According to a Reuters article, the immigration debate has affected the health of regional live Mexican music. Suffering in particular are underground dances known as "bailes," which are the heartbeat and key to promotion of musical events. Ticket sales are down, and promoters are concerned.

Stepped-up enforcement is creating a climate of fear, and fear is what is keeping people in the shadows. DUI officials have even been set up outside concert venues and nightclubs, ready to detain anyone who does not have a valid driver’s license. According to the article:

    In state after state, promoters say that burgeoning Mexican populations in towns little and big have hunkered down, out of sight and out of public events, to avoid confrontations withstepped-up immigration law enforcement.

    Fear has, by all accounts, made a significant dent in the lucrative regional Mexican market, with audiences often leery of attending the weekend shows that are the bread and butter of this music genre.


Tell us what you think; will the bailes recover?

Escrito Por Cristina Noriega a las 09:16 AM




lunes, octubre 01, 2007
Cartoon of the day


By Nick Anderson (syndicated cartoonist).

Escrito Por Daniela  a las 10:22 AM




In keeping with our past posts about industries that are highly-dependent on immigrant labor, it appears that the seafood industry in Maryland is suffering a great deal after the end of special seasonal work visas there.

The Baltimore Sun reports that crab processors are particularly scarce right now, and that crab houses on Maryland’s Eastern Shore are complaining that their livelihoods are endangered.

The H2B visas that usually bring these workers to Maryland are set to expire to tomorrow.

If the workers don’t return, and if the visa expiration date is any indication of that likelihood, then many packing houses will have to shut down, and local drivers, packers, and crabbers may lose their jobs.

Check out our extensive coverage on this subject: Negative effects of immigration raids already seen on U.S. farm productivity, U.S. agriculture dependent on Latino migrant workers, New enforcement may leave apple industry in need of migrant workers, New immigration policy will drive up price of domestic wines, & Blueberry farmers turn to mechanization — how will this affect guest worker programs?

And continue the conversation by considering these and other questions: Are we far too dependent now on cheap immigrant labor? Are we set to move towards mechanization? Are we going to have to deal with this at the legislative level, perhaps by passing a guest worker bill? Or is it merely an issue of supply-and-demand, and we must pay higher wages to American workers? (And if so, how will the difference in such wages affect American industry?) What role do American consumers play in this all?

Escrito Por Daniela  a las 10:49 AM




Are any of our readers from New England? If you are, then you know that one of the biggest immigrant groups in the area hails from Brazil. In fact, statistics show that there are more Brazilians in Boston than any other place in the United States—and Brazilian immigrants have fanned out all across Massachusetts.

A reader sent us an article from the Framingham Tab, the local paper in Framingham, Mass., on an apparent exodus of Brazilian undocumented immigrants from Massachusetts.

The director of a Brazilian immigrant outreach center, Fausto da Rocha, estimates that there are about 300,000 Brazilians living in Massachusetts—of course this number includes both undocumented and documented Brazilians. He estimates that by the end of 2007, about 7,000 Brazilians will have left Massachusetts not for another U.S. state, but for Brazil.

The owner of a moving company in Framingham, that caters to Brazilian clientele (see above picture), says he is organizing moves back to Brazil for five to six families each week—up from about one every week.
"If this continues, there will be serious consequences for the state's economy, not only for the Brazilian community," [said da Rocha.]

Da Rocha attributes the phenomenon to a combination of factors such as increasing demands from employees to produce working papers, immigration crackdowns, and a widespread anti-illegal immigrant sentiment.

"Brazilians stopped feeling welcome," said da Rocha. "They feel persecuted and unwanted."

Escrito Por Daniela  a las 11:04 AM




Last week 54 people were arrested at several Reno, Nev. McDonald’s by ICE on grounds of illegal immigration. Today we learn that seven have already been deported—most to Mexico; and the remaining half have been released for "humanitarian purposes" until their immigration hearings.

For those of you, like us, who wonder what "humanitarian purposes" include, the AP clarifies:
(...) things as a medical condition or being the sole caregiver to children (...)  no children were left unattended as a result of the arrests.
The raids last week were the result of an identity theft complaint and months of investigation. All 11 McDonald’s raided were owned by the same franchise owner, a businessman named Luther Mack, reports local TV station KRNV.

Escrito Por Daniela  a las 12:11 PM




lunes, octubre 01, 2007
Border fence length nearly doubles

The Los Angeles Times reported over the weekend that the border fenced has nearly doubled, bringing the total length to 145 miles.

The Department of Homeland Security has, as a result, reached its goal of building 70 more miles of barriers by the end of September.

In the picture above, you can see part of the new fence—it is 12 feet high and runs across the U.S.-Mexico border in the Barry M. Goldwater Range in Arizona.

Escrito Por Daniela  a las 12:23 PM




The following video is a Univision newscast, and we could unfortunately not find one with Spanish subtitles. As a result, we’d like to preface it by telling you a little about the new poll results it discusses at length.

CHLI (Congressional Hispanic Leadership Institute) and Ayuda, a non-profit, surveyed D.C.-area Hispanic immigrants and found these results, among others:
Strong Allegicance to the United States:
  • 95% Hispanic immigrants show a strong allegiance to the United States.
  • 93% plan to become U.S. citizens.
  • 95% agreed that it is important for Hispanics to learn English.
Conservative Thinking Despite Political Ideology:
  • Collectively, these respondents strongly oppose abortion (83%), even among liberals, 60% oppose abortion.
  • 85% agree on self-reliance and not relying on the government.
  • Only 18% describe themselves as liberal.
Knowledge of Political Issues:
  • Like the country at large, two-thirds (67%) think the country is headed in the wrong direction.
  • 74% say Congress is doing a poor job in handling immigration proposals.
  • 49% do not believe most elected officials in the United States care about what Hispanic immigrants think.
Are you surprised or unsurprised by this poll’s findings?

Here’s the Univision video, for those of you who understand Spanish:


Escrito Por Daniela  a las 12:41 PM




In an op-ed in today's Wall Street Journal, Richard Nadler president of America's Majority Foundation think tank summarizes his reseach into the impact harsh immigration stances by Republican congressional candidates had on the Hispanic vote. He writes:

In my recent study for the Americas Majority Foundation entitled "Border Wars: The Impact of Immigration on the Latino Vote," I document not what Hispanics opined, but how they actually voted, given a clear choice between advocates of "enforcement first" and comprehensive immigration reform. The results, based on returns from 145 heavily Hispanic precincts and over 100,000 tabulated votes, indicate this: Immigration policies that induce mass fear among illegal residents will induce mass anger among the legal residents who share their heritage.

The congressional election of 2006 provided a unique opportunity to gauge Hispanic voter behavior. In three congressional districts of the Southwest, two of them on the border, Republican candidates ran on an "enforcement-only" platform. In each case, this constituted a departure from previous congressional representation. And in each case, Hispanic support for the Republican candidate collapsed from 2004 levels.



Escrito Por Adam J. Segal a las 08:05 AM




Shlomo Reifman, Statistics Deputy Editor at Forbes, posted a profile of presidential candidate Bill Richardson today...
Experiencing Mexican culture first hand and being a governor of a border state gives Richardson a unique view of immigration. While dismissing a border fence as ineffectual in stemming the tide of people illegally crossing our border with Mexico or in providing security for U.S. residents, Richardson advocates increasing border patrols, punishing employers for knowingly hiring undocumented workers and giving the 12 million people illegally living and working in the U.S. a reasonable path to American citizenship. This path includes passing a background check, learning English and paying back taxes and fines. Those who fail to comply with such requirements must leave under his plan.

Escrito Por Adam J. Segal a las 08:12 AM




The El Paso Times has a story today, part of a series, on the impact on the local economies of the congested/inefficient border crossing system at El Paso-Juárez:

Efforts to crack down on illegal immigration, prevent terrorism and spot a growing number of drug loads are slowing business down at a time when the Juárez maquiladora industry is booming.

Manufacturing officials and truckers on both borders have reported wait times of up to three hours for cars and three to five hours for commercial trucks. Some shipments have been stuck in Mexico because trucks were still in line by the time the cargo facility closed, a disaster for just-in-time deliveries that are the bread and butter of the region.


Escrito Por Adam J. Segal a las 08:15 AM