Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio Arrests 6-Year-Old Undocumented Immigrant

and Cheney.

I guess countries where 10% of the population own 90% of the resources don't offer much opportunity to their citizens.

Do you think the Republicans can learn from this?

Why do you think they're trying to do the same thing now?

to the United States and nobody cared.

"When 10% of the people own 90% of the resources in the U.S., where will Americans illegally migrate to for jobs?"

This cretin doesn't investigate child sex crimes, but he has the time to arrest a 6-yr old who certainly didn't plan and execute her entrance to the US. May he rot in Hell, but be voted out of office when he's up for re-election. rec'd

Many less so.

6-year-old girl. Arrested with 15 other people.

Let's consider the options, shall we?

1. She ran away from home--or had been abandoned or had been orphaned--and had independently and safely hooked up with a group of 15 others, emigrating to the US on her own initiative and effort. Do you really want an independent 6-year-old girl wandering about unsupervised? No. Such kids are detained in the US and turned over to child services.

2. She was with one or more relatives who were supervising her and looking out for her and had de facto custody of her. Let's by all means praise the policeman who arrests the adults in charge of her and leaves her on her own! Uh, not so much.

How many times have we heard this particular practice excoriated by DUers? Now we suddenly want and defend the practice? I think not.

3. She wasn't with an adult who was looking out for her interest, but with a smuggler who either had been paid to transport the child from one relative in C. America to a relative in the US. Or perhaps wanted her to engage in paid sexual activities? Ooh ... defending human smugglers, what a progressive act! In any event, if you arrest the smugglers what do you do with the kid? We're back to having an unsupervised 6-year-old girl roaming about.

4. The option most people apparently want: She was brought into the country illegally by her relatives, and because she is here and is sacred and holy, untouchable, therefore everybody with her should be granted some sort of residency or, at the least, be documented to work and live in the US. Except that's, well, contrary to law.

Like I said, all the alternatives are also indefensible. I don't like (4) any more than (1), (2), or (3). Or what Arpaio did. However, Arpaio's actions at least have the plausible outcome of returning the whole family to their country of origin.

I'd note that the justifications for Obama's de-enforcement of deporting young people fail here. The justifications were that the students or young people had been raised in the US, were Americans "at heart", and would have trouble adjusting upon their return to a strange country. This kid's 6. Not in school, not American "at heart", probably speaks little English and hasn't, in all likelihood, been raised in the US. Perhaps she was: But if she really is an illegal immigrant and not native born then it's not likely she was brought here in her first year of life.

When I first heard this story my thoughts went to point #3.

stop with that being all rational and stuff.

anything less would have run the risk of looking mean in a brief headline designed to stir up emotions.



/you are of course correct in your assessment. But put arpaio + child (or 6 year old) + arrested in a headline and people will read it.

and thought provoking. Bravo.

but lets not forget that none of these points were considered by Arpaio.

He just wants to be on record defying President Obama.

Arpaio should be in jail by now...

http://borderlessnewsandviews.com/2012/05/joe-arpaio-pretty-in-pink/

Reading the newspaper article about the cases raises some troubling questions.
1) It mentioned something about "people smuggling". What happened to this girl's parents? How did she wind up in Arizona of all places? Was she smuggled in by request of parents already here, or was she sold into slavery by her parents or 3rd parties?
2) At least she's with ICE. I certainly doubt Sheriff nutso's intentions but at least she's not in his jail cells.
3) Why isn't he pursing sex crimes charges with the same fervor he pursues undocumented immigrants?

and we barely even hear about it. Out of sight.

We hear about it, but not nearly as much as it actually happens. Mostly out of sight.

Then there are numerous other abuses that happen to new immigrants--jammed into safe houses, subject to extortion and (near)slavery, and being abandoned without money by the coyote before they reach their destination.

Illegal immigration can be a risky business.

Saying she was "arrested" makes great headlines, but was there any choice available to law enforcement other than taking her into custody and turning her over to ICE, i.e. the federal government?

The Arizona Republic article states that none of the other people who were detained knew anything about her. No parents or other responsible party present.

which sounds kind of fishy to me. Nobody noticed that a six-year old girl was tagging along? She followed the group like a stray puppy? I think she was under the supervision of someone in the group who was to deliver her to family in the U.S.


rocktivity