Reactions to largest U.S. immigration raid insensitive
Viridiana Pacheco-Isaac
Issue date: 9/2/08 Section: Opinion
I always say the reason I got into the field of journalism was to educate my readers on issues they did not know about.
Well, here is your lesson for today.
Last week, the largest single-workplace immigration raid in U.S. History took place in the small town of Laurel, Miss. According to an article published by the Associated Press last Tuesday, Federal agents reportedly swept nearly six hundred plant workers suspected of being illegal immigrants while their "legal" counterparts applauded.
That is, for lack of a better word, disgusting.
No, this is not some sort of over told statement in which I will try to convince you that we should have open borders. Nor is this a rant on how I feel migrants without "papers" should be allowed to stay in the country.
My objective is simply to get someone-anyone-to ponder the whole immigration controversy from an angle seldom expressed in the media. It is not about being legal or illegal, Mexican, German, Pacific Islander or American.
It is a matter of being human, and it is about tolerance. Simple as that.
Think of it this way: children in this town are now not only not being sent to school in fear of being deported, but many are also without their fathers, while their mothers have been released for "humanitarian" reasons, awaiting a court date while being forced to wear electronic monitoring bracelets as if they are dangerous criminals. Panic has swept the immigrant community of Laurel, Miss., and my money goes to say these people are even afraid to answer the door.
How would I know? I have been there.
When my family came to the United States in 1993, and Prop 187 was in full rage, I clearly remember living in constant fear, overhearing my parents trying to decide whether they should separate my brother and I so at least one of us could stay here in the event they got deported. Yes, my parents were illegal immigrants and so was I, and no, we didn't jump a fence. We simply came to this country as visitors and decided not to leave.
Well, here is your lesson for today.
Last week, the largest single-workplace immigration raid in U.S. History took place in the small town of Laurel, Miss. According to an article published by the Associated Press last Tuesday, Federal agents reportedly swept nearly six hundred plant workers suspected of being illegal immigrants while their "legal" counterparts applauded.
That is, for lack of a better word, disgusting.
No, this is not some sort of over told statement in which I will try to convince you that we should have open borders. Nor is this a rant on how I feel migrants without "papers" should be allowed to stay in the country.
My objective is simply to get someone-anyone-to ponder the whole immigration controversy from an angle seldom expressed in the media. It is not about being legal or illegal, Mexican, German, Pacific Islander or American.
It is a matter of being human, and it is about tolerance. Simple as that.
Think of it this way: children in this town are now not only not being sent to school in fear of being deported, but many are also without their fathers, while their mothers have been released for "humanitarian" reasons, awaiting a court date while being forced to wear electronic monitoring bracelets as if they are dangerous criminals. Panic has swept the immigrant community of Laurel, Miss., and my money goes to say these people are even afraid to answer the door.
How would I know? I have been there.
When my family came to the United States in 1993, and Prop 187 was in full rage, I clearly remember living in constant fear, overhearing my parents trying to decide whether they should separate my brother and I so at least one of us could stay here in the event they got deported. Yes, my parents were illegal immigrants and so was I, and no, we didn't jump a fence. We simply came to this country as visitors and decided not to leave.
Viewing Comments 1 - 10 of 55
Bob
posted 9/01/08 @ 9:01 PM PST
So what!!!! You are ILLEGAL, and so are the people that were arrested last week. When we see the shear odasity of these people flaunting in our US BORN citizens faces that they will do what they want in our country we do not have the feeling that you want us to have. (Continued…)
MaryJ
posted 9/01/08 @ 9:32 PM PST
What a whining, ridiculous article. What "compassion" do the illegals show for the people whose jobs they steal, for the Americans they cheat out of numerous taxpayer-funded social services, for the American children who get a substandard education because teacher is too busy with non-English-speaking children to pay attention to them? What "compassion" do people like this author show to the American small business owners whose livelyhoods have been destroyed by being undercut by unscrupulous competitors who hire illegals and pay them under the table? The people who applauded the raid were poor blacks whose wages and living standards were being eroded by illegals. (Continued…)
Bruce
posted 9/01/08 @ 9:59 PM PST
People are just really tired of this mess. The following day there was a lineup of locals who have been out of work for a long time applying for work. (Continued…)
JudyM
posted 9/02/08 @ 5:19 AM PST
There are more than 12 million illegal aliens in this country from more than 32 diffrent countries. They are here with no health check, no criminal background check and many of them are using the identity stolen from an American citizen. (Continued…)
panola
posted 9/02/08 @ 6:32 AM PST
Literally millions of illegal aliens have purchased/obtained fraudulent ID and the Feds are just beginning to comprehend the scope of the problem. The real wakeup call will come when the identity theft victims, you, me, our children, families of the deceased, etc. (Continued…)
H.L. Harris
posted 9/02/08 @ 7:11 AM PST
Are you still an illegal immigrant? Because if that is the case, you are still breaking the law. People with your attitude puzzle me. On the one hand you claim to understand and appreciate the need for law enforcement on the other hand you claim those laws do not apply to illegal immigrants. (Continued…)
Bobby G
posted 9/02/08 @ 8:49 AM PST
Hey there is no such thing as an illegal immigrant. You sir are an illegal alien. You sir are a criminal. You sir have broken the law. The fact that you were too lazy to repair your illegal status during your stay here in this country shows your character or lack of. (Continued…)
Anne
posted 9/02/08 @ 10:08 AM PST
It is not fair to victimize other people just to improve ones monetary in this world. That is what you are saying these illegal aliens are doing by coming here. (Continued…)
dlivingstone
posted 9/02/08 @ 1:41 PM PST
That is the most ridiculous one sided reaction on illegals. There are people in the world with it alot worst than Mexicans,that if we are going to be charitable its certainly not going to be Mexicans. (Continued…)
BOb
posted 9/02/08 @ 2:21 PM PST
A video that this ILLEGAL REPORTER and the US BORN citizens need to see. This made me literally cry for my kids future here in our country.
http://video. (Continued…)
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