Gosh. Who could have guessed this could happen given collective freak-out about immigrants?
SALT LAKE CITY – State agencies are investigating whether any of their employees leaked Social Security numbers and other personal information after a list of 1,300 people who an anonymous group claims are illegal immigrants was circulated around Utah.
The anonymous group mailed the list to several media outlets, law enforcement agencies and others this week, frightening the state's Hispanic community. A letter accompanying the list demanded that those on it be deported immediately.
The list also contains highly detailed personal information such as Social Security numbers, birth dates, workplaces, addresses and phone numbers. Names of children are included, along with due dates of pregnant women on the list.[emphasis added]
A group of
well-meaning concerned citizens fear-mongering lunatics circulates a list of people they suspect are undocumented workers. Gee, what could go wrong here?
IMO, this is the kind of stuff that the Arizona law, and support for it, leads to. There are people who are predisposed towards personalizing the type of political statement made by laws similar to that one. They take the "it's our only option to meaningfully control illegal immigration" line and make it their vigilante cause because "the gubment just ain't doing enuf. Also, too, Obama's a socialist."
And now this same "gubment" is in the untenable position of possibly having to defend
lives because the names of
kids and pregnant women's due dates have been published. I recognize that this list was "only sent" to government agencies so they could act on it...but the problem is that some group of dangerous vigilantes also has this list. What are they going to do with that list when the government fails to apprehend everyone on this list that the shadowy group has deemed ought to be? It's clear, in fact, in the quote from Utah Immigration and Customs Enforcement, that they probably won't:
"As a matter of policy, we don't confirm we are investigating an allegation or possible violation unless the inquiry results in some type of public enforcement action," [Agency spokeswoman Virginia] Kice said.
She noted that because ICE has finite resources, it focuses its efforts "first on those dangerous convicted criminal aliens who present the greatest risk to the security of our communities, not sweeps or raids to target undocumented immigrants indiscriminately[emphasis added]."
Just for added measure:
"My phone has been ringing nonstop since this morning with people finding out they're on the list," said Tony Yapias, former director of the Utah Office of Hispanic Affairs. "They're feeling terrorized. They're very scared."
Gee, why? I mean, if they're truly legal, then what do they have to worry about? Certainly some gun-crazed self-proclaimed investigator won't kick down their door, demand proof, and hurt anyone, would they? Or send them threatening letters in their mailboxes? Or threaten their unborn children? Or harass their kids at school?
Read more...