New York Police Commissioner Edward Caban said that “a wave of migrant crime has washed over our city, but by no means do the individuals committing these crimes represent the vast number of people coming to New York to build a better life.” Many officials across the country are echoing his statements. Why are migrants being targeted by them now?
Immigration is a top issue for voters going into the 2024 election, and a Pew Research report states that 57% of Americans believe a larger number of migrants leads to more crime.
What complicates these fears is the deception by police departments regarding migrant crime. For example, the NYPD and NYC Mayor Eric Adams lied about a January 27 migrant attack in Times Square. Videos recorded on body cameras show that the NYPD were the aggressors. This is just one instance, but this shows the system will deceive us to advance its interest.
According to the Marshall Project, there is no evidence linking an increase in immigration to higher local crime rates. Officials have manufactured xenophobic fears among the public in the worst way.
The system is twisting high-profile cases of violence to criminalize migrants, immigrants, and refugees. Everyone must collectively reject this push in solidarity with different communities, no matter their citizenship status, to stop the growth of the police state.