Napolitano speaks against profiling, fails to mention Sec. Communities
Luke Witman
Tucson Immigration Examiner
January 30, 2012
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In her annual State of America's Homeland Security address, Sec. Napolitano spoke out against racial profiling as a law enforcement tool.
In her second annual “State of America’s Homeland Security” address, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano took a stand against the use of racial profiling as a tool in securing our nation against terrorist threats. According to Napolitano, racial profiling is simply not an effective method of law enforcement, as it is not based on government-gathered intelligence data. The secretary pledged to develop a “new risk-based, information-driven approach to [homeland] security.” Rather than making decisions based on presumptive profiles, Napolitano argues that those working to secure the U.S. must learn to use the information available to them to make informed decisions regarding perceived threats.
In announcing this shift in DHS protocol, Napolitano referred specifically to the use of profiling at airports and other places where officials work to secure travelers. However, she did not specifically comment on another DHS effort, which some argue is perhaps the one most wholly dependent on racial profiling for its operation: Secure Communities. Based on Napolitano’s comments, however, one must wonder if racial profiling is an ineffective method of protecting U.S. travelers, must it not also be a patently ineffective way to enforce U.S. immigration law?
Of course, many proponents of Secure Communities and of using state and local law enforcement to carry out federal immigration law argue that racial profiling is not employed in this effort. Ariz. Gov. Jan Brewer argued in defense of SB 1070, for example, she wanted to “make it crystal clear and undeniable that racial profiling is illegal, and will not be tolerated in Arizona.” Similarly, Joe Arpaio has repeatedly denied the accusations of racial profiling made against him and the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Department. Unfortunately for him, however, the U.S. Justice Department disagrees. The DOJ recently revoked Arpaio’s and his department’s authority to enforce immigration law in Maricopa County.
For critics of racial profiling as a law enforcement technique, Napolitano’s criticism of this method is a move in the right direction, towards a more informed and humane approach to law enforcement. However, many continue to call for the secretary to come out and formally denounce Secure Communities, a program she has thus far continued to throw her support behind.
In related news, in this same address, Napolitano stated that U.S. immigration policy is “sorely outdated and in need of revision. In particular, Napolitano rebuked Congress for its continued failure to pass the DREAM Act, which would provide a path to citizenship for some undocumented immigrants brought to this country at a young age.
Napolitano speaks against profiling, fails to mention Sec. Communities - Tucson Immigration | Examiner.com
