jueves, noviembre 01, 2007
Cartoon of the day


By Adam Zyglis, Buffalo News (N.Y.).
 

Escrito Por Daniela  a las 11:30 PM




Today's op/ed comes from Robert Koulich, a political scientist and professor of service learning at Goucher College. His piece in the Baltimore Sun concerns what he considers manipulation of the immigration debate in this country by those he calls "right-wing nativists".

Here are the opening grafs of Koulich's piece, in which he lays down his argument:
In the year and a half since more than 1 million people took part in "A Day Without an Immigrant," right-wing nativists have taken the legislative offensive against immigrants and the rule of law by proposing more than 200 local anti-illegal immigrant ordinances and resolutions around the country. These resolutions are a piece in a larger post-9/11 movement to convince Americans that foreigners threaten the American way of life. Although racist, manipulative and unconstitutional, they are surprisingly effective.

The manipulation originates with the idea that "illegal aliens" were responsible for the 9/11 attacks, and continues the idea that America is being invaded by aliens. These canards tap into post-9/11 anxiety. The scholar Ole Weaver's idea of "securitization" suggests that by labeling immigration as a security issue, authorities (including officeholders, the media and large nongovernmental organizations) legitimize efforts to move immigration out of the realm of "normal politics" and into that of "emergency politics" - a realm where allegations that have no basis in fact can trigger extreme government responses that have no basis in law.

The "emergency politics" scenario provides a mechanism for rushing anti-illegal immigrant laws though local boards and commissions. After last year's May Day demonstrations, the Federation for American Immigration Reform quickly tapped into the securitization narrative to produce cookie-cutter templates for ordinances and resolutions that would be introduced around the country. FAIR and the vigilante border-control group Minutemen Civil Defense Corps then found opportunistic local politicians who introduced versions of the FAIR template in potentially hospitable locales.

Escrito Por Daniela  a las 11:37 PM




Now here's an immigration profile you don't read every day. Kahder Hamide and Michel Shehadeh, two Palestinian immigrants and part of the "L.A. 8", finally ended their 20-year immigration battle against the U.S. immigration authorities.

The two men had been accused, along with six others, dubbed by the media the "L.A. Eight", to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (a radical offshoot of the PLO). Many of the seven men and one woman spent portions of the last 20 years in jail.

No court has ever found proof of the men's alleged ties to the Popular Front. Hamide and Shehadeh were the last to be acquitted. As a result, the Immigration Court of Appeals dropped the deportation case for Hamide and Shehadeh.

Escrito Por Daniela  a las 12:02 AM




viernes, noviembre 02, 2007
Minutemen membership is growing
Amid all the immigration talk, the Minutemen group is gaining in membership. According to a report today by Reuters, there are about 9,000 total Minutemen across the country, with some kind of representation in nearly every state.

Furthermore, hundreds of those 9,000 members joined recently, over the past three months.

Given the growth of the Minutemen, we'd like to ask your opinion of the group. To get the converesation going, consider this paragraph from the article:
The Minuteman group has a controversial reputation. Critics see it as a sometimes violent, racist organization of would-be vigilantes and some classify it as a hate group. But supporters say the group is non-violent and only aims to enforce the law.
 

Escrito Por Daniela  a las 12:08 AM




Regular readers may remember that a few weeks ago, the ACLU filed a motion to stop federal immigration authorities from forcibly sedating deportees.

Read that post here: ACLU files motion to stop feds from forcibly drugging deportees

Today, on a very related note, it turns out that a private bill is to be introduced in the House of Representatives by East Texas Rep. Louie Gohmert in order to give the right of due process to an Albanian deportee who was forcibly drugged by feds, reports the Dallas Morning News.

As the article explains it, Rrustem Neza was forcibly drugged because he was screaming about how he would be killed if he were deported back to his home country of Albania. Neza fears for his life because of his knowledge about a political assassination of a politician there.

Important to note is that two of Neza's brother's have won political asylum here in the United States. Even more important, perhaps, is the fact that two of his cousins have been killed for knowing what Neza knows about the aforementioned assassination. Based on this information, it appears Neza's request for asylum is justified.

Now, private bills rarely if ever are successful, but it has put the issue of forcibly drugging immigration detainees in the spotlight again.

Rep. Gohmert released a statement: " "I am a strong believer in following the laws regarding immigration. However, we have laws to allow people to remain here based on asylum and the need to protect their lives."

Escrito Por Daniela  a las 12:22 AM




In case you don't know what we're talking about, read this past post: Oklahoma anti-illegal immigration law set to go into effect

This law, one of the most stringent in the nation, went into effect at midnight Thursday. As expected, protestors stormed the Oklahoma state capitol today.

This video details the law as well as today's protest:



Escrito Por Daniela  a las 12:27 AM




domingo, noviembre 04, 2007
Cartoon of the day
This cartoon makes reference to the federal judge (last name, Breyer) in San Francisco who has held up implementation of the ’no-match letters’ crackdown.

Read our coverage: Daily video: More on the 'indefinite delay' of 'no-match' letters crackdown



By Lisa Benson, WashPost Writers’ Group.

Escrito Por Daniela  a las 11:56 PM




We’ve been seeing a sentence more or less like the following one, penned by Kansas City Star columnist Dave Helling, all over the place these days:
... immigration is the newest, angriest wedge issue in America today.
Is it? Is this the pivotal issue Americans will be voting on in the primaries and then in the November 2008 general election? Or are Iraq, the economy, health care, Social Security, and education -- among others -- up at top?

Tell us what you think.

Escrito Por Daniela  a las 12:19 AM




Those of you who follow immigration news closely will, of course, remember the New Bedford, Mass. raid of a leather factory that employed undocumented workers this past March (before our blog began in June). That raid was the beginning of many since then, in an immigration crackdown trend that has no sign of stalling yet.

Well, just a short mention, but we found it interesting that  Boston Globe article reported today that the New Bedford leather factory was being converted into a manufacturer of gear for miliary and law enforcement. How the wheels turn, eh?

Escrito Por Daniela  a las 12:28 AM




It appears that after the new anti-illegal immigration law in Oklahoma was implemented Thursday at midnight, many undocumented immigrants are leaving the state.

Read our coverage of this law here: Daily video: Protesters rally against new Oklahoma anti-illegal immigration law, Oklahoma anti-illegal immigration law set to go into effect & Major opposition to anti-illegal immigration law in Oklahoma

(Here follows the newscast, but take note that we’re posting it so you can watch the newscast itself, not the opinion that precedes the video, as written by the person who uploaded it to YouTube.)


Escrito Por Daniela  a las 12:43 AM