Reflection on Social Issues Reaserch- The Arizona Law

I read a New York Times article and a USA Today article on the Arizona Immigration Law. Both articles explain the law in horrifying detail. For example, it is against the law to not carry immigration papers and police can ask people for their papers if they find reason- as in they look Hispanic.

This is very racist to me. In the USA people aren't allowed to be targeted because of their race. Although there has been a lot of drug smugglers recently, they won't be the ones walking openly around Arizona; it will be the innocent people who came for hope.

As this law has been enforced it has separated families and unlawfully persecuted people who didn't want to go through the trouble of carrying immigration papers with them everywhere they went. This law has left people feeling disrespected by their government for who they are and the dream that they have almost achieved.

This law, while it had some positive intentions (targeting drug smugglers), this isn't the way to do it. This law needs to bee revised to help the USA instead of cause distrust and racism. As Roger M. Mahony said this law is "Nazism". While the Jews were murdered in Europe because they weren't "perfect Germans" (blond haired and blue eyed) the Hispanics are being targeted in Arizona because they look like they are Mexican.

This law is unfair and "The system is broken," as Senator Harry Reid said. This injustice needs to be fixed!

Reflection on Social Issues Reaserch- The Holocaust

I read Krystyna's Story and Irena Sendlerowa's Story. These two stories are about people in the holocaust. The sacrifices told about were unbelievable.

Krystyna went into hiding as a 7 year old. She stayed in Poland's sewer system with her family for over a year. Krystyna didn't have a choice other than death, but she pushed through the horribleness of the sewer with a positive attitude.

During  Krystyna's stay in the sewer, sewer workers brought the families food everyday. It was dangerous to help the Jews, but the sewer workers felt that it was only right to help out.

Irena Sendlerowa made a sacrifice that she didn't need to make. She smuggled 2,500 children out of the Warsaw ghetto which was punishable by death. In fact, Sendlerowa was caught and sentenced to death but bribed her way out. Irena believed that no one deserved the cruelty that the Nazis were inflicting on the Jews. On March 15th, 2007 Sendlerowa received the Nobel peace prize and later said in an interview,

"I was brought up to believe that a person must be rescued when drowning, regardless of religion and nationality."

This quote proves that people did have beliefs against the Nazis, and some made sacrifices to help Jews.

Irena and Krystyna are role models in the bravery and sacrifice they had during the Holocaust. Although their stories aren't widely known, the fact that they did happen makes a big change for those few that have read them.