To: Governor Doug Ducey
"Illegal" is not a race
Using the word "illegal" to describe someone is offensive. Its use as a derogatory term MUST stop! All humans should be treated fairly, and it is clearly a word that must be removed from media use to describe people. All humans deserve respect. As an American Latina, I find this offensive word is often used to describe someone who may not even be an immigrant, but LOOKS like an immigrant. It is appalling and should be removed from acceptable, everyday language.
Why is this important?
As an American-born Latina, I find it highly offensive to hear "illegal" to describe someone's race, in the media, by government officials and others that do not realize the impact of their words. You never hear undocumented immigrants described as "Latino-Americans" or "Chinese-Americans"—they are always identified by their immigration status rather than their actual ethnicity.