Women Are So Scared Of Being Deported, They've Stopped Reporting Sexual Assault
Donald Trump's obsession with immigration isn't protecting the people like his administration would like us to believe it will.
Instead, it seems to be worsening rape culture and domestic violence in the immigrant communities.
In fact, crime reports in the LA Latino community are down significantly.
According to an LAPD news release, sexual assault reports are down 25 percent and domestic abuse reports are down 10 percent.
This dip in reports is no indication that crime is down. Instead, they LAPD cites deportation fears as the most probable explanation in their news release.
The department wrote,
While there is no direct evidence that the decline is related to concerns within the Hispanic community regarding immigration, the Department believes deportation fears may be preventing Hispanic members of the community from reporting when they are victimized.
Sexual assault reports are down 25 percent in the Hispanic community.
Police Chief Charlie Beck criticized the Trump administration directly about its immigration crackdowns in a press conference on Tuesday, as reported by LAist.
He said,
Today, hardworking, law-abiding immigrants are fearful for their safety and anxious about being targeted and having their families torn apart, and we understand why. Under this new administration, we are all seeing policies, executive orders and rhetoric that are divisive, mean-spirited and often unconstitutional. And we see this impact all across our city.
Hardworking, law-abiding immigrants are fearful for their safety
Chief Beck also stood in solidarity with immigrants on Twitter.
The decreased crime reports only perpetuate rape culture.
About 68 percent of sexual assaults already never make it to a police report, due to victims' fears of retaliation, escalation and victim blaming.
Deportation scares threaten the remaining percentage of victims who do file reports.
It also makes immigrants more susceptible to attacks, since assailants may be more inclined to believe the victim likely won't report.
Immigrants in Texas have also been sexually assaulted.
Two teenage sisters from Guatemala were sexually assaulted by a customs and border protection officer in Texas, according to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).
Though these sisters have chosen to file claims, their experience with the border agent further shows the flaws and corruption in the immigration patrol process.
The girls, then 17 and 19, sought help after getting lost and were allegedly taken into a closet, asked to remove their clothes and assaulted.
The older sister, known by the pseudonym "Clarita," wrote in a statement,
I have suffered every day from this experience that it has been extremely hard to sleep at night. There have even been some days when I feel like I shouldn't be alive. That is why today, my sister and I have chosen to file a claim against the officer. We're doing this with the hope that no one else will ever be sexually assaulted by CBP officers, or any law enforcement.
The ACLU has filed two federal claims with the federal government on the sisters' behalf.
There have even been some days when I feel like I shouldn't be alive.
And then there's Colorado...
Four immigrant women have dropped domestic violence cases, reports Slate. Denver City attorney, Kristin Bronson, talked about her former cases, saying,
These women were violently assaulted. Police had been called out and arrested the abusers under our municipal code. We were proceeding with prosecutions and headed toward a trial. But after the president issued his executive order on Jan. 25, all four women called our office. They told us they were unwilling to continue participating in their cases because they feared deportation.
Four immigrant women have dropped domestic violence in Colorado, for fear of deportation.
It's crystal clear: This immigration crackdown is creating more pain than protection.
