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| Issue |
Time to Get PoliticalAfter years of paralysis in U.S. Congress, the wheels begin to turn anew on the vexing issue of what to do about the nation’s undocumented immigrants A motley group of about 150 people braved the freezing wind chill on Jan. 21 in Milwaukee to publicly support comprehensive immigration reform. The marchers gathered outside the Water Street offices of Congresswoman Gwen Moore, a liberal Democrat and member of the Congressional Black Caucus. "We're not protesting [Moore]," clarified Christine Neumann-Ortiz head of Voces de la Frontera. "She's been good on the issue, but we want her to be a champion for immigration reform in Congress." About 12 million undocumented immigrants, most of them Mexican, still live and work in the shadows of American life. For them and their families (many who are legal), the last two years have been the most fearful and precarious in recent memory. Two years, ago, President George Bush's administration initiated a crack down on the immigrant community by turning up the knobs on work-place raids, deportations and incarcerations. Simultaneously, Hispanic immigrants (not just Mexican) have increasingly become the target of violent - even deadly - attacks by racist groups. And tens of thousands of young Latinos who grew up in the U.S. have been denied entry in the last few years to local colleges and universities because of their status. With the nation facing a full-fledged economic meltdown and jobs becoming scarcer every day, the anti-immigrant rhetoric from the far right is as scalding as ever. "Illegal aliens are criminals and parasites, one and all," wrote BajaRat on a news blog in February. "Their very presence here and practically everything they do on U. S. soil is illegal. They need to be ferreted out, rounded up like cattle, punished for their numerous crimes, then booted back to whence they snuck in from with such extreme prejudice that they will never, ever think of violating our sovereignty again." Only U.S. Congress is authorized to change immigration laws. While the economy is the overarching issue of the day in Washington D.C., there's signs that change may be coming on immigration. In early February, Janet Napolitano, the new head of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, ordered a massive review of immigration enforcement practices. That may be a prelude to new policy proposals from President Obama, who was voted into office thanks largely to Hispanic voters. Even some Republicans are hinting that it's time to rethink the enforcement-only tactic that spurred the building of the hugely controversial U.S.-Mexican border wall. |
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