linked with a massacre of civilians in Honduras," the activist said.

The LAPD implemented Special Order 40 in 1979 as part of an municipal push to make Los Angeles a sanctuary for Central American fleeing political violence in their homelands. Several previous attempts to rescind SO40 have been blocked by the city council.

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Cry me a bleeping river. Police can't help it that 90 percent of the cities population is illegal alien hispanics, 95 percent of all arrest warrants are for illegal alien hispanics, over 40,000 jail illegals are hispanics, over 100,000 illegal alien felons are hispanic. This is in LA alone. Not to mention the MS-13 gang has infested LA beyond reproach. Then they want to cry profiling and ask why we aren't going after Europeans, Africans and Asians who are illegal? Hello, that's because we aren't being invaded by Europeans, Africans or Asians. What's the most dominate race in LA right now who happen to be of the illegal persuassion? Gee it's not too hard to figure that one out.

Then they go on to cry about how rescinding this ridiculous sanctuary policy will make it hard for illegals (I mean immigrants) to report crimes to the police. Come on, what bullhockey. Since when do illegals care about cooperating with the police? Look at this cesspool. We all need to ask ourselves (well not us on this board, but other people in general) has giving sanctuary to illegals made LA a safer, better city then it was before it was enacted in 1979? BAWAHAHAHAHAHA. Ok that's what I thought so maybe, just maybe untieing the hands of the cops and allowing them to do there jobs would make LA a safer, better city. LAPD needs to quit worrying about idiots screaming about profiling. Of course it's discriminatory. It's discriminating against criminals you morons.

It's simple, if your legal you have nothing to fear. If your illegal then you should be afraid. That's the consquences for being a criminal.

Great commentary Dman1200!

Anti-immigration groups have been calling on the LAPD to revoke the regulation known as Special Order 40, which bars police officers from quizzing people about their immigration status.

It is about time.

El Rescate is sending Bratton a letter expressing "considerable concern" about signs of discrimination by the LAPD against Mexican and Central American immigrants and stressing the group's conviction that an individual's immigration status should not be a reason for "police action."

Sorry El Rescate, but immigration status is most certainly a reason
for "police action." Being here illegally is against Federal law.

Referring to the much-publicized of vigilante border sentinels in southern Arizona, Cardoza complained: "It's not enough that there are armed people on the border trying to stop (illegal migrants) ... out of hatred, racism, trying to violate their rights and wreak revenge, but that is also happening here in the cities."

If you are illegal than stay out or get out. Comprende?

"Because the attack is against Latinos," he said. "The attack is not against other undocumented people like Europeans, Asians or Africans. If there are going to be deportations let them be equal and don't let one community be the target."

The vast majority of illegals ARE Latinos. You must not read the papers.

The LAPD implemented Special Order 40 in 1979 as part of an municipal push to make Los Angeles a sanctuary for Central American fleeing political violence in their homelands. Several previous attempts to rescind SO40 have been blocked by the city council.

One of the biggest mistakes they ever made. It should have been rescinded years ago, and they have been paying the price for it ever since.

PUH-Leeze!! I am so weary of the word discrimination being used as if it were profanity or---illegal! Give me MORE discrimination. I discriminate 1,000's of times per day, and so does everyone else.

If I buy Maxwell House, should Folgers sue me? If I know a horse from an elephant, isn't that a form of discrimination?

The idea that a lawbreaker is arrested b/c of the race, or language, or age, or sex, has nothing to do with anything. They're arrested b/c they're breaking the law! Do they think that they're some elite group who is above the law? Don't they know that SO40 is AGAINST federal law?? sheesh

Whiners and do-gooders beware! The appeal to our compassion has run its course and the pendulum is swinging back the OTHER way...fassst...we're not brain dead after all. Thank God. More discrimination will result in a better society.

RR

GO LAPD, do you job and make changes to a 25 year old code, its time to up date. Serve and protect, thier here illegally and it is thier job under federal law that they inforce that law.

Acidrain