Detail of BUS STOP QUEUE 1960S
A young pregnant woman waiting at a bus stop with another young woman and two older women. Date: 1960s
© Copyright (c) Mary Evans Picture Library 2007
Last week while I was in Laredo, Texas my 79 year old aunt was telling me about a young woman who was arrested while waiting for a bus on street corner. The woman was standing at a bus stop with two friends. All were immigrants but only she was undocumented. An officer drove by, saw them and asked only the one who was undocumented for her papers. He then arrested her and drove her home to get her things.
The idea of an officer checking immigration status at a bus stop is just one more thing that makes our immigration policy sound like something out of a police state.
My aunt actually used the word Rinche which surprised me - Rinche is a derogatory term for Texas Rangers. Earlier this year, the state of Texas put the Texas Department of Public Safety under the jurisdiction of the Texas Rangers. The Rangers have a strange history - praised by some and hated by many.
In early 20th century deep south Texas, the Texas Rangers were involved in a conflict in which more than 4,000 Mexican Americans were killed. If you don't believe me, look up Revolution in Texas: How a Forgotten Rebellion and Its Bloody Suppression Turned Mexicans into Americans by Benjamin Heber Johnson. The book was published by Yale University Press, which should help people believe this really happened.
photo: http://www.prints-online.com/image/BUS-STOP-QUEUE-1960S_588855.jpg
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