New York, NY, February 21, 2017 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today voiced concern over new rules issued by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The memos issued articulate steps the DHS plans to take in carrying out newly signed executive orders on border security and immigration.
“These new rules are extremely ill-advised and counter to our values as a nation that has always served as a beacon of hope for people around the world,” said Jonathan A. Greenblatt, ADL CEO. “This step is deeply problematic on many levels. It removes critical due process rights for new immigrants and imperils countless numbers of refugees fleeing extreme violence in Central America.”
Mr. Greenblatt added, “Perhaps most concerning of all, however, are the efforts to effectively turn local law enforcement officers into de facto immigration agents. That threatens to drive a dangerous wedge between law enforcement and communities they have sworn to serve and protect. When a community starts to fear the police, it creates an underclass that is particularly vulnerable to becoming targets of crime, it makes police officers’ jobs much harder, and it makes all of us less safe.”
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.