We continue to hear the same type of rhetoric about African Americans
in our country in terms of the percentage of criminal activity that
takes place. What we have seen happen is the further incarceration and
enslavement of African Americans in our Nation today because of similar
rhetoric. I want to make it very clear: ``Immigrant'' and ``criminal'' are not
synonyms. You make it out to be that way by the passage of this
legislation. Talking about law enforcement, in New York City, James O'Neill, the
police commissioner, has said this law will make New York City less
safe than it is today. I remind my colleagues on the other side of the aisle that 9/11
happened in my hometown, in my city. Since then, there have been no
major incidents of terrorism in New York City because they have been
able to collect information--much of it from the undocumented community
in our city--to prevent similar events from happening again. That is
why this bill is so egregious. The first responsibility of the Federal Government is to protect its
citizens from foreign invasion, foreign attack, terrorist attacks.
Keywords matched
Immigrant undocumented