Send a letter to Frank Fowler!
Syracuse police officers have taken it upon themselves to enforce Federal immigration laws and, in doing so, have engaged in racial profiling and have abused their authority, instilling fear in the immigrant community.
These communities are aggrieved that some of their own, their fathers, mothers, sisters, brothers, and other relations and friends, have been torn from them, and deported, sometimes after routine traffic stops, and other matters in which the deportees were not charged, let alone guilty of any infraction against the city of Syracuse, or the state of New York. Others still, are aggrieved to find their immigration status questioned officially on account of their appearance or accent.
Activists from the Workers' Center of Central New York, League of United Latin American Citizens, ANSWER Syracuse and others have been fighting against this practice for months. Police chief Fowler has agreed to meet our demands but so far has taken no action.
Take a moment to demand that the following department policy be implemented effective immediately: "It shall be the policy of the Syracuse Police Department not to inquire about the national origin or immigration status of suspects, crime victims, witnesses, or others approached by police during routine police investigations or encounters and/or to detain such persons for the sole purpose of making inquiry or gaining clarification about their immigration status."