Sometimes I am not as well informed about political events as I should be. The fact that community meetings are being held on the Secure Communities strategy was total news to me. Hopefully, there are many people more informed on this than I was.
The Main Street Journal is a online Massachusetts newspaper specializing in local news. It posted an article on Friday about a Secure Communities forum that will take place at Lawrence High School on Saturday, April 2nd from 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM. The article describes Secure Communities as "the Department of Homeland Security's comprehensive strategy to improve the identification and removal of criminal aliens from the United States."
The article reports:
"Governor Deval Patrick announced earlier this month that a series of community meetings would be held to promote an open dialogue on the subject. However, Tea Party activists who attended a recent hearing held in Framingham have charged the forums have been rigged to produce a pre-determined outcome, specifically to leave the impression that Massachusetts residents are opposed to the initiative."The panel at the Framingham event was one-sided and included only those who opposed the program. Panelists were allowed extensive latitude to speak and control the forum while members of the audience were allowed only one minute to speak each."
"Ralph Belmore, co-chair of the Marlborough Tea Party said he believes the public is largely unaware of the Secure Communities program and the series of public hearings scheduled by the governor's office. On the other hand, illegal immigrant advocacy groups appear to be well aware and are playing a key role in the hearings. "We want the governor to take action," said Belmore who believes most Massachusetts residents would back the plan if they knew about it."
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