Last Sunday afternoon, the immigration debate, so prominent on the national stage, became more visible locally. The Madison-based Immigrant Workers Union, along with a host of other local groups, organized a protest at the Capitol to say “No to the War at Home, No to the War Abroad.” The slogan was meant to connect the unjust immigration raids happening nationwide with the unjust wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. However, the main focus of the rally was to bring attention to Dane County Sherriff David Mahoney’s policy of reporting the names of all people detained in Dane County jails who are suspected of immigration violations to the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. ICE, the primary agency responsible for the deportation of undocumented workers, then does just that to many individuals held in Dane County who are found to be in violation of federal immigration law.

The practice of reporting names is not required by law and is something the Democratic Mahoney’s predecessor, a Republican, did not choose to engage in. In turn, there are many reasons this practice is both legally and morally problematic. For starters, it conflicts with the County Board resolution making Dane County a sanctuary county for undocumented workers. The idea behind that resolution is local government should not question individuals on their immigration status. Further, Mahoney has been justifying the practice by claiming he is enforcing an international law which requires foreign nationals be given access to their consulates upon arrest. However, it is abundantly clear from both his rhetoric and the outcome of the practice that the intent is not to aid detainees in accessing their rights but rather to expose them to deportation by federal authorities.

This practice only serves to perpetuate a national immigration policy which even both major presidential candidates admit is severely broken. A 2004 Carnegie Endowment for International Peace study stated roughly 1.3 million Mexican agricultural workers lost their jobs between 1994 and 2002 because of the North American Free Trade Agreement. A main reason for this loss was the inability of Mexican farmers to compete with heavily subsidized U.S. imports that became available in Mexico after NAFTA was signed, which serves to illustrate how the U.S. is complicit in the creation of the migrant population it is now absorbing.

But punish we do. Every year in Dane County — particularly because of Sheriff Mahoney’s policies — hundreds of undocumented workers are deported, often after being falsely convicted of trumped-up charges of identity theft. The human effects of these deportations are enormous, as they not only brutally separate families but also impose a culture of fear and paranoia on undocumented communities. This is especially true now that undocumented workers can no longer legally obtain Wisconsin driver’s licenses, which forces them to drive to work, school, the doctor, etc., with the constant threat of being arrested and then deported.

Because of their status, most undocumented workers must perform jobs where employers exploit their precarious legal position by denying them the most basic wage and safety protections. In addition, because of their justifiable mistrust of police, members of the undocumented community are often reluctant to report crime to the authorities.

All of the above points highlight why we need a radical shift in the way this country treats migrant workers. Like all important issues, that shift will only come if people across the country are demanding it, and it is why Sunday’s rally was such an exciting starting point in building a grassroots movement towards immigration reform. But until that time, we must not continue to criminalize the most vulnerable members of our broken system. To that end, I call on anyone passionate about this issue to attend the Dane County Board’s Equal Opportunity Commission meeting tomorrow at 5:30 p.m. at the City-County Building (210 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd.). Sheriff Mahoney will be there to listen to feedback from community members on his reporting policies, and the commission will be discussing the issue during their meeting. For those who cannot attend, I encourage you to call Mahoney’s office and let him know how you feel about his actions.

Adam Porton ([email protected]) is a member of the student chapter of Progressive Dane.