Proposed “SAFE” Act Threatens to Expand Detention

Last night the House Judiciary Committee passed the “SAFE” Act. The “Strengthen and Fortify Enforcement” Act, introduced to the House by Representative Trey Gowdy of South Carolina and also known as H.R. 2278, would give local police the authority to investigate and arrest those they suspect to be undocumented immigrants and transfer them to federal authorities for deportation, further criminalizing undocumented communities. The law increases the number of immigrants subject to mandatory detention and requires funding for the construction of detention beds and facilities in order to accommodate this.  It also allows for the indefinite detention of stateless deportees. The bill’s supporters say that the SAFE Act must compensate for inadequate federal enforcement of immigration laws and is a needed measure to secure borders before immigration reform can be passed, despite the sharp rise in deportations under the current administration.

Find Out How You Can Take Action against the SAFE ACT

The SAFE act represents a huge step backwards in terms of human and immigrant rights for this country.  To stop it, we need your help.  The Detention Watch Network offers these steps to stopping the SAFE Act:

1.  Make calls to House leaders Rep. John Boehner & Rep. Nancy Pelosi and to your own Representative.

Rep. Boehner (House Speaker, R-OH): (202) 225-0600

Rep. Pelosi (Minority Leader, D-CA): (202) 225-4965

Your own Representative: (202) 224-3121 for the Congressional Switchboard

Script: My name is _____ calling from _____. The SAFE Act is out of step with the rest of the country and represents the views of nativist, anti-immigrant extremists.  The SAFE Act’s single-minded focus is to locate, detain and deport immigrants at the detriment of families and communities.  I urge you to recognize the 73% of Americans who support efforts to pass common sense, just immigration reform. Please oppose the SAFE Act, H.R. 2278, and keep it from coming up for a floor vote. 

2.  Spread the word about the SAFE Act.

Forward this message to your networks and tweet @JohnBoehner and @NancyPelosi to stop the SAFE Act from coming to the House floor.  Share tweets about any comments that highlight anti-immigrant, enforcement-only sentiments.  Use hashtag #HATEAct to spread the word.

3.  Send an Email

Send an email to the House Leadership and your own Representatives through our friends at Rights Working Group by clicking here: http://rightsworkinggroup.e-actionmax.com/takeaction.asp?aaid=1694

For more information on the SAFE Act, see http://www.detentionwatchnetwork.org/TheSAFEActDETENTIONPROVISIONS.