The potential for racial discrimination in Prince William County’s controversial crackdown on illegal immigration reverberated through Saturday night’s chairman debate before about 100 people at the Dar al-Noor mosque.
Several Muslims attending the first political forum at the center said their top concern was how the county would implement its plan to extend illegal immigration enforcement powers to police officers on patrol.
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Democratic challenger Sharon Pandak said she opposes the plan in part because she is afraid discrimination would be inevitable. Republican incumbent Corey Stewart said not only is such racial and ethnic discrimination avoidable, but it won’t happen and can’t be tolerated.
“If there is one incident where someone is discriminatory, that’s going to be terribly embarrassing for the county and it will probably end our illegal immigration effort,” Stewart said.
Avoiding racial profiling in the plan will be “the number one priority,” Stewart said.
Pandak said the high risk for discrimination is why the illegal immigration issue should have been handled differently.
“My whole point tonight is all based on my concern is where a police officer is put in a situation where allegations of discrimination are going to arise, and that’s not good for the officer or the other person,” Pandak said. Immigration law is too complex and tensions too high to assume and promise there will be no mistakes.
“They are opening a Pandora’s box of potential racial profiling and discrimination,” said Mukit Hussein, president of the Virginia Muslim Political Action Committee, which has endorsed Pandak. “To say there will be no harassment is exceedingly naive.”
But Faisal Gill, a Muslim Republican nominee for state delegate, hailed Stewart for condemning what he called racist attacks against him by both Republicans and Democrats.
Both candidates demonstrated their support for Muslim causes during the event. Pandak wore a purple head covering and Stewart hailed efforts to build the county’s first cricket field.
