Arizona law cracks down on illegal immigrants; religious leader urges "compassion"

While law enforcement officials in Arizona are showcasing their efforts at tackling problems related to immigration, religious leaders in the state are calling on lawmakers to turn the immigration debate into a "more compassionate one."

"Another Arizona law-enforcement agency is joining the growing ranks of those touting their efforts at tackling problems arising from illegal immigration. The Department of Public Safety on Monday released statistics that showed officers of a specialized unit have discovered 40 drophouses since the unit started investigations six months ago, arresting 99 suspected human smugglers and nearly 500 suspected illegal immigrants in the process," writes the Arizona Republic today.

Meanwhile, Kold News is reporting that despite these reported success levels, Gary Kinnaman of Word of Grace Church in Mesa, Arizona said, "We have a huge problem and it's not going away, and it's becoming more and more complex, and it's the responsibility of our civic leaders to reconsider how those laws are written."

"The group does not have a specific plan to address illegal immigration, but they do support a path to citizenship for the nation's 12 million illegal immigrants," says the report.

-- Deborah Bonello in Mexico City

Comments

[gfhjhj]

Compassion?? Most who call for the harshest and most punitive laws barely even regard the illegal immigrants as human beings. It doesn't matter if they die, they'll still be blamed for "breaking our laws".