287(g) in Tennessee is a Perversion

Jan Snider’s Op-Ed in the Tennessean:

Davidson County Sheriff Daron Hall persuaded the citizenry of Nashville in 2007 that 287(g) would make us a safer community by aiding in the deportation of “criminal illegal aliens, drug dealers, thieves and violent individuals.” But, as it unfolded, 80 percent of those processed for deportation were originally arrested for minor violations. Something as simple as fishing without a license or failure to use a turn signal suddenly resulted in deportations that ripped families apart. What was intended to be a policy to protect our citizenry from the most violent criminals has turned it into a homegrown remedy for our nation’s broken immigration laws.
Just this past month, six communities throughout the nation acknowledged the disastrous impact of 287(g) and revoked their agreements. Despite the shifting momentum, Nashville’s leadership quashed debate about this issue and voted to continue the program.
When we formed Tennessee Justice for Our Neighbors nearly two years ago, our mandate was clear. As a largely volunteer-run organization with its roots in the United Methodist Church, we provide free high-quality immigration legal services to the poorest of the poor. When there’s a remedy, we apply it; when there’s no path to legalization we explain it; when there’s injustice, we expose it.
While our current immigration laws are convoluted and dysfunctional, the 287(g) agreement catapults our legal system to the point of actually harming people. No decent person approves of mistreating others, but for people like me, who have taken the name “Christian,” there is a stronger imperative.
We hear the stories of why these immigrants have come to live with us.
They have often escaped persecution and abuse, or arrived here as a result of human trafficking or fled numbing poverty. These situations are not black and white, but many shades of gray. One thing is clear: The policy of 287(g) has become a perverted version of its original intent.
As Nashville celebrates yet another year of being named the “friendliest city,” our immigrant brothers and sisters tremble in fear of being singled out for a minor infraction that should be subject to a fine but could result in their family being torn apart. Click here for the full piece.

bh