In the light of day, while they're being watched, Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents ain't so tough.
The above video with footage by Bill Pierce and editing by Dennis Gilman documents a November 19 demonstration outside the Phoenix offices of ICE by undocumented Arizona DREAM Act students.
It begins with a segment snipped from a confrontation DREAM Act students had with state Senate President-elect Russell Pearce on election night at the Hyatt in downtown Phoenix.
From there, it jumps to the November 19 protest, with the DREAM Act students, undocumented because they were brought here by their parents while kids, practically begging ICE to arrest them.
ICE, avoiding a PR nightmare, pretends the DREAMers aren't there.
Not all ICE agents are nefarious. Some just happen to work for a nefarious organization. If they were focused on pulling in real criminals, I'd have no problem with them. But they are focused on numbers, plain and simple. Mothers, fathers, and children are torn from each other as ICE pursues its ungodly quotas.
President Obama has called on Congress to present him with a DREAM Act bill to sign into law by the end of the year. A vote could come as soon as next week.
The DREAM Act would address the problem presented by these undocumented children, who have been raised in the U.S., educated by our schools, and are essentially Americans for all intents and purposes.
Those kids who stay out of trouble, go to college or serve in the military, would earn legal residence. It's a no-brainer. The young men and women who want to serve this nation and get an education? We should keep them here. They are an asset to our country.
(Note: To voice your support for DREAM legislation, click, here.)
For one of these young patriots, I'd trade a thousand native-born bigots like Russell Pearce. Pearce is a worthless human being, motivated by hatred and a lust for power.
The DREAM Act students, however, are the future of this country. Pearce belongs to its white pride past.
Has Pearce ever served this country in wartime? If so, he doesn't list it on his C.V. And I'm guessing he would boast about it if he could. He's of the Vietnam generation. Why didn't he sign up for service in Southeast Asia, assuming he loves his country as much as he claims?
Pearce needs to be confronted over and over and over again. He is easily the most powerful racist in Arizona, perhaps in the nation.
ICE, too, deserves constant confrontation. Take a look at that sheriff's van leaving the premises. Talk about an axis of malevolence: ICE, the MCSO and Pearce. I'd call that a nativist trifecta.
