VivirLatino

In an interview with NotiMex, the Vice-President of the National Council of la Raza, Lisa Navarrete, said that the stats on hate crimes against Latinos are an underestimate and part of that is because many of the undocumented who are the targets of anti-Latino and anti-Latino attacks are afraid of being deported.

The FBI statistics have shown a decrease in hate crimes against Latinos. In 2007, there were 830 reported hate crimes against Latinos. In 2008 the number dropped to 792. In the last year that data is available for, 2009, the number of reported and recognized hate crimes against Latinos is 692.

The latest threat, especially to immigrant women, is hidden in a program with a misleading name, Secure Communities. According to a recent article in Women’s eNews :

While federal law protects crime victims from having to reveal their immigration status, if these victims are arrested or have been arrested in the past Secure Communities now discloses that.

This can affect victims in a scenario where a police officer arrives at the home and can’t communicate with the couple. Police may arrest both parties or even arrest the victim if the abuser speaks English and twists the series of events that led to the police call.

This is not theory. We have already seen it happen.

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