Dear Santa,
On December 1, State Senator David Gregory (R) introduced Senate Bill 72 to the Missouri State Legislature. The bill would push for the establishment of a bounty hunting program allowing certain Missouri residents to detain undocumented individuals within the state, and it would create a system for citizens of the state to report anyone that they believe may be undocumented.
The “Missouri Illegal Alien Certified Bounty Hunter Program,” would be developed by the Department of Public Safety, where people can apply to become hunters. According to the state, those who are certified serve one sole purpose: to protect “the people” by detaining undocumented individuals.
SB72 would also create a toll-free telephone hotline where anyone can report an undocumented person who is violating the bill. In the event the undocumented individual is arrested, the reporter would earn a reward of $1,000 per person. This places a value on undocumented people’s heads purely based on assumptions of their legal status.
Senator Gregory claims that the creation of SB72 was fueled by the motive to combat violent crimes caused by undocumented immigrants when, in reality, Missouri’s crime rates have been decreasing each year, even as the undocumented population increases. Additionally, the Missouri Department of Public Safety has no data on the rate of crimes committed by undocumented immigrants. Senator Gregory’s inhumane bill focuses on blaming Missouri’s crime problem on undocumented immigrants, rather than holding legal Missouri residents accountable for their role in making it the perilous state it is.
SB72 is being sold as a way to “protect” people, but, who is it really protecting?
Policing in America is rooted in slave-catching and the slave patrol system; Missouri is returning to its history of slave-catching with a modern-day twist. Undocumented individuals are not the enemy—those who target them are. People immigrate to America for various reasons, including but not limited to: asylum, opportunity, stability, or family. The issue isn’t someone’s legal status, but rather how the dehumanizing legal system only views them as their status.
This Christmas, I ask for undocumented immigrants to be left in peace. I ask for their safety and security, and I ask for MO residents to do what’s right and oppose SB72. Senator Gregory wants to pit communities against each other; it’s our job to prove him wrong and work together to combat the true evil.
