From the Senator's Desk...
June 29, 2006
Senator Shapleigh's notes and observations will keep you updated on what is happening behind the scenes in Austin and El Paso.
Written by Senator Eliot Shapleigh, www.shapleigh.org
What Makes America Great?
America. What makes our nation great?
When I was overseas in Africa, I came to believe that freedom and the rule of law were two of our most important values. In most of the world, the rule of law is based on who has the most rifles. Freedom is decided by what the warlord wants. On many days, we were stopped on the road to Kabala by men dressed in military uniforms who raised rifles at roadblocks to ask for money.
Back in 1776, our founders wrote out basic freedoms and enshrined them in the Bill of Rights. Among our most important ‘guarantees’ is the right to be free of unreasonable search and seizure. At the time the 4th Amendment was conceived, British soldiers routinely rousted patriots to search and seize almost anything they wanted.
Here in El Paso, the 4th Amendment has recently been at center stage in immigration stops. In June, we hosted Benjamin Murillo, the lead plaintiff in the case of Murillo v. Musegades. Mr. Murillo was a football coach at Bowie when he and two of his players were stopped, searched and detained without cause at gunpoint by the Border Patrol.
In his landmark opinion, Judge Lucius Bunton wrote ‘the stopping, questioning, detaining, frisking, arresting, and searching of individuals based solely upon racial and ethnic appearance reprehensively violates the (US Constitution).” In America, no President, Senator nor Sheriff can violate the law of the land. Here on the Border, we are Americans too.
Whatever bills are passed in Washington DC, and whoever enforces them must remember that the Bill of Rights applies to us.
Keep the faith!
