I was
having a tough time figuring out why it was of such national security
importance to add 3.5-miles of fence on the western most section of the
US-Mexico border. It was tough because there are already 2 fences along
a 14-mile stretch and 3 fences along 11.5-miles, so the 3.5-miles would
be a third fence to complete the 14-mile-triple fence.
The fence
erections began in the mid 1990s with 14 miles stretching from the
Pacific Ocean 14-miles eastward. At that time, experts, not serving
special interests, said the fences would not stop illegal intrusions,
simply push them to other sectors. And it came to pass. So a second
fence was added with the same results. Then came Operation Gatekeeper
along the California border
Sent by NCLR
One More
Chance to Defeat the "REAL ID Act"
Thank you for all of your efforts in recent weeks in contacting Congress
to help our immigrant community. As you have seen, there has been activity
that affects us all in many important ways.
What happened with
“REAL ID” and where do we go from here?
The Senate has passed its version of the appropriations bill to fund our
troops in Iraq and Afghanistan and to aid Tsunami victims. This bill did
NOT include the “REAL ID Act” because Senator Isakson did not have the
votes in the Senate to pass this as an amendment.
The
first time around his press secretary, Margita Thompson, made excuses for
him – the Governor didn’t mean to say “close the border” with Mexico – why,
no, no. He meant to say close the border between ports-of-entry that is
where illegal immigrants cross. Golleeee, how could anyone think Governor
Schwarzenegger could have meant anything else?
But
now, even the bountiful qualities of Ms. Thompson cannot disguise the intent
of the governor’s words. Schwarzenegger has finally come out to join with
the likes of Pete Wilson and the rest of the ultra-extremist right wing of
the Republican Party that holds Mexicans responsible for all of California’s
ills. Forgetting of course that Mexico is California’s number one trading
partner, purchasing over 16 percent of all of California’s exports.
By Angela
Kelley
April 26, 2005
Today the Bush Administration embraced the REAL ID Act, controversial
anti-immigrant legislation initially passed in the House of Representatives
and now being considered as part of the supplemental appropriations package
to fund troops in Iraq and Afghanistan and
to fund tsunami relief efforts in Asia. In a letter to House and Senate
conferees, the White House Office of Management and Budget said, “The
Administration strongly urges the conferees to include the Real ID Act of
2005 in the final version of the bill.” This legislation, if enacted, would
give the Secretary of Homeland Security unlimited powers to erect border
barriers, including a three-mile fence across wetlands in California;
unleash bounty hunters and bail bondsmen on immigrants still awaiting
hearings on their court cases; make it much harder for those fleeing
political and religious persecution to find refuge in the United States; and
force every state to revamp its policies for issuing driver’s licenses for
all citizens and non-citizens, without corresponding federal funding.
On May 5, 2005,
Mexico will celebrate the 143rd anniversary of Cinco de Mayo,
marking the anniversary of General Ignacio Zaragoza's defeat of the French
at the small village of Puebla. While Cinco de Mayo is merely a date in
the Spanish language, it represents a significant event in the history of
Mexico.
Cinco de Mayo is also widely celebrated in many Mexican-American
communities as the triumph of a people over oppression. The roots of this
observance are actually very complex and can be understood more clearly
when we realize that, for nearly 300 years up to 1821, Spain dominated the
Mexican people, culture, and government. Even after Mexico fought for and
achieved its independence, the legacy of colonialism lived on for many
years.
By Chon A.
Noriega, Professor and Director
New billboards for a local Spanish-language newscast announce: "Los
Angeles, CaliforniaMexico
– Tu Ciudad. Tu Equipo."
For the station, KCRA-TV Channel 62, the billboard merely addresses a
local audience: "All we are saying is, 'It's your city, your town, your
team.' We are a team that's educating and informing the Spanish-language
marketplace."
But for the
political action group, Americans for Legal Immigration, the billboards
are an example of "irresponsible corporate citizenship" because the
message might "make illegal immigrants feel welcome." In either case, the
billboards clearly reference the fact that Los Angeles was once part of
Mexico and that in recent decades the Mexican-descent population has
become the largest single demographic and broadcast market in the region.
On May 5,
1862, Mexican troops defeated invading French troops in the outskirts
of Puebla, a city around 60 miles east of Mexico City. How did events
come to this point in time, what were French troops doing in Mexico
and why?
On September
15, 1810, a priest, Miguel Hidalgo, sounded the church bells to unite
Mexicans in a war of independence from Spain
– Independence was declared the following day, September 16th.
But it took Mexicans 11 years to oust the Spaniards.
They were
barely getting their house in order when an unprovoked war was thrust
on them – the US
wanted and took about 50 percent of its territory. Needless to say,
Mexicans weren't happy with this circumstance and blamed their leader,
Santa Anna, accusing him of great treason. This led to a rebellion to
oust him from office.
By Roberto
Miranda
May 2, 2005
On a cold and dank night in early March, the lives of two young children
forever changed when their father, a 25 year undocumented Mexican, was
gunned down in a hail of bullets coming out of the .45 caliber pistol
owned by off-duty Milwaukee Police officer, Alfonso Glover.
In what had to have been the most horror filled event of his life, before
his death, Wilbert Prado found himself being shot at by an individual
claiming to be a police officer.
Wilbert Prado spoke very little English. Wilbert Prado was unarmed. His
death makes no sense at all.
Why did Glover feel he had to mercilessly unload more than two magazines
of .45 caliber rounds on Wilbert Javier Prado? What possible reason could
Glover have for unloading eight rounds into the body of Wilbert Prado?
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s withdrawal of settlements from Gaza is a
courageous step that, if not counter-balanced by new settlements in the
West Bank and if managed properly, can only improve prospects for peace
between Israelis and Palestinians. With the death of Yasir Arafat and the
election of new Palestinian leaders, it is helping to end the “intifada”
that has raged for four and one-half years. Perceptions of violence and
related events in the region are colored significantly by language.
Perceptions shape public opinion and public opinion affects the
formulation of policy.
By Joe
Armendariz"
The
following remarks were prepared for my testimony in front of the
California State Senate's "Labor and Industrial Relations
Committee" chaired by State Senator Richard Alarcon (D) San Fernando
Valley. The hearing was postponed at the last minute but the issue
remains.
The Senate and the Assembly are actively considering legislation
that deals with the cost of illegal immigration in California.
April 27, 2005
Thank you Mr.
Chairman and distinguished members of the committee.
Thank you very
much for this opportunity to appear before you on this important issue.
From a purely
historical standpoint, the plight of undocumented Hispanic immigrants
residing in the U.S.
can be accurately characterized by the term Hispurgatory: A moment
in U.S. history when the resident, undocumented Latino immigrant
population is caught in a state of legal limbo. Their standard of living
is typically well below the official poverty level. Their daily existence
is one of endurance and survival. They are motivated by the hope that
their service to this country as upstanding, creative, contributing, law
abiding residents will be rewarded someday with legitimate, official
acceptance by the government of the Promised Land.
In a book that
tells the doll’s story, Marisol is a 10-year-old girl who loves to dance.
She also loves her family, her cat, and Pilsen, her working-class Mexican
neighborhood in Chicago.
“The first reaction was ‘Oh wow, a Mexican-American Girl doll from Pilsen,
that’s a nice thing to hear,’ ” says Nancy Villa Franca, director of
education for The Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum, located in Pilsen.
But
as the story continues, Marisol’s family plans to leave Pilsen for the
suburbs because, as Marisol’s mother says, “it’s dangerous” and “there was
no place to play.” That seemingly negative passage has people in the Chicago
neighborhood upset with that portrait of their community.
I love flying at
midnight.
It is an unusual group of people who get on a plane to go someplace in the
middle of the night. There are professionals, vacationers, students and
those in search of sleep.
This weekend, I got on a midnight flight to Dulles and then drove to
Charlottesville, Virginia to help train Democrats in this important red
state. It is amazing to me that 90 folks will show up on a Saturday and
Sunday to figure out how to become involved in the process of overthrowing
a fascist regime. OK, so not all Republicans are fascist, they are just
mentally challenged. Last week when I was in South Carolina
the important issue to Republicans was whether it was the fault of women
that they were getting beat by abusive husbands.
By Roberto Rodriguez
COLUMN OF THE AMERICAS
The introduction of extremist and armed militias on the Arizona-Mexico
border is sending shockwaves worldwide. The message: that extremist
anti-Mexican militias, supported by other racial supremacists, are welcome
there.
And it's not that these extremists are saying anything unusual. They're
actually just echoing the administration's rhetoric about the border having
something to do with “the war on terror”… as if the 911 terrorists had all
come from, or through, Mexico.
Well, you have
heard the statistics many times over, that by the year 2015 Hispanics will
be the largest minority group in the United States of America. The
income levels of the Hispanics could also go up a great deal if one thing
would happen between now and then: "Latino students graduating from
college".
What I am
referring to is the lack of young students setting their goals high to
improve their lives by going to college.
The facts are in
family backgrounds from those who stop after their high school education
because they need to go to work to help out their families to those who
don’t have the desire to achieve a higher education or don’t feel that
they can afford it. Many things can keep a Latino out of college, just
because many are not encouraged by their own parents to do so, because
they never went themselves.
By Earl Ofari Hutchinson,
The
sight of over 100 black and Latino students brawling at a major Los Angeles
high school recently exposed the enduring myth of Black-Brown solidarity. In
truth, tensions between Latino and black students have always lurked
dangerously close to the surface, fueled by the changing ethnic realities in
Los Angeles, and America, in the past decade.
Two racially motivated brawls at Jefferson High School in April left several
students wounded and a campus at least temporarily split by race. It was
only the latest in a series of brawls that have torn area schools over the
past few years. The school's principle told the Los Angeles Times that
racial tensions were "coming out of the community, and into the school."
Following the civil
rights era, the popular fiction was that, since blacks and Latinos are
"people of color" with a similar history of racial discrimination and
poverty, their struggle was the same...
Andrés
Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) is now the ex-mayor (or mayor-in-limbo) of
México (City). The Federal Attorney General's office (the PGR) has filed
charges before a judge. Now, as being formally charged for a crime, the
mayor is out of office unless acquitted. Remember, under Mexican Mickey
Mouse law, you are guilty until you can prove your innocence. The PGR is
very happy. They wanted this so bad that they were trying to get AMLO thrown
out of office even before the formal charges were filed!
By Hugo W. Merida,
CEO - Los Angeles
Metro Hispanic Chambers of Commerce
About American Business If DR-CAFTA
is rejected,
today's trade imbalance will continue. Nearly 80% of Central American and
Dominican products already enter the U.S. market duty free,
while U.S. manufactured goods face steep tariffs. In other words, these
countries already have nearly complete access to our marketplace while we
have limited access to theirs. If DR-CAFTA is approved, it will end this unfair trade imbalance...
Once upon a time, there was an English teacher who read
stories to us as children in American schools in small towns, big towns and
cities across the United States. We the children developed interest, gained
understanding and learned to appreciate and love the American and British
classics. Many of us took different roads and crossed a diversity of
bridges, but the stories of Alice in Wonderland, Huckleberry Finn and
Sleepy Hollow and the passion for literature are deeply ingrained in
our hearts. But that is not the story for millions of Latino kids, who as
teenagers are placed in America's schools speaking a different language and
coming from a different literary tradition. Nonetheless, these teens are
expected to pass city, national and statewide exams without having the
literary experiences that we all had as American children.
By Jason
Ackelson, Ph.D.
Immigration Policy Center
New proposals for more fencing and Border Patrol agents along the
U.S.-Mexico border only perpetuate an unsuccessful policy that does not
effectively enhance national security or control undocumented immigration.
Policymakers need to recognize that a truly smart border policy which will
ensure security, facilitate trade, and justly manage migration will not be
achieved by building yet another fence.
Highlights from the report:
President Bush’s
Fiscal Year 2006 budget would increase funding for U.S. Customs and
Border Protection to $6.7 billion. Next to defense spending, this is one
of the highest growth rates in the federal government.
On March 16, 2005,
the House of Representatives attached an amendment (the REAL ID Act) to
the $81.3 billion emergency supplemental to fund the war efforts in
Afghanistan and Iraq that would give the Secretary of Homeland Security
sole discretion to push forward the construction of border fences,
roads, and other barriers by waiving all applicable laws.
"So why don't people fight? Why don't our White kinsmen take up the
battle standard and build with us a new, White nation that will be
immeasurably better in every way than the decadent, materialistic society of
today?" - Erich Gliebe Chairman, National Alliance
Gliebe has found two "kinsmen" to fight for the White race: Tom Tancredo,
Colorado Republican Congressman and disgraced former San Diego Mayor Roger
Hedgecock who was forced to resign when convicted of 13 felonies. Set aside
for legal technicalities, the convictions were never overturned and the
former mayor, now a San Diego talk show host, eventually pleaded guilty in a
plea bargain deal to avoid a third trial.
By Greg Winter
The academic growth that students experience in a given
school year has apparently slowed since the passage of No Child Left Behind,
the education law that was intended to achieve just the opposite, a new
study has found.
In both reading and math, the study determined, test
scores have gone up somewhat, as each class of students outdoes its
predecessors. But within grades, students have made less academic progress
during the school year than they did before No Child Left Behind went into
effect in 2002, the researchers said.
Patrick
Osio, Jr. has written a short but intensive manual on the Mexican
perspective on numerous issues between our two countries. The manual is an
in depth primer on the culture and protocol for better understanding
Mexicans that in turn allows establishing personal and business
relationships, and how to avoid the most common faux pas that can ruin
relationships and business deals.
The manual is available through Electronic delivery for $9.95
making it possible to download the manual to save on your hard
drive, printing its entirety or particular sections while
reaping considerable savings over printed copies.
By Peter
Nicholas and Robert Salladay, Times Staff Writers
Calling the
nation's borders dangerously porous, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on
Thursday praised the private "Minuteman" campaign that uses armed
volunteers to stop illegal immigrants from crossing into the U.S.
Schwarzenegger said in a radio interview that the federal government is
failing to secure the border with Mexico, and he cast the hundreds of
private citizens who have been patrolling the Arizona-Mexico border
since April 1 as a popular response to government inaction.
"I think they've
done a terrific job," Schwarzenegger said of the "Minuteman" volunteers,
who plan to expand to California in June. "They've cut down the crossing
of illegal immigrants a huge…
Congress is poised
to pass a law that would make sweeping changes to the nation's system for
issuing driver's licenses by imposing stringent requirements on states to
verify the authenticity of birth certificates, Social Security cards,
legal residency visas, and bank and utility records used to obtain a
license.
House Republicans
attached the bill to a must-pass supplemental spending package for troops
in Iraq
without first putting it through the usual legislative scrutiny of
hearings and debate. Should it emerge intact from House-Senate
negotiations over the spending package, it could be law next month.
Frustrated by
illegal immigrant criminals who slip their grasp, a growing number of
state and county police agencies nationwide are moving to join a federal
program that enlists local officers to enforce immigration laws.
The federal
government has already granted that authority in Florida and Alabama, and
the program is under consideration in Connecticut,
Oklahoma and Arkansas.
It's also in the
works in
Southern California
- one of the nation's most ethnically diverse regions - where it would
reverse a long-standing local police policy of avoiding questions about
immigration status during criminal investigations.
The would-be
millennium bomber who crossed the border from Canada with a truckload of
explosive materials to blow up Los Angeles
International Airport has instead blown holes in his former terrorist
network, court documents and interviews show.
Since his conviction in 2001, Algerian expatriate Ahmed Ressam, 37, has
provided information on more than 100 suspected terrorists, helped shut
down clandestine Al Qaeda cells and exposed valuable organizational
secrets of the global terrorist network.
Now, after years
of delays, he faces sentencing scheduled for today.
Three more bills
working their way through the process are the latest in a pattern of
legislation that targets immigrants and will divide communities, say
Democrats and other opponents.
Proponents, mostly Republicans, say they want to improve the quality of
life for citizens and legal immigrants.
A leading opponent, Rep. Ben Miranda, D-16, said, “If we fail to embrace
and include everyone, we are destined for adverse consequences. We will be
held accountable by the next generation – our children will hold us
accountable.”
Cops lie. Not all
of them, but so many lie about their arrests, tickets and interactions
with the public that it's a miracle anyone still respects the law.
Corrupt cops were
around long before Serpico, but the problem appears to be getting worse.
After the dust settled from the recent Rampart Division scandal, Los
Angeles prosecutors were forced to drop hundreds of charges against
innocent people sitting in jail, who'd been convicted of crimes invented
from thin air by police officers willing to lie in order to embellish
their arrest record. Now courts have found that New York City..
Tracking down
criminals often requires teamwork at many levels of law enforcement.
This month, for instance, a joint federal, state, and local task force
caught 10,000 fugitives in a coordinated nationwide effort.
Impressive as it
was, the question must be asked: Why not use the same scale of teamwork
against the largest group of outlaws in the United States - the 10.3
million illegal aliens estimated to be in the country?
As it is, the
federal government deploys only some 2,000 immigration agents to nab
that tide of humanity - after they've managed to slip past the Border
Patrol.
Sgt. Patrick
Haab's defense attorney had the ear of county prosecutor Andrew Thomas. He
also had Thomas' eyes, his nose, his arms, his legs, his brain. Near as I
can tell, Haab's defense attorney was Andrew Thomas.
The Maricopa County Attorney's explanation of why he decided not to
prosecute Haab for pulling a gun on seven undocumented immigrants one
night earlier this month at an Interstate 8 rest stop sounded a lot like
the closing argument of a defense attorney.
About half of the
120 Maryland-based money transmitters used by immigrants to carry money
abroad are operating without licenses and without the insurance that the
state mandates, according to regulators who are cracking down on those
operations.
"Immigrants that
are here working are losing their money," said Susan Clayman, an
investigator for the financial regulation division of Maryland's
Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation. The money is sometimes
seized by authorities when it is transported illegally by unlicensed
companies. Clayman is a former state trooper with a background in
narcotics enforcement who was hired last year to root out such unlicensed
operations.
By Richard Simon, President Bush called
Wednesday for federal regulators, and not states, to have final say over the
location of liquefied natural gas terminals, stepping into an emotional
issue that has roiled California and other coastal states.
A provision similar to the one the president endorsed Wednesday is already
moving through Congress. It is opposed by the administrations of Gov. Arnold
Schwarzenegger in California
and Gov. Jeb Bush, the president's brother, in Florida.
The two governors fear it would weaken the states' ability to respond to
safety and environmental concerns over the terminals.
By David McGlinchey The Defense
Department on Wednesday called for the creation of a senior-level federal
position to oversee and coordinate the development of foreign language
skills in the
United States.
Pentagon officials issued a paper detailing the need for the ongoing
promotion of foreign language study. The paper, "A Call to Action for
National Foreign Language Capabilities," was the product of the National
Language Conference held at the University
of Maryland in June 2004.
Distinguished
Authorities and Members of the Diplomatic Corps,
Dear Brothers and
Sisters,
During these days
of great intensity, we have chanted the litany of the saints on three
different occasions: at the funeral of our Holy Father John Paul II; as
the Cardinals entered the Conclave; and again today, when we sang it with
the response: Tu illum adiuva – sustain the new Successor of Saint Peter.
On each occasion, in a particular way, I found great consolation in
listening to this prayerful chant. How alone we all felt after the passing
of John Paul II – the Pope who for over twenty-six years had been our
shepherd and guide on our journey through life!
Catholics
Differ on Embryonic Stem Cell Research
According to a new national study conducted among 1,536 U.S. physicians,
most Catholic physicians morally support several medical and ethical
issues, which have been the source of controversy in the Church and the
U.S. population.
Physicians
overwhelming support the use of birth control pills among healthy adult
women. A large majority of all physicians (93%) and Catholic physicians
(87%) indicated that they would "prescribe birth control pills to any
adult patients that request them and for whom they are medically
appropriate."
(sic)… The use of
condoms to protect against AIDS in third world...
BY Michael Josephson
Think of the most ethical person you know. Did a lot of people come to mind
or only a few? Are you having trouble thinking of anyone?
Now, if I asked that question of the people who know you well, how many
would name you? Almost all? About half? Just a few? And, by the way, do you
care?
Unless this commentary makes you more humble, you will probably be among the
vast majority who say that half or more of the people they know think of
them as an ethical role model.
This Public Announcement is to alert U.S. citizens to the continuing
unsettled public security situation along the Mexican side of the
U.S.-Mexico border. This Public Announcement supersedes the Public
Announcement of January 26, 2005 to update the information provided. It
expires on July 29, 2005.
Violent criminal activity fueled by a war between criminal organizations
struggling for control of the lucrative narcotics trade continues along the
U.S.-Mexico border. This has resulted in a wave of violence aimed primarily
at members of drug trafficking organizations, criminal justice officials and
journalists. However, foreign visitors and residents, including Americans,
have been among the victims of homicides and kidnappings in the border
region.
Former PRI
appointed judges and old time police officers impede prosecution of “Dirty
War” criminals charges special prosecutor.
By Lorraine
Orlandi
Recalcitrant
police and judges left from an authoritarian era are blocking Mexico's
drive to punish former public officials for atrocities committed in a
"dirty war" against leftists, a special prosecutor said on Tuesday.
Ignacio Carrillo, the prosecutor investigating past state repression, lashed
out against "conflicting interests" in the attorney general's office and
"aberrant" court decisions he said are hampering his work.
Rights groups hailed Carrillo's appointment by President Vicente Fox in 2002
as an unprecedented step toward redressing an era of state terror in the
1960s and '70s and ending official impunity after 71 years of one-party
rule.
According to figures maintained by the Baja California Office of the State
Attorney General (PGJE), Tijuana's
wave of murders and kidnappings has reached record levels. More killings
that bear the trademark of organized crime were reported this week, when the
bodies of two men who were strangled to death and dumped near a clinic
operated by the Mexican Social Security Institute were discovered. One of
the victims was identified as 22-year-old Cristian Garcia Loaiza. The second
victim, who was mutilated, was initially unidentified. The two killings
brought to 46 the number of homicides reported in Tijuana through most of
April. At least 143 murders have been registered by the PGJE since the
beginning of the year-a record number.
Out here on the left coast, where mudslides are included in weather
reports and "the Terminator" governs, people are talking about Condi Rice
and her first trip to Latin America as secretary of state. There's hope
that she will do "something" about the tsunami of illegal Latino
immigrants flooding across our southern border. In the short-term, that's
unlikely, but her high-speed, five-day sprint through Brazil, Colombia, Chile
and El Salvador should confirm that our neighborhood is in deep trouble.
First came the
indignation, then the street protests and the disapproving comments from
foreign countries. It culminated last Sunday with an estimated 1.2 million
Mexicans marching silently through center of the capital. But President
Vicente Fox moved to defuse the political crisis Wednesday night by
accepting the resignation of his attorney general, who had been leading
the criminal case against popular Mexico City Mayor and 2006 presidential
hopeful Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
By Manuel Hernandez/HispanicVista.com
By Patrick Osio,
Jr./HispanicVista.com
By 
By Richard N.
Baldwin T. /HispanicVista.com
By
Raoul Lowery Contreras/HispanicVista.com