The changing face of Gwinnett County

Afraid to leave their homes many Hispanic members of Reverend Antonio Masongo’s congregation no longer attend services at Ministerio Pentecostal Central in Norcross, Georgia.  With frequent roadblocks, and police stops parishioners are not filling the pews.

“We have a lot of people that are afraid to drive to church,” Masongo said. “They don’t want to take any chances and drive, and never see their family – wife and kids again.”

Struggling businesses are shutting down, and church attendance is at all time low in many Hispanic neighborhoods since the passing of 287g, a law allowing local police to enforce federal immigration laws. In November of 2009, Gwinnett became the fourth Georgia county to screen inmates for immigration status and hold undocumented persons in cooperation with federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). According to Census records, Gwinnett has the largest Hispanic population in the state.

“The jail was overpopulated when we started to 287g, and the population has gone down of foreign born inmates,” Sheriff Butch Conway said. “If they know they have a chance of being deported they are hopefully less likely to commit that crime.”

Under section 287g of the Immigration and Nationality Act, state and local law enforcement agencies can sign an agreement with ICE allowing designated officers to perform immigration law enforcement functions including screening every inmate when arrested. If found to be here illegally, immigrants can be held and eventually deported. There are more than 70 jurisdictions in the U.S. that have implemented 287g. Residents like Alejandro*. are taking notice of the effects 287g in the community

“A lot of people don’t want to drive in this area now,” Alejandro* said. “Stores are closing, supermarkets are closed – people are leaving the area to move to DeKalb where they don’t have this law.”

Once a citizen is arrested and brought to Gwinnett County jail their status is checked and if are found to be an illegal immigrant the person is handed over to ICE for deportation. Much like the recent immigration reform passed in Arizona, advocacy groups say the enforcement of 287g leads to racial profiling and that ethnicities of color are being specifically targeted. Often those suspected of being illegal immigrants are booked on charges as minor as a traffic violation.

Azadeh Shahshahani, director of National Security and Immigrants’ Rights for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Georgia says that incidents of racial profiling in Gwinnett County have greatly increased since the implementation of the 287g program and that Latino citizens are scared to contact the police because they feel that officers are more focused on apprehending immigrants than stopping crime.

“This has created an incentive for local police departments to enforce federal immigration laws when they don’t have the proper training to make immigration status determinations,” Shahshahani said. “So the result is that the police use racial profiling in order to make determinations about an individual’s status.”

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Reverend Masongo discusses how the enforcement of 287g has affected the of confidence that Hispanics have in the Gwinnett County police.

But according to Sherriff Conway, officials received proper training from ICE during a training camp and are supervised by ICE during processing.

Several members of Masongo’s congregation have been deported in recent months.  Juan* a parishioner of Ministerio Pentecostal Central has seen friends and fellow members deported as a result of 287g.

“My closest friends are being deported and that hurts a lot because they are like your own family,” said Juan. “They are afraid of the police or anyone who might call the police on them. I’d rather not think about it because it makes me more depressed. But it’s so hard when you see it every day.”

In March of 2010, the (ACLU) released a report about racial profiling in Gwinnett County, Georgia. The Persistence of Racial Profiling in Gwinnett: Time for Accountability, Transparency, and an End to 287g discusses racial profiling before and after the implementation of a 287g agreement. According to the report the passage of 287(g) has resulted in a substantial increase in racial profiling.  Following the release of the report the Gwinnett County Sherriff’s office issued a rebuttal condemning its accuracy.

“The ACLU report was totally ridiculous and inept,” said Conway. “I was disappointed by the quality of their reporting. They have no supporting documentation in their report.”

Gwinnett County law enforcement has anti-racial profiling policies and does not tolerate racial profiling under any circumstances according to the Sherriff. However, Reverend Masongo observes police enforcement on a weekly basis in predominantly Latino areas of Gwinnett County.

“Gwinnett is such a big county so why do they have all these roadblocks in the Latino communities?” Masongo said. “On Jimmy Carter there is a roadblock every week.”

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D.A. King, president of the Dustin Inman Society has been a staunch supporter of 287g and was instrumental in its passing in his own county Cobb, Georgia. According to King, it’s a matter of public safety.

Jimmy Carter Boulevard is an area of Gwinnett County that boasts several Hispanic businesses, marketplaces, and shops. A retail clerk from Aleysa’s Bridal shop, who declined to give her name, said business has dropped off in the last few months.

“Many people are afraid to drive around because they might get stopped and asked for their papers,” the clerk said. “People do not come to this area as much as they used to and our business is slow because of it.”

According to Sheriff Conway 287g is working in Gwinnett County. From November through December of 2008, Gwinnett had 1,929 foreign-born inmates booked into the jail. Over the same span this year, the county’s foreign-born inmate population is 1,307 inmates.

No one can argue that the face of Gwinnett County is changing. Coupled with the declining economy and the decrease in job availability, strips like the Jimmy Carter Boulevard that were once bustling with activity are becoming deserted as more of its Hispanic population vacate the area. While many advocacy groups like the ACLU push for reform, 287g remains in effect in Gwinnett County. For now, Reverend Masongo continues to send church buses to pick up parishioners fearful of leaving their homes.