Posted on 11/30/2006 11:39:26 AM PST by Heartofsong83
Editorial: Protection for illegals Nov. 30, 2006. 01:00 AM
An estimated 80,000 illegal immigrants live and work in Toronto and they do so without being able to access many of the basic services most Canadians take for granted, such as health care.
But because of an innovative policy adopted in February by the Toronto Police Services Board, illegal immigrants who have been abused by their spouses, have been the victims of a crime or have witnessed a crime no longer need to fear calling the police because they might be deported.
This groundbreaking "don't ask, don't tell" policy prevents Toronto police officers from asking people to reveal their immigration status unless it is a necessary part of the police investigation.
The policy is designed to protect victims of crime and abuse and encourage witnesses to come forward. It does not impede police from arresting dangerous criminals.
But the Canadian Border Services Agency is now trying to have that policy overturned.
Arguing that the country must be defended against terrorists and lawbreakers, the agency's regional director general John Gillan maintains the Toronto policy "will significantly compromise public safety and security."
Wisely, the police board concluded that the nine-month policy has not been in place long enough for its impact to be accurately assessed and sided with community groups and social activists who argue it is a much needed measure to protect victims of abuse and other crimes.
A full review of the policy is scheduled to start in February.
Toronto, with its large immigrant population, is the only city in Canada to adopt a "don't ask, don't tell" policy. However, more than 50 American cities have similar policies. In some U.S. cities such as New York, Chicago and Los Angeles, all municipal workers, including police, are covered by the policy.
Here, the Toronto District School Board has a similar "don't ask, don't tell" policy to ensure that children whose parents do not have legal status can still attend school.
True, the border agency's job is to prevent terrorists and criminals from entering the country and, if they get in, to help remove them.
But the Toronto police should not be used as pawns doing the work of federal immigration officials under the pretext of public safety.
In one extreme example of overzealous border security, first-degree murder charges had to be withdrawn against two Toronto men last fall after the Crown's only witness was deported, despite pleas to federal immigration authorities to keep the witness in the country.
The reality is that our cities are less safe — not more so — when frightened victims of abuse and witnesses to crimes are afraid to go to the police for fear they will be deported.
"The reality is that our cities are less safe — not more so — when frightened victims of abuse and witnesses to crimes are afraid to go to the police for fear they will be deported."
The reality is that we are less safe in cities with large numbers of illegals than we are without them.
Illegals are crime fertilizer. If you're an illegal, and you screw up, you've got a free pass to go home.
Sob... we have rats in our barn and cats in our barn, but the cats get taken to the vet if they get sick, and we won't do that for the rats! Life isn't fair!
Last I heard, Canadian Health Care is not something to boast about...
And if they want these illegals so bad...Instead of sending them back wherever they originated from...
Send them to Toronto!!! Woo Hoo!!!
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