Last week the AZPHA Board of Directors issued a formal statement condemning unchecked violence and systemic civil-liberties violations by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
It wasn’t just a statement. We also urged Senators Kelly and Gallego to use their leverage in the upcoming Department of Homeland Security funding process to condition any approval of funds on verifiable accountability, independent oversight, and enforceable protections for civil and human rights.
See our letter to Senator Gallego
See our letter to Senator Kelly
Recent events underscore why this matter rises to the level of a public health crisis. In Minneapolis, federal immigration enforcement operations have been trampling human rights with multiple illegal use-of-force incidents, including the fatal shootings.
Those deaths, illegal use of brute force, and wholesale gross violations of civil liberties have sparked widespread protests, political outcry, and calls for investigations into enforcement tactics that often violate civil liberties and constitutional rights.
ICE and CBP agents are conducting warrantless arrests, racial profiling, indiscriminately using chemical agents, and using intimidation tactics that violate activities protected by the 1st Amendment like observing and recording law enforcement in public.
From a public health perspective, fear-based enforcement, racial profiling, and unaccountable use of force undermine the social determinants of health. They deter individuals from seeking medical care, accessing community services, and engaging in civic life without fear of abuse or retaliation. These patterns worsen mental health stressors and deteriorate community trust in institutions fundamental to health and wellbeing.
In our statement, we urged Senators Kelly and Gallego to withhold approval of any DHS budget that would sustain ICE and CBP at current or expanded levels until reforms are enacted that include:
- Independent and transparent oversight mechanisms outside DHS chains of command;
- Clear, legally enforceable limits on the use of force;
- Protections for children and families during enforcement actions;
- Independent accountability processes for agents accused of rights violations;
- Compliance with hiring practices used by all the other federal agencies, substantially enhanced training with focus on de-escalation, rights protection, and public health impacts; and
- Appropriate (retroactive) qualification standards for hiring and keeping ICE and CBP personnel.
Even if these reforms were satisfied, AzPHA’s Board urged that Senators limit funding to FY 2024 levels to constrain their operational capacity until the verifiable accountability measures are in place and functioning.
This advocacy is firmly grounded in AzPHA’s long-standing, member-approved policy positions. Our members have consistently recognized that violence, the misuse of force, and the absence of accountability are public health failures, regardless of whether that force is exercised by a private actor or the state itself.
In 2019, we adopted a resolution identifying firearm violence as a preventable public health problem, emphasizing evidence-based prevention, accountability, and harm reduction as essential tools to protect communities (Gun Safety Resolution, 2019).
In 2023, our members further affirmed that systemic racism is a public health crisis, acknowledging that discriminatory policies and enforcement practices produce measurable harm to health, safety, and life expectancy (Structural Racism Resolution, 2023).
From AzPHA’s perspective, demanding accountability for ICE and CBP is a direct extension of the same public health principles that guide our work on violence prevention limiting harm, preventing abuse of power, and protecting the conditions that allow communities to thrive.
We’ll continue to scrutinize federal agency practices and to advocate for policies that protect health, rights, and dignity for all residents of Arizona.