An Example of Racial Profiling in Arizona

Dat-Vinh Nguyen writes for NewUniversity.org:

In Nogales, Arizona, a town near the border between Arizona and Mexico, a man named Eduardo Vega stops at a gas station to fill his car during his daily commute to Phoenix. An Arizona police officer, also a Mexican-American, approaches Vega to ask him to see his papers. Startled, Vega’s reaction prompts the officer to repeat: “May I see your papers? Did I stutter?” Vega, still in shock, replies, “No, you didn’t stutter. But why would you want to see my papers?”

In response, the officer said, “It’s cause you look like a Hispanic.  It looks like you just jumped off the border. I really want to make sure that you’re not here and getting a free ride. We don’t want any wetbacks here.”

Vega, infuriated at the police officer’s belligerence, cusses out the cop and as a result, is handcuffed and taken down to the station. Only after determining he was in fact a legal resident and citizen, Vega is released.

This story, contrary to what you might believe, is not an over-dramatization of potential racial profiling but a factual event that occurred last Saturday, May 1. Eduardo Vega, an auditor and an American citizen, is the uncle of Bianca Tellez, a third-year Criminology major at UC Irvine. Click here for the full story.

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