The Homa Files

Now it’s personal …

I was suspected of crossing a border to illegally access government-provided services.

Yes, your mild mannered (usually) man of the classroom … suspected of unlawful conduct.

So, an intimidating officer of the state demanded to see an ID and proof of citizenship.

Really !

OK, it wasn’t the U.S.- Mexico border … it was the Maryland-Virginia border.

The services that I was allegedly attempting to use illegally: use of the “Anne Arundel County landfill and recycling center” (a.k.a. the local dump).

That’s right.  In order to throw a couple of big cardboard boxes into the recycling grinder, I had to show my driver’s license and to produce proof of Anne Arundel County, Maryland residency.  Fortunately, I may be the only person driving around with paid real estate tax bills in my glove compartment.

Think about it.

Maryland is a state that – for example – reportedly looks the other way when it comes to admitting illegal immigrants into public schools and allows them to pay in-state tuitions at colleges.  No harm, no foul.

But, the line gets drawn in the sand at the local dump.

I didn’t mind showing my ID docs, but the situation certainly did make me scratch my head …

This entry was posted on June 16, 2010 at 6:17 am and is filed under Immigration. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.