Today, the Sun-Times editorial board cited the recent Immigration and Customs Enforcement raid of an Iowa meatpacking plant as evidence of the need for better treatment of detained immigrants:
Immigration raids are a fact of life in the U.S., but mistreatment of immigrants shouldn't be. Besides the concerns raised in Iowa, a recent New York Times investigation reported evidence of inadequate medical care for detained immigrants. Sixty-six immigrants died in detention from January 2004 to November 2007, according to federal data obtained by the Times.
As ICE continues large-scale raids, detainees must be treated fairly. As a country, we can't figure out how to reform our broken immigration system, but we do know where we stand on civil liberties -- they need to be protected, whether a person resides here legally or not.
The Iowa raid also highlights the weak penalties against employers who hire and exploit illegal immigrants. Workers at the Agriprocessors Inc. plant in Postville, Iowa, according to a suit filed last week, were assessed $50 immigration fees in their paychecks, not paid overtime and denied bathroom breaks. Eighteen may have been minors.
The Times investigation can be found here. And for a more forceful criticism of the immigration enforcement system in the U.S., read the response to the Iowa raid released by the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights.
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