Joe Arpaio Celebrating the 20th Birthday of His "Concentration Camp," Tent City | Valley Fever | Phoenix | Phoenix New Times | The Leading Independent News Source in Phoenix, Arizona
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Joe Arpaio Celebrating the 20th Birthday of His "Concentration Camp," Tent City

Who celebrates 20 years of running what they describe as a "concentration camp," and takes pride in exposing men and women to the elements of the desert?Only the leader of that "concentration camp," of course -- Maricopa County Fuehrer Sheriff Joe Arpaio...
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Who celebrates 20 years of running what they describe as a "concentration camp," and takes pride in exposing men and women to the elements of the desert?

Only the leader of that "concentration camp," of course -- Maricopa County Fuehrer Sheriff Joe Arpaio.

As has been the case for several years now, Arpaio throws birthday parties for the lockup he described as a "concentration camp," as if it were his own child.

Here's part of the oh-so-important press release from the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office:

To celebrate this 20th year, Sheriff Arpaio has authorized a "RETRO DAY"...one day where his no-frill policies are suspended, in part, and inmates at the Tents can enjoy coffee, better food, cigarettes, rental movies, unrestricted television and *adult magazines* as well as music from the 1990s.
The cigarettes are candy, and the "adult magazines" are Good Housekeeping and Woman's Day.

Other celebrations of the Tent City anniversary in recent years have included naming part of the jail "Section 1070" -- for "illegal aliens," of course -- as well as an Elvis impersonator, and a dessert of moon pies (which an inmate alleged had been in a freezer "for months," as he threw it on the ground).

Further information on the legacy of Tent City can be found in the links below:


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Follow Matthew Hendley on Twitter at @MatthewHendley.


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