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Immigration an issue of decency
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Also by Adam Porton:
- County needing third party voice (October 28, 2008)
- Setting the record straight (October 21, 2008)
- Immigration an issue of decency (October 14, 2008)
- Progressive Dane proving self through real activism (September 16, 2008)
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Last Sunday afternoon, the immigration debate, so prominent on the national stage, became more visible locally. The Madison-based Immigrant Workers Union, along with a host of other local groups, organized a protest at the Capitol to say “No to the War at Home, No to the War Abroad.” The slogan was meant to connect the unjust immigration raids happening nationwide with the unjust wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. However, the main focus of the rally was to bring attention to Dane County Sherriff David Mahoney’s policy of reporting the names of all people detained in Dane County jails who are suspected of immigration violations to the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. ICE, the primary agency responsible for the deportation of undocumented workers, then does just that to many individuals held in Dane County who are found to be in violation of federal immigration law.
The practice of reporting names is not required by law and is something the Democratic Mahoney’s predecessor, a Republican, did not choose to engage in. In turn, there are many reasons this practice is both legally and morally problematic. For starters, it conflicts with the County Board resolution making Dane County a sanctuary county for undocumented workers. The idea behind that resolution is local government should not question individuals on their immigration status. Further, Mahoney has been justifying the practice by claiming he is enforcing an international law which requires foreign nationals be given access to their consulates upon arrest. However, it is abundantly clear from both his rhetoric and the outcome of the practice that the intent is not to aid detainees in accessing their rights but rather to expose them to deportation by federal authorities.
This practice only serves to perpetuate a national immigration policy which even both major presidential candidates admit is severely broken. A 2004 Carnegie Endowment for International Peace study stated roughly 1.3 million Mexican agricultural workers lost their jobs between 1994 and 2002 because of the North American Free Trade Agreement. A main reason for this loss was the inability of Mexican farmers to compete with heavily subsidized U.S. imports that became available in Mexico after NAFTA was signed, which serves to illustrate how the U.S. is complicit in the creation of the migrant population it is now absorbing.
But punish we do. Every year in Dane County — particularly because of Sheriff Mahoney’s policies — hundreds of undocumented workers are deported, often after being falsely convicted of trumped-up charges of identity theft. The human effects of these deportations are enormous, as they not only brutally separate families but also impose a culture of fear and paranoia on undocumented communities. This is especially true now that undocumented workers can no longer legally obtain Wisconsin driver’s licenses, which forces them to drive to work, school, the doctor, etc., with the constant threat of being arrested and then deported.
Because of their status, most undocumented workers must perform jobs where employers exploit their precarious legal position by denying them the most basic wage and safety protections. In addition, because of their justifiable mistrust of police, members of the undocumented community are often reluctant to report crime to the authorities.
All of the above points highlight why we need a radical shift in the way this country treats migrant workers. Like all important issues, that shift will only come if people across the country are demanding it, and it is why Sunday’s rally was such an exciting starting point in building a grassroots movement towards immigration reform. But until that time, we must not continue to criminalize the most vulnerable members of our broken system. To that end, I call on anyone passionate about this issue to attend the Dane County Board’s Equal Opportunity Commission meeting tomorrow at 5:30 p.m. at the City-County Building (210 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd.). Sheriff Mahoney will be there to listen to feedback from community members on his reporting policies, and the commission will be discussing the issue during their meeting. For those who cannot attend, I encourage you to call Mahoney’s office and let him know how you feel about his actions.
Adam Porton (porton@wisc.edu) is a member of the student chapter of Progressive Dane.
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Dammit, wasn’t this one of the wedge issues the Republicans hauled out last election?
Give it a rest. 4 years, no resolution.
Why can’t the criminals have the decency to observe the law?
“claiming he is enforcing an international law which requires foreign nationals be given access to their consulates upon arrest”
Wasn’t this the loophole that some murdering rapist in Texas was using to try to get released after his conviction?
Here’s the problem: What do you say to the immigrant who makes sacrifices and waits as long as necessary to be lawfully admitted into the country? “Sorry, all the sacrifices you made for your family are worthless and you should have just smuggled yourself over the border 5 years ago?”
Migrant workers? It’s the ILLEGAL immigrants we’re fuming about, Adam! Hello?!
Illegal aliens are criminals and parasites, one and all. 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. Enough is enough.
This is insanity in its highest form. What the illegals and their supporters are saying is: “We have broken your laws and sneaked into your country, but we want that overlooked. We want to be hired illegally and take advantage of your government’s folly by using your educational systems, your health care. We want greedy mortgage companies to give us loans we have no possible way to pay. We want to buy cars that we cannot pay for, and drive them without a license or insurance. We also want to speak our own language and not be harrassed to learn English.In short, we want to make a mockery of the American Dream and since your government is populated by fools looking for cheap labor and/or votes, we’ll probably succeed in turning this once-blessed land into a copy of the third worlds we come from.
I can’t believe the sheriff and the federal law enforcement agencies would do such a mean-spirited, heartless, and evil thing. I mean, why should someone get punished for living in another country illegally? And for that matter committing any kind of crime while being there illegally. I say we should just turn our heads and give them a couple of more free passes. Lets take all the risk out of being here illegally, and especially committing a crime while doing so, so that we don’t seem so gosh-darned mean.
I love (read hate) lousy, leftie liberal logic. Wait…logic has nothing to do with liberalism.
“Adam Porton (porton@wisc.edu) is a member of the student chapter of Progressive Dane”
Well there you have it. This moron’s repeated use of the term “undocumented” pretty much indicates what a clueless scumbag he is. They’re illegal aliens…. you know, CRIMINALS!
The BS about illegals being hit with “trumped-up charges of identity theft” is really a hoot. Those charges aren’t trumped up, you lefty kook. Illegals are known to use the Social Security numbers of others in order to steal jobs. That’s a felony. And they’re being deported for being here illegally, not for stealing an ID. Gawd, these libs are hilarious!
McCain is the most pro-amnesty, pro-illegal alien candidate from either party. I wonder if there were a lot of McCain buttons at the rally?
Why does the BH comment section attract the most bigoted trolls imaginable? I can definitively say that the sentiments expressed in this forum do not represent anything resembling those of the majority on campus. However, the preponderance of racist and xenophobic idiocy displayed here might give the impression that the opposite is true, which is only one reason why I think that the comment section is ultimately counterproductive.
Bankrupting Mexican farmers via “free trade” policies, forcing them to come to the US and perform the worst jobs at low wages is, in the eyes of most decent people, punishment enough. But to advocate deportation - in which families are torn apart in the most despicable fashion - and the creation of a climate of fear among the oppressed is not something that most students on this campus support.
And I’m intrigued at what the commenters here think about the legal status of the Puritans - the first illegal immigrants - as well as other Europeans whose livelihoods in America was based on the genocide of Native Americans. I guess that “illegal immigration” was fine - thanks for specifying that.
-Kyle
Anonymous (October 14, 2008 @ 11:51am) was absolutely correct. The illegals expect pity and preferential treatment moreso than a legal citizen gets. They just won’t admit that they are wrong. They try to justify illegal behavior by making lame excuses (separating families, culture of fear and paranoia, a better life, blah blah blah). As with this statement “undocumented workers can no longer legally obtain Wisconsin driver’s licenses, which forces them to drive to work, school, the doctor, etc., with the constant threat of being arrested and then deported”. Yet another law they feel they don’t need to abide by. They deserved to be punished. The Sheriff is doing his job, stopping people when deemed necessary and reporting those who do not belong in this country. I applaud him for doing the right thing. All local police forces should be doing the exact same thing. If the illegals don’t like it, then go back to where you came from. Americans have no sympathy or respect for illegal lawbreakers.
Hey Kyle,
The Europeans claimed the land by right of conquest - they weren’t just immigrants. I’m sure that the Anglo-Saxon would like to have “their” land back from the Normans, but then didn’t they take it from the Britons?
The Huns didn’t start off living in Hungary you know.
La Raza is trying to effect La Reconquista, and if US citizens allow it, then I guess they deserve to lose.
Kyle wrote:
Bankrupting Mexican farmers via “free trade” policies, forcing them to come to the US and perform the worst jobs at low wages is, in the eyes of most decent people, punishment enough. But to advocate deportation - in which families are torn apart in the most despicable fashion - and the creation of a climate of fear among the oppressed is not something that most students on this campus support.
The truth is that the Mexican government and the Mexican people support the free trade agreement with the U.S. and Canada. Without it they would be in a much dire condition than they are now. Due to entrenched social and political coruption our southern neighbor is not able to take advantage of the oppertunity to put their own people to work. Keep in mind that they are next to the richest nation on earth. Anyway, the Mexican farmer is not bankrupt, the Mexican farmer is doing very well growing pot.
Where is human compassion? I am numb after reading such hateful responses. These are people- they don’t want to break the law… THEY WANT TO SURVIVE. I hope all of you who spoke with such intolerance are someday touched by the power of humanity.
All I can say is that I am truly interested in the way that those who agree with these horrendous immigration policies are living?
Must be nice to have the opportunities that you are given living in the united states and getting an education. Oh but I’m sure the illegal immigrants have those opportunities given to them growing up, their just greedy and want to come live the “American dream” right? And I guess we can just forget the fact that many of these undocumented workers were brought here by big corporations in our country. Smuggled in by legal American citizens who don’t even have the decency to treat their workers right while they live everyday in fear, and the boss sits in his cozy office making millions off them.
How can you honestly justify these practices? I would expect more from the educated person around campus but I guess not.