two stories about Phoenix

The NYTimes today has two pieces about issues in Phoenix - that are not the most flattering.

Thoughts: [see first article] Not racial profiling? Asking for papers when someone is wearing a shirt from Mexico or speaking Spanish?! We live in a state that borders Mexico - of course there are lots of people this applies to. And I am sure they are not uniformly being checked - for example, if I were wearing a shirt from Mexico and speaking Spanish. Also, I think the Sheriff sounds like a scary man with too much power. If his tactics were doing anything more than humiliating people, I am sure there would be articles about it and people would be trying to replicate his model. Final thought, I am glad I live in Tucson.

From EDITORIAL OBSERVER
Showdown in Arizona, Where Mariachis and Minutemen Collide
By LAWRENCE DOWNES
A weekly confrontation at a parking lot in Phoenix perfectly mimics the national debate over immigration.

"Thomas Road has lots of Latino day laborers, or jornaleros, who hustle for work near Home Depot. A few months ago, the Phoenix police shooed them away. They dispersed to streets nearby, angering local businesses. One of the biggest, Pruitt’s, hired off-duty city police officers to keep jornaleros at bay. The city put a stop to that, so Pruitt’s turned to the county sheriff, Joe Arpaio.

Sheriff Joe, as he is known, needed no prodding: hunting undocumented immigrants is his specialty. He has arrested hundreds under a state antismuggling law (for smuggling themselves) and has had 160 officers deputized as federal immigration agents. They have made more than 50 arrests near Pruitt’s since the protests began.

They’ll pull a car over for a traffic infraction, then check everyone’s papers. They say they act on reasonable suspicion only — if they see a shirt or shoes like those worn south of the border or hear Spanish. They say it isn’t profiling

There is no doubt whose side Sheriff Joe is on. He has officers on Pruitt’s payroll, guarding the lot on protest days. Last week, he issued a news release demanding that the demonstrators stop hurting Pruitt’s and vowing to crank up the pressure until they went away. It was a naked attempt to stifle dissent and help a business ally.

People here are used to that from Sheriff Joe. He describes himself as “America’s meanest sheriff” and has recently been basking in the love of nativists like the Minuteman Chris Simcox and radio host Terry Anderson, who gushed over him at a roast in Sun City West this month.

And, featuring the same Sheriff:
A Starring Role for Drivers Who Drink
By JENNIFER STEINHAUER
In Phoenix, mug shots of convicted drunken drivers are available to the entire world via a Web site started by the county attorney.

"The Web site and billboards, which began last month, are the brainchildren of Andrew P. Thomas, the county attorney here who has served as the prosecutorial counterpart to the county’s hard-edged sheriff, Joe Arpaio, who has been known to force inmates into pink underwear.

The purposes of the billboards and the Web site, Mr. Thomas has said, are to inform the public about drunken-driving laws, and to serve as a deterrent.

...

“I just can’t believe he’s doing it,” said Mark Weingart, a defense lawyer in Tempe who has advised hundreds of people facing charges of driving under the influence. “Besides the fact that it is in bad taste, D.U.I.’s usually involve somebody with no criminal history. The downside to this person being published on the Web site is tremendous. I don’t see the point. Why doesn’t he put sex offenders up there?”