Donald Trump's victory in the United States is synonymous, in particular, with a toughening of the fight against illegal immigration. The presidential election on Tuesday, November 5 was accompanied, in certain states, by a series of referendum measures, which allow them to be more autonomous on certain policies. This is the case of immigration in Arizona, whose presidential results are not yet known, but which includes many Republican strongholds. In this western American state, “Proposition 314”, validated with more than 60% of the votes by voters in Maricopa County, completes Donald Trump's promise to carry out mass expulsions of migrants.
This “Proposition 314” targets all undocumented immigrants without distinction and gives a lot of power back to the police forces. This bill is signed with both hands by the former sheriff of Maricopa: “The cops love Trump. Now the president only has one thing to say: 'OK guys, first, we secure the border, and second, we'll get the illegals back home.' Even if they don't have a record, most of them have false papers, it's a crime! We have to go back to the good habits of the past.” In May 2013, this sheriff was convicted of facial offenses and arbitrary detention by the Federal Court.
Reina, who herself only has a temporary residence permit, runs an association helping illegal immigrants. She arrived more than 10 years ago and lived under the authority of the Maricopa Sheriff. “I remember that he sent his agents out of schools to arrest fathers who accompanied their childrensays Reina. We received messages to warn us that the police were patrolling this or that street. My mother wouldn't let me go to the movies, we chose our times to go shopping and avoid the sheriffs on the street corner… I'm afraid of reliving a similar time.”
“The question will arise as to who will take on the work of immigrants.”
Ronnie, Democratic voter in Arizonaat franceinfo
Voted by a large majority in Arizona, “Proposition 314” will give carte blanche to the authorities to implement the migration policy desired by Donald Trump. A policy “absurd”Judge Ronnie, who voted Democratic. “He promised mass deportations, which will stress our economy, create a mountain of new problems. Things are not that simple. This country was built on immigrants, they do the work Americans don't want not do”reminds Ronnie.
Nearly 12 million people are currently on American territory illegally, such as those who have just crossed the border or those who benefit from “Daca”, a temporary document that Donald Trump wants to ban. Finally, there are the “dreamers”, born in the United States and some of whom are over thirty, who are still waiting to be regularized.
