Why Arizona Isn't Crazy, Just Wrong
Spend some time in Arizona, and you may come to see why so many of its
residents support a law that has outraged the nation.
By Eve Conant
Newsweek / May 5, 2010
The first time I drove out of Phoenix I was stunned by two things: the
oppressive heat, and how quickly the city ended and the desert, with its
saguaro cacti and brambly creosote, began. It's been more than 20 years
since my parents first moved to Arizona, and that desert highway is now
flanked by a ribbon of shopping malls and housing developments. A few years
ago I would have told you those beige subdivisions with their manicured rock
gardens were a safe and friendly place to raise kids. Ask me now and I'd
say: think twice.
Arizona has outraged the nation with a new immigration law that obligates
authorities to check the documents of anyone they believe is in the country
illegally, based on a "reasonable suspicion" during a "lawful" stop. Some
accuse lawmakers and the 70 percent of Arizonans who support the bill of
acting like Nazis, or of turning Arizona into an apartheid state. But spend
some time in Arizona, and you may come to see why so many Arizonans want
this.
It's terrifying to live next door to homes filled with human traffickers,
drug smugglers, AK-47s, pit bulls, and desperate laborers stuffed 30 to a
room, shoes removed to hinder escape. During a month's reporting with police
and other law-enforcement agents in Arizona last year, I met many scared
people. One man who lived next to a "drop house" for Mexican workers slept
with two guns under his bed, his children not allowed to play in the
backyard. The sound of gunshots was not uncommon. "Four years ago this
neighborhood was poodles and old ladies," he said, too frightened to give
his name. "Now it's absolutely insane." That morning, authorities had raided
the drop house. When the neighbor told me how his kids had been evacuated
behind riot shields, he began to cry. Others, too, were unhappy: the
undocumented workers taken from the house were exhausted, sweaty, and dead
quiet as they sat on a curb with their hands cuffed, waiting to be taken
away.
Within 24 hours I witnessed another bust, this one prompted by a tip from
Tennessee authorities. They reported a threat to kill a kidnap victim, and a
ransom demand for $3,500. Sheriff's deputies went to a pleasant house with a
two-car garage. Inside, they found dozens of immigrants crammed into
unfurnished bedrooms, the windows boarded from the inside, shoes and belts
piled up in the closet. The search also turned up a Taser-like device, a
sawed-off shotgun, and two pistols. Another day, I watched the Phoenix
police break up a "stash house" filled with guns and hundreds of pounds of
marijuana. An hour later they raided a McMansion adorned with hunting
trophies and Scarface posters; a white SUV jammed with 300 pounds of
marijuana was parked out front. (Sixty percent of all the marijuana that
reaches the U.S. transits Arizona.)
Again, the house was in a high-end development, nowhere near the border.
None of this means the new law is a good idea. In addition to Arizona, I've
also lived in Russia, which requires its citizens to carry documents at all
times. Police usually carry out spot checks on darker-skinned people from
the Caucasus or the "stans"-people who often go to Russia as illegal migrant
workers. These workers are also the targets of racially motivated attacks
and killings. Average Russians don't bat an eye.We don't want to head in
that direction. The overwhelming majority of Mexicans who come here are not
criminals. Most are just desperate for honest work. But clearly something
needs to be done about the traffickers who bring them to the U.S. Last year
the U.S. marshal for Arizona, David Gonzales, told me he had some 200 active
warrants for Mexicans in and around Phoenix engaged in organized crime. Last
week he told me he had 324, and even more in Tucson. So what's the solution?
Gonzales favors an approach backed by many other law-enforcement and
immigration specialists: the federal government, he says, must step in to
make the border more secure and to amend the system so more Mexicans can
enter the country legally-without the "help" of criminal cartels.
***
From: Dave Zirin
To: epearlag
A New Era: Here Come The Suns!
By Dave Zirin
Edge of Sports: May 04, 2010
A battle has been joined for the very soul of Arizona. On one side, there
are the Minutemen, the craven state Republican lawmakers, Governor Jan
Brewer, and the utterly unprincipled John McCain, all supporting SB 1070, a
law that codifies racial profiling of immigrants in the state. On the other
are the Sun Belt residents who protested on May 1st, the students who have
engaged in walkouts, and the politicians and civic leaders calling for an
economic boycott of their own state.
This battle has also been joined in the world of sports. On one side is
Major League Baseball's Arizona Diamondbacks. Owned by state Republican
moneyman Ken Kendrick, the team has drawn protestors to parks around the
country. On the other side, we now have the Phoenix Suns. On Tuesday the
news came forth that tomorrow on Cinco de Mayo, the team would be wearing
jerseys that say simply Los Suns. Team owner Robert Sarver said, after
talking to the team, that this will be an act of sartorial solidarity
against the bill. Their opponent, the San Antonio Spurs have made clear that
they support the gesture.
In a statement released by the team, Sarver said, "The frustration with the
federal government's failure to deal with the issue of illegal immigration
resulted in passage of a flawed state law. However intended, the result of
passing this law is that our basic principles of equal rights and protection
under the law are being called into question, and Arizona's already
struggling economy will suffer even further setbacks at a time when the
state can ill-afford them."
He followed up the statement by saying to reporters, "I looked around our
plane and looked at our players and the diversity in our organization. I
thought we need to go on record that we honor our diversity in our team, in
the NBA and we need to show support for that. As for the political part of
that, that's my statement. There are times you need to stand up and be
heard. I respect people's views on the other side but I just felt it was
appropriate for me to stand up and make a statement."
After Sarver spoke out, the team chimed in against the passage and signing
of SB 1070. Two-time MVP point guard Steve Nash, who in 2003 became the
first athlete to go on record against the Iraq war said, "I think the law is
very misguided. I think it is unfortunately to the detriment to our society
and our civil liberties and I think it is very important for us to stand up
for things we believe in. I think the law obviously can target opportunities
for racial profiling. Things we don't want to see and don't need to see in
2010."
All-Star power forward Amare Stoudamire, who has no political reputation,
also chimed in saying, "It's going to be great to wear Los Suns to let the
Latin community know we're behind them 100%."
After the story broke, I spoke on the phone with NBA Players Association
Presdient Billy Hunter about the Suns audacious move.
"It's phenomenal," he said. "This makes it clear to me that it's a new era.
It's a new time. Athletes can tend to be apolitical and isolated from the
issues that impact the general public. But now here come the Suns. I would
have expected nothing less from Steve Nash who has been out front on a
number of issues over the years. I also want to recognize Amare. I know how
strident Amare can be and I'm really impressed to see him channel his
intensity. It shows a tremendous growth and maturity on his part. And I have
to applaud Bob Sarver because he is really taking a risk by putting himself
out there. I commend them. I just think it's super."
He said that the union would have their own statement out by the end of the
week.
This kind of political intervention by a sports team is without precedent
and now every athlete and every team has an opening to stand up and be
heard. Because when it's all said and done, this isn't just a battle for the
soul of Arizona. It's a battle for the soul of the United States. Here come
the Suns indeed.
[Dave Zirin is the author of the forthcoming "Bad Sports: How Owners are
Ruining the Games we Love" (Scribner) Receive his column every week by
emailing dave@edgeofsports.com. Contact him at edgeofsports@gmail.com.]
Edge of Sports | Modify Your Subscription | Unsubscribe Now
No comments:
Post a Comment