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Update: President Trump pardoned Joe Arpaio on Aug. 25. Read our statement.
New York, NY/Phoenix, AZ, August 21, 2017… The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today expressed vehement opposition to a potential pardon of convicted former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio by President Donald Trump.
ADL Arizona Regional Director Carlos Galindo-Elvira issued the following statement:
A pardon by President Trump of Joe Arpaio, who was found guilty of criminal contempt for defying a judge’s order to stop his policy of racially profiling and targeting Latinos, would be deeply divisive and objectionable – it devalues the Latino community and blatantly disregards Arpaio’s singularly objectionable history of racial profiling, illegally detaining Latinos, and flagrantly defying a federal judge’s order to stop.
A pardon for Arpaio, with his history of crusading racist profiling against the Latino Community, would suggest the President approves of Arpaio’s criminal acts. A pardon would be especially disturbing in the wake of President Trump’s failure to firmly condemn the white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, instead blaming “both sides” for violence that killed an anti-white supremacist protestor and injured others.
We urge President Trump not to take this action. No one is above the law -- law enforcement officials must be held accountable for violations of human rights, too.
President Trump should not compound the damage done by statements made surrounding Charlottesville.
Carlos Galindo-Elvira added, “ADL stands in solidarity with the Latino community and along with our coalition partners, we will continue to support fair and humane immigration policies that honor our values as a nation of immigrants.”
As a 501c3 nonprofit organization, ADL takes no position on behalf of or in opposition to any candidate for office. The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, is the world’s leading organization fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that counteract hatred, prejudice and bigotry. Follow us on Twitter: @ADLArizona.