Guest Author
“We won’t allow someone here illegally to commit criminal misconduct and simply be returned to our communities.”
That is a quote from Gov. Ron DeSantis’ State of the State Address, and an example of what happens when you put being a politician over being a public servant. It is no secret this statement plays well politically with some Floridians — especially with the people who put DeSantis in office. However, it is clear that very little thought has been applied into how a law like this would practically work and effects it would have on Floridians.
In order to turn the governor’s vision into a reality, the Florida Senate is proposing Senate Bill 168, which will effectively end sanctuary cities in Florida. The governor claims SB 168 will make Florida safer, but the results from other states that have enacted similar policies prove that he is not correct.
SB 168 has within it a paragraph that effectively gives “a state entity, local governmental entity, or law enforcement agency” the option to turn over information regarding a victim or witness to a federal immigration agency. Of course, many entities will not turn over this information, but even adding the possibility of being deported will cause crime reporting to sharply decline among immigrants.
Texas passed an “anti-sanctuary” bill in 2017. That bill, SB 4, and its origin are eerily similar to Florida’s SB 168. Texas politicians pushed it under the veil of it making Texas safer. They focused on rhetoric similar to that of Gov. DeSantis. Like DeSantis, they had no facts or figures to back up their claims — just a small group of isolated incidents that were enough to incite an obvious prejudice against immigrants.
SB 4 did not end up making Texans safer. In fact, it had some horrible effects that Florida should know about. In the same year SB 4 passed, domestic abuse in Houston dropped by 16 percent among the Latino community. The police have attributed the drop in domestic abuse reporting to SB 4’s passing and an increasing hostility to illegal immigration. How can people be safer when crimes go unreported?
Further, SB 4 hurt recovery efforts in Texas following Hurricane Harvey, and a bill like SB 168 could do the same to Florida. Should another hurricane of that magnitude make landfall in Florida, we may find ourselves in the same position as Texas.
Although often unacknowledged, it is almost an open secret that recovery workforces are often significantly made up of undocumented workers. A study of the Hurricane Katrina rebuilding efforts in New Orleans discovered that 25 percent of the reconstruction workforce was undocumented. By passing SB 4, Texas unknowingly decreased the mobility of a huge part of its recovery workforce; if we pass SB 168, we will be doing the same.
There are countless facts and figures that we can point to that explain why a bill like SB 168 will not make Florida safer. However, Gov. DeSantis will likely continue to point to isolated incidents and anecdotes in order to make good on a campaign promise that is layered in prejudice, and we must let him know that is not acceptable.
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Sam Garcia is a current Harvard Law Student and a Forbes contributor covering immigration. Cindy Polo represents Broward and Miami-Dade in the Florida House.
2 comments
Jim Fox
April 1, 2019 at 10:22 pm
THE WALL:
The Border Patrol, DHS, ICE our Military & the Army Corps of Engineers have all endorsed the need for a wall numerous times almost nightly. Barrack Obama’s own border patrol chief, Mark Morgan, has repeatedly stated that walls work. They free up resources to focus on the points of entrances so they can detect more contraband and illegals.
TPS / DACA
To Democrats/Progressives/Socialists (whats the difference?) programs like Temporary Protective Status (TPS) or Deferred Action for Childhood arrivals (DACA) are permanent programs. There is nothing “temporary or deferred” about these programs to Democrats. These programs are designed to admit refugees (usually from the third world) then Democrats fight to keep them here permanently using the charge of racism, religion, guilt against anyone opposed. Simple formula works great.
THE PRICE:
Democrats view U.S. citizens as acceptable collateral damage to their future long range goals of flooding the country with refugees & illegal aliens and having taxpayers paying the cost. Democrat politicians and their voters have put families at risk of being victimized by illegal aliens as in the cases Kate Steinly (nothing done) then, Mollie Tibbetts, (nothing done) Police Cpl. Ronil Singh, (nothing done) now Bambi Larson; butchered in her home, nothing will be done…who’s next? These victims would be alive today if our border was secured. Most of these killers have been deported numerous times. Bambi ‘s killer claimed “amnesty” to get into the country. Sanctuary city’s where you have protection for illegal aliens, gang members, illegal alien felons fleeing ICE. What a place to raise a family.
Google search “illegal alien crime” or “victims.” Preventable victimization’s.
THE STAMPEDE:
Democrats offer rewards, incentives so…..More caravans on the way. The current migration at our border is costing U.S taxpayers a Kings ransom. Fleeing persecution? or fleeing for freebies? they sure don’t stay in Mexico when they reach “safety” or ask or offered political asylum in Mexico. Why? because Mexico will give them NOTHING. So they make the long journey to our border, our generous Democrats, and our tax dollars. Notice how many have made the long, difficult, dangerous journey to our country 8-9 months pregnant? Give birth on American soil and the U.S. taxpayers will not only pay for the birth of you’re child but will also give you state government assistance.
Just a few examples of the more outrageous costs associated with illegal immigration, we will pass this burden on to our children & grand children as has been passed on to us.
*Cost of educating illegal aliens is staggering. From K-12 it costs taxpayers on average $122,000 for EACH illegal alien student. This does not include the millions spent on bilingual ED, instructors, special need children & day care. School class size are negatively impacted by illegal aliens and our students suffer as a result.
*Taxpayers in some states are funding “in state college tuition” discounts for illegal aliens. (AZ voted to terminate this taxpayer expense.) Cost to taxpayers over a billion dollars annually.
*About one in five inmates in federal prison are foreign-born, & more than 90% of those are in the U.S illegally. This does not include local jails and state prisons. At roughly $24,000 per year expense per inmate.
*$3Million Dollars a DAY is spent to incarcerate, process Illegal aliens in the criminal justice system.
*Mexico received 33 billion last year in remittance. 120 billion total was sent out of the country in total remittance last year.
*Every child birth by illegal aliens in the U.S is paid for with tax dollars.In the US, the average cost to have a baby without complications during delivery, is $10,808, which can increase to $30,000 when factoring in care provided before and after pregnancy (July 9, 2018 google.)
* Section 8 housing. Illegal aliens take full advantage of this program. Citizens & their families in poverty in many cases wait years behind non citizens for emergency housing.
* City emergency services Taxpayer pay for every police, fire, paramedic service call for illegal aliens in their city. Taxpayers also pay for all hospital, emergency room treatments, ambulances, medications….everything. Hospital wait times for citizens are negatively impacted.
*Congress is debating DACA and is costing taxpayers millions of dollars. Thank the parents and Barrack Obama.
*$2.2 Billion dollars a year is spent on is spent on food assistance programs such as SNAP, WIC, & taxpayer funded school lunches. Visit youtube search “cost of illegal immigration.”
KELLY
April 1, 2019 at 10:31 pm
Democrat Platform
*Open Borders.
*Sanctuary Cities.
*Elimination of ICE.
*Voting rights for illegal
aliens.
*Pack the courts with
radical liberal judges.
*Increase refugee’s from
the third world.
*Illegal aliens allowed to
hold public office.
*Packing congress with
Socialists.
*Free Abortions (Taxpayer funded)
*The green new deal.
*End of Electoral College
*Free health care for all including non citizens (taxpayer funded)
*Raise Minimum Wage
*Have children vote
*!00% free college for all, including non citizens. (tax payer funded)
*Reparations for every race “harmed” by the white man.
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