Hundreds of Deputies Sweep Neighborhoods; Sheriff Joe Taunts Phoenix Mayor Gordon

On Friday, March 21 more than 200 Maricopa County Sheriff's Deputies and Members of the Civilian Posse swept Phoenix neighborhoods and arrested dozens of people, who they alleged lack immigration papers.

The raid was conducted in an area near 36th St. and Thomas Rd., where day laborers typically gather looking for work. Similar raids have targeted day laborers near Pruitt's Furniture store, where weekly demonstrations had taken place against the store's discrimination and harassment of workers who gather nearby.

The Good Friday raids came a day after a public feud erupted between Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon and Sheriff Joe Arpaio, with the Mayor accusing Sheriff Joe of conducting immigration raids and other law enforcement activities in disregard of the wishes of the city of Phoenix and the Police Department. Sheriff Joe, who told Lou Dobbs that he is proud to be compared to the Ku Klux Klan, responded by stating "we lock up murderers, we lock up everybody... we're here for crime suppression, and we're going to lock up everybody."

Since 2006 the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office has been enforcing federal immigration law, using a state law meant to target smugglers by claiming that immigrants who lack papers are guilty of conspiring to smuggle themselves illegally into the United States.