When I grew up in Southern California, the object of racist insults weren’t only blacks but especially Mexicans. Even if there were no Mexicans never mind blacks at our elementary school in Hollywood, some students – if not all – had very strong prejudices against them.
An investigative documentary by PBS shows that not only is the treatment of Mexicans and other Latin Americans a widespread problem in the United States, it has risen to endemic proportions if we look at the actions of the U.S. Border Patrol.
Here is a link to the PBS website to the investigative report titled, Crossing the line. Here’s Part I.
Writes PBS: “In the rush to stem the tide of undocumented immigrants, has Border Patrol committed widespread abuse on [US]American soil? A former Border Patrol agent blows the whistle on unacceptable conditions in detention centers, including massive over-crowding and detainees who claim they were deprived of food and water.”
One part of the PBS documentary caught my eye with respect to Finland. It claimed that in 2010, there were only three complaints by detainees and 21 over treatment in general by Border Patrol officials.
If so few complaints have been filed against the U.S. Border Patrol against thousands of complaints by former Mexican detainees that suggest abuse, torture and even sexual harassment, the single- and double-digit figures above are highly revealing.
In Finland, there were questions raised by the Ombudsman for Minorities concerning ethnic profiling by the police. The police responded that there weren’t any such cases.
Such a claim in April, which was backed Christian Democrat (KD) Interior Minister Päivi Räsänen, shows in my opinion that ethic profiling by the police is an issue just like the mistreatment of undocumented immigrants is by the U.S. Border Patrol.
Take a look at the PBS documentary. It will shock you.
When any institution like the U.S. Border Patrol is out of control and not accountable for its actions, the biggest loser are the very values that these agents claim to defend and uphold. It is indeed a slippery slope.
Who are the real enemies threatening the United States: undocumented immigrants or a U.S. Border Patrol that appears to be out of control and acts with impunity?
Thanks go to Community Village Daily Activist for the heads-up.