Illegal Immigrants Rally For... What Exactly?

The LA Times reports that a half million "undocumented immigrants" crammed the streets to protest upcoming legislation.

"There has never been this kind of mobilization in the immigrant community ever," said Joshua Hoyt, executive director of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights. "They have kicked the sleeping giant. It's the beginning of a massive immigrant civil rights struggle."

The demonstrators, many wearing white shirts to symbolize peace, included both longtime residents and the newly arrived, bound by a desire for a better life.

Arbelica Lazo, 40, illegally emigrated from El Salvador two decades ago but said she now owns two businesses and pays $7,000 in income taxes each year.

Jose Alberto Salvador, 33, came here illegally four months ago to find work to support the wife and five children he left behind. In his native Guatemala, he said, what little work he could find paid $10 a day.

"As much as we need this country, we love this country," Salvador said, waving both the American and Guatemalan flags. "This country gives us opportunities we don't get at home."

I admire Senor Salvador's ambition, and I believe that legal immigration is vital to the nation's continued health. However, illegals demanding retro active rights aren't going to garner support from the general populace. In fact, the more I hear from advocates the more I am inclined to agree with those who would tend toward more draconian immigration laws. And rankly, I don't accept the premise re: Arbelica Lazo and how wonderful it is that he's now paying taxes.

Illegal aliens have broken the law, making it more difficult for those following the rules to gain entry. It getting more difficult to accept that the flood of those breaking the law is not a concerted effort to supplant the laws of the United States and gain some advantage.

As I understand it, the current move is to bolster border security while urging those here illegally to pay back taxes and go through the process like everybody else. Good luck with that.

Complicit in this are businesses who employ illegals and justify it with false claims of financial ruin if they are compelled to pay a reasonable wage.

We must decide sooner or later to have a rational, workable policy. Those arguing for unlawful activity are doing the country and their constituents no favor. Can't we continue to be a nation of immigrants without giving into what amounts to organized blackmail? And (this is an honest question) do we tolerate illegal entry from any other ethnic or national group?

It also seems that if the Mexican et al economies were providing better for their citizens illegal immigration would not be such a problem. It seems to me that free trade agreements at least address this issue. When Americans rail against CAFTA and NAFTA, they miss a central irony to their own positions.

Comments

[Maggie]

Gee, wouldn't it be easy to round them up when they're all together?

[mom]

Maggie-you're being logical again. Case in point, a Jamaican LEGAL immigrant has been working for over 4 years to bring his son to the U.S. and finally got permission, while people-smugglers bring illegals in by the truckload (not always alive, though).

[Maggie]

I know, Mom, what I'm worried about is what else could come in with the lettuce pickers.

If we put fear into them by saying "if we catch you here illegally you (nor any child of yours even if born on our soil) will ever be granted legal status", maybe then we have a chance.

If we don't enforce our laws, they why bother even having them.

Several websites have devoted themselves to exposing antiquated, and in many instances totally ridiculous laws currently on the books.

It has long been my opinion that our lawmakers be REQUIRED to remove a law before they can POST a new one! Let's do some house cleaning.

Our laws and our illegals! OK, Mom?

[Jake Jacobsen]

As to your final paragraph, can you provide any examples of NAFTA, CAFTA et al doing the things they were supposed to? I have been making an effort to understand this and have come up with very little hard fact, but it does appear to the cursory glance that these treaties were pie in the sky nonsense.

[Daniel]

Well, Jake, I think you miss my point, but here are some statistics:

INCREASED EXPORTS AND INVESTMENT FLOWS

● All member economies have grown significantly from 1993-2003:

· United States: 38% economic growth

· Canada: 30.9% growth

· Mexico: 30% growth

● U.S. exports to Canada and Mexico grew from US$134.3 billion (US$46.5 billion to Mexico and US$87.8 billion to Canada) to US$250.6 billion (US$105.4 and US$145.3 billion respectively).

● Mexican exports to the United States reached over US$138 billion, while Mexican exports to Canada grew from US$2.7 billion to US$8.7 billion, an increase of almost 227%.

● Canada’s exports to its NAFTA partners increased by 104% in value.

INCREASED TOTAL TRADE AND BROADER ECONOMIC TRENDS

Representing a free trade area with about one-third of the world’s total GDP, the NAFTA economies are significantly larger than that of the European Union. Even with the addition of ten new members, the EU’s GDP will still be well behind that of the NAFTA region.

● The dismantling of trade barriers and opening of markets have led to economic growth and rising prosperity in the United States, Mexico and Canada.

● The total volume of trade among the three NAFTA partners expanded from $289.3 billion in 1993 to $623.1 billion in 2003.

● Each day NAFTA countries conduct nearly $1.7 billion in trilateral trade.

● In the ten years since NAFTA, productivity rose 28% in the United States from 1993 to 2003, in Mexico up 55% and in Canada up 23%.

CAFTA, of course needs some time to show benefits, but evidence shows that open markets make for growing economies.

[Maggie]

OK, Can someone explain why all these protestors ARE NOT WORKING? If they are essential to our economy and they are doing all the jobs Americans won't do, WHY ARE THEY IN THE STREETS?

[Erin]

Illegal immigration from Mexico isn't something that just began ten or twenty years ago. The Southwest has been using Mexican laborers since the middle of the 19th century.

The policy was to let them come here and work on land that used to be theirs and then boot them back over the border to Mexico when they were no longer needed. In some cases they didn't even get paid. (Some Bracero workers from the 1940s ate STILL trying to collect their wages)

Well, now government and business owners have become very greedy and decided to look the other way as between 11 and 20 million Mexican workers spread out across the country.

Hmmm... nobody had a problem getting wealthy from their labor. Nobody complained when they cleared out the rubble from the WTC once it became too toxic for American workers. Nobody cared when they cleaned out the mess in the New Orleans Convention Center after Hurricane Katrina. And nobody has ever tried to stop them from picking crops and processing our food. And nobody minds that they have paid 7 BILLION dollars into Social Security that they will never collect.

It's no accident that California is the biggest farm state in the country, and that its fruits, vegetables, dairy products and wines bring in more money than either Hollywood or Silicon Valley. What's the secret? Cheap labor. Mexicans have been doing farmwork in CA for 150 years. The only pause was during the Depression when the "Okies" did it. (Grapes of Wrath).

Generations of Mexican-Americans have fought and died in every US military conflict since the US Revolution. The Southwest used to be Mexico and most of the cities in that region were founded by Mexicans. They have a long history here that predates the Pilgrims.

So now extremist right wingers want to throw between 11 and 20 million people in the trash? People whose children have died in Iraq? People who have paid to be here, not only in taxes, but in blood and sweat?

I don't think so. They need to be legalized.

[Erin]

NAFTA is NOT helping the poor of Mexico. Thanks to NAFTA, cheap, genetically modified corn is flooding Mexico and Mexican farmers can no longer earn a living.

It's really sad when you consider that corn originally comes from Mexico. It was first cultivated there between 5 and 7 thousand years ago.

[Daniel]

Yes, yes, everything orginates from Mexico. And Mexico has always gotten a raw deal, etc. The problem with this is that it ignores the imperial history of Mexico. Mexico was not some innocent ethnic group minding its own business. It fought and lost wars, like just about every other group. Time to live wit it.

And again, what do you not understand by the word "illegal?"

Oh, and get your head out of the sand and look at the numbers. If Mexican farmers can't compete, well too bad. Somehow it's fine if "American jobs go south" but not okay for American goods to head there also.

[Carter]

Why are we worrying about people that help grow our economy? What we really should be focusing on is all those arabs and terrorist trying to come in the country. The Mexicans are just helping the economy grow, while Terrorist are destroying the U.S and killing thousands of people.

[chicmawma]

I agree with the person posting this. Illegal immigration has gotten out of hand. Maybe some people who are American citizens would have those jobs if illegal immigrants were not taking them from people. And you know? Those illegals come into America with an idea of having a child so that they won't get deported "because I have an American child." Yes yes, I know they want a better life, etc. So my question is: Why don't all those Latino's go back to their countries AND rebuild their economy? If you don't like the way America treats you, get out! AND I know for a fact that other countries don't grant citizenship so easily...

i wish illegal mexicans would protest everyday... traffic was great today

[Bob]

Jake and Maggie....

You are both complete tards.

On average illegals spend $3000 more in taxes a year than they pay into. 28% of our prison population are illegals.

They broke the law to get here and are costing tax payers more than we are benifiting from them.

Even dumb fu(king democrats like yall can see that the only people profiting from illegas are business owners that employ them. They come in and work for less money which drives the overall wages down. Then they use our tax system to subsidize their lifestyles.

We pay for their kids schooling. They have bankrupted atleast 100hospital. We pay to keep illegal murders and rapists in prison. We pay higher premiums on insurance from hit and runs. We waste more time doing daily activities because the person behind the counter doesnt understand the words that are comming out of my mouth.

I guess you are all for third generation welfare babbies too aren't ya?? Use the government to steal from the do'ers and give to the do'nothings.

Do yall know what socialism is??? Look it up, You might learn something.

This is comming from someone that barely graduated highschool. But alteast I have the brains to realize when someone is stealing from me. And the balls to call them out on it.

They come here and work for $5 an hour to make lettuce 50% cheaper and do back breaking labor....

But when there back breaks they go to the emergency room and get charged $300 per hour which they can't afford to pay for. So guess who gets the bill???? I'll give ya a clue...... It doesnt just magically go away.

It comes out of tax payers pay checks. The average american works atleast 40hrs but only sees about 33hrs worth of pay.

WHY IS THAT????

Its paying for the cheap lettuce you dumbsh1ts!!!

And since I dont even eat lettuce..... now I am subsidizing not only the illegals lifestyle but also the lettuce eaters lifestyle.