The use of the term ‘criminal alien’ by the US government is intended to describe an immigrant without US citizenship who has been convicted of a criminal offense. But, sarcastic users keen to use the term ‘alien’ with its more extraterrestrial meaning have trolled the new hotline for VOICE, a new office within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). VOICE serves the victims, and their loved ones, of crimes by undocumented immigrants, set up by President Donald Trump via executive order.
Some savvy users of social media site, Twitter, pointed out the unfortunate coincidence of the hotline being launched on Alien Day. This is an annual promotional day set up by the producers of the Hollywood movie, Alien, franchise. It did not take long for many users to claim they were calling the hotline to report alien activity of a rather different nature than that intended by John Kelly, the Secretary of the DHS.
At the Wednesday launch of VOICE, Kelly said that victims of such crimes were too often ignored and were unique casualties of offenses that should not have happened, due to the illegal presence of those who committed them in the US.
It is uncertain how many hoax calls the hotline received, but the agency claims that the number affected their service. The government claims the VOICE office will allow victims of crimes committed by undocumented immigrants to remain updated on the status of the criminal, including their possible deportation.