Immigration op-ed a new ACLU low

ASK 100 PEOPLE what US policy on immigration should look like, and you'll get 100 different answers. That's the beauty of our democracy. But I object strenuously to the column by Carol Rose and Christopher Ott of the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts ("Inhumane raid was just one of many," Op-ed, March 26).

As director of public affairs for US Immigration and Customs Enforcement , I know what actually happened March 6 in New Bedford: Careful planning resulted in a successful worksite operation to enforce immigration laws. Our agency took extraordinary steps, in concert with Massachusetts social-service and law-enforcement agencies, to help ensure that no child was, at any point, without proper care. Immigration hearings, legal representation, and interpreters were all provided.

Rather than report this, the authors opted for unsubstantiated rumors and cheap sensationalism. Their irresponsible, offensive comparison of our work to that of mass-murderer Slobodan Milosevic brought the ACLU's credibility to a new low.

The men and women of ICE are professionals who handle their duties seriously and with compassion. While we hope for comprehensive immigration reform, the issues at stake won't be resolved by continued misuse of the national press. And if Rose and Ott need a lesson in the repulsive truth of ethnic cleansing, I am happy to buy them tickets to the Holocaust Museum here in Washington.

JAMIE E. ZUIEBACK
Washington