Illegal: Growing Up Unwanted in America

Hucka-what?

Gee, Mr. Huckabee, sir, Mr. Wanna-Have-My-Finger-on-the-Button-and-Be-the-Leader- of-the-Free-World, sir, what do you think about the political unrest in Pakistan?

"We ought to have an immediate, very clear monitoring of our borders and particularly to make sure if there's any unusual activity of Pakistanis coming into our country," he told reporters in Orlando at the end of December.

Um... what?

Pakistan, in case you haven't noticed, does not share a border with the United States.  And when looking at numbers of immigrants that are in the U.S. without papers, Pakistanis rank below Europeans and Canadians (when are we putting up that wall around Canada, by the way?).

This is exactly the kind of exploitation of post-9/11 fears that makes this immigration "debate" so opportunistic and cynical.  When faced with challenges, do we want to be a nation that scapegoats people and changes the subject instead of dealing with issues head-on?  Where was the concern about your Mexican landscaper or busboy before 9/11?  And what in the world is the connection with "national security" anyway?

Mr. Huckabee, shame on you.  Let's hope you get knocked out in the primaries.  Then again, if you're the Republican nominee, it will just pave the road for President Obama to restore some sanity in our government.  So keep at it, Professor of Geopolitics Huckabee.

A Glimpse Into the Future

Here's what it would be like to live under a regime that conducts raids on illegal immigrants and their employers.  It smacks of the frightening totalitarian regime books our teachers tried to scare us with in high school:  apartments filled with personal possessions that its occupants didn't have time to secure, a neighborhood decimated by the raids and the fear that followed, businesses going under.  Way to go, Springfield, Tennessee.

Texan of the Year

The Dallas Morning News has named the illegal immigrant "Texan of the Year," which, as you can imagine, has not pleased many Texans, or many Americans.

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/opinion/texanofyear/

But of course it's the obvious choice.  What other person or persons has had a more direct impact on Texas and the national debate this year?  Except Britney Spears and Paris Hilton, of course.  While we continue to marginalize "illegal" immigrants (the term itself is offensive), we will never move on to a compassionate conversation that meets everyone's needs.  So kudos to the Dallas News for being a positive force in the conversation.

Less Citizens, Less Trouble

The backlog of applications for citizenship represents tens of thousands fewer citizens who will be eligible to vote for the 2008 presidential election.  And it's not hard to guess that new citizens are much less likely to vote for "tough on immigration" candidates, or, in other words, Republicans.

While I hesitate to impute such foresight to the Bush Administration (the people who brought you the Katrina response and the "Don't worry, we'll be greeted as liberators," style of reconstruction planning), it does seem that sitting on those applications while the election inches closer, particularly with the hotly contested elections we've had the last two cycles, certainly plays in the Republican's favor.

Here's the Story to Watch

Arizona has taken it upon themselves to be the test tube for the rest of us: they are driving out illegal immigrants through a harsh and punitive law aimed at employers.  And it seems to be working,  Experts agree that the numbers of illegal immigrants in Arizona are decreasing.  Interestingly, the economy is also slowing.  This will be the state to watch to learn, first hand, what policy experts have been telling us all along: when you drive out cheap labor, your economy slows.  Click here for the full story.

Streetfight

Here's an example of how bullheaded fights about immigration don't let anyone win: http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/nation/20071220-1309-wst-immigration-streetfight.html

Illegal immigrants looking for work outside a Phoenix furniture store, and a fed-up owner hiring marshals with deportation power to patrol his parking lot.  Should a private individual have the right to have people deported?  Should protesters be shooing away his business?

These issues arise out of resistance to what is and out of talking "at" each other instead of trying to find a solution.  The reality is that these workers are there, and obviously there is enough work to support them coming back consistently.  Work center, anyone?

Education for All?

How is this even a question that needs debating: should the children of illegal immigrants be allowed access to college education?  Martin Lancaster, state community college system president of North Carolina, was forced to issue a statement defending his state's policy of allowing children of illegal immigrants to enroll in community colleges.

People, are we thinking this through?  So besides poor (the overwhelming odds are that children of illegal immigrants are living below the poverty level), we want to keep them uneducated?  I believe people who repeat the mantra "they are illegal, they should go home," when confronted with this issue have no concept of the realities of life.  Many of these children have either been born here or have lived for years and are assimilated into the culture, as evidenced by the fact that they are seeking out a higher education.  So after an entire childhood and adolescence here we should say, "Sorry, time to go home."

This gem is worth reading just for the comments posted after the article.

The Untold Story - Children of Illegal Immigrants

Federal raids rounding up illegal immigrants are up in workplaces across the country, from 500 in 2002 to 3,600 in 2006.  But what effect does the wholesale deportation of people whose only crime it is to want to work at a better wage than they could get in their impoverished home nations (or at any wage at all) have on their children, sometimes also illegal (but certainly not through their own choice) but often U.S. born?

Adolescents left to fend for themselves after their parents are plucked up and sent away without warning - is this the nation we really want to be?  Click here to learn more.

Here's a Person We Want to Get Out of the Country

Mexican migrant Jesus Manual Cordova found a boy whose mother lay dying after a camping accident in Arizona, protected him and built a bonfire to keep him warm overnight.

His reward?  Arrest for illegal entry. 

Clergy Speaks Out on Illegal Immigration

For a bunch who touts their piousness at the drop of a boom mike, the religious right has been remarkable quiet on the Christ-like issues of compassion and charity when discussing immigration.  Would Jesus have started laying down electrified fence?  Did He need to get a visa before traveling around the land?  Hmmm, we'll talk about that later.

But here, finally, some brave clergy who dare speak out and remind us that, ahem, the Bible says we should love our neighbor as ourselves and that maybe, just maybe, calling them typhus-carrying baby killers isn't the most neighborly thing we can do to move this discussion forward.  Kudos to the clergy who dared to speak out.