Archives for May 2010

At CNN: Some Hispanic Americans hope law deters illegal immigration

But Schwartz and some other Americans with Hispanic backgrounds who spoke with CNN say the problem with illegal immigrants isn’t just the jobs they take. It’s how they’re overrunning towns like Phoenix, turning them into “mini-Mexicos” with their trash-filled streets and loud music, according to Schwartz.

Of equal concern to her friend, Martha Payan, is how she claims illegal immigrants “fleece” government coffers by collecting welfare on multiple children, or vanish without a trace after an arrest or a hospital visit.

The two women, who became acquainted through various demonstrations in the metro Phoenix area, met Thursday to discuss their views outside the Maricopa County Municipal building, as more backlash against the controversial immigration law continued to flood the city.

Notice the “some” in the headline, and the “more” in the article.

What CNN can’t figure out is that Latinos in the USA who have worked their way to legally live here in accordance of US law, and who have taken the trouble of learning the language and the customs, and are fully integrated into American society are not happy to see people who willfully violate the law be granted special treatment and issued instant victim status:

Anna Gaines, a Mexican-born U.S. citizen, says she took up the fight against illegal immigration after becoming disillusioned by the attitudes of immigrant families that she witnessed as a teacher in the Paradise Valley School District in Paradise, Arizona.

“Many of these families were having one child after another just to earn a paycheck from the U.S. government and they didn’t care about their children’s education,” says Gaines, the controversial founder of American Citizens United, a grass-roots organization known for its extreme views on immigration enforcement. “They didn’t want to contribute, just take.”

Gaines, who came to the United States as a nurse on a work visa during the Vietnam War and met her current husband, says she thinks immigrants have changed over the years.

“There used to be a level of dignity and self-respect. They were hard-working people who wanted to contribute to American society because it was better than where they came from,” says Gaines, a petite woman in her 70s. “But our government has been giving them handouts for so long that now they expect them.”

Digger’s realm has more, on Puerto Ricans like myself,

Then there are my Puerto Rican brothers and sisters. Puerto Ricans are US Citizens at birth. Many who come to the mainland United States reject the title of “Hispanic” and claims by Hispanic groups that opposition to illegal immigration is a racist plot.

By the way, people from Latin American countries come in all races: White, black, Asian, or indigenous – many of us have extended families with all of the above. Being from Latin America doesn’t mean you belong to one racial group.

I have said before, and will continue to emphasize, “Hispanic” is a victimology construct. There is no such thing as “Hispanic” outside the USA: once each one of us LATINOS go back to our country of origin, we call ourselves Puerto Ricans, Colombians, Mexicans, or whatever.

Latino – in the broader sense of the word – may be used on a generic (and faceless) group of people whose native tongue is derived from Latin – such as French, Rumanian, Italian, Portuguese, and yes, Spanish. Additionally, there are indigenous peoples in Latin America who do not speak Spanish, some of whom have immigrated to the US.

You can even make a case that the term “Latinos” is vague enough as to be meaningless. What does it matter to Mexican authorities whether you come from a Latin American country IF you are in Mexico illegally? Not one bit.

The fact remains that Chileans have darn little in common with Mexicans, for instance.

And yes, I’ve been told, “You don’t even look Puerto Rican,” here in liberal Princeton by liberals who are shocked that I don’t toe the ideology line.

Post re-edited to add an omitted sentence.

At CNN: Some Hispanic Americans hope law deters illegal immigration

But Schwartz and some other Americans with Hispanic backgrounds who spoke with CNN say the problem with illegal immigrants isn’t just the jobs they take. It’s how they’re overrunning towns like Phoenix, turning them into “mini-Mexicos” with their trash-filled streets and loud music, according to Schwartz.

Of equal concern to her friend, Martha Payan, is how she claims illegal immigrants “fleece” government coffers by collecting welfare on multiple children, or vanish without a trace after an arrest or a hospital visit.

The two women, who became acquainted through various demonstrations in the metro Phoenix area, met Thursday to discuss their views outside the Maricopa County Municipal building, as more backlash against the controversial immigration law continued to flood the city.

Notice the “some” in the headline, and the “more” in the article.

What CNN can’t figure out is that Latinos in the USA who have worked their way to legally live here in accordance of US law, and who have taken the trouble of learning the language and the customs, and are fully integrated into American society are not happy to see people who willfully violate the law be granted special treatment and issued instant victim status:

Anna Gaines, a Mexican-born U.S. citizen, says she took up the fight against illegal immigration after becoming disillusioned by the attitudes of immigrant families that she witnessed as a teacher in the Paradise Valley School District in Paradise, Arizona.

“Many of these families were having one child after another just to earn a paycheck from the U.S. government and they didn’t care about their children’s education,” says Gaines, the controversial founder of American Citizens United, a grass-roots organization known for its extreme views on immigration enforcement. “They didn’t want to contribute, just take.”

Gaines, who came to the United States as a nurse on a work visa during the Vietnam War and met her current husband, says she thinks immigrants have changed over the years.

“There used to be a level of dignity and self-respect. They were hard-working people who wanted to contribute to American society because it was better than where they came from,” says Gaines, a petite woman in her 70s. “But our government has been giving them handouts for so long that now they expect them.”

Digger’s realm has more, on Puerto Ricans like myself,

Then there are my Puerto Rican brothers and sisters. Puerto Ricans are US Citizens at birth. Many who come to the mainland United States reject the title of “Hispanic” and claims by Hispanic groups that opposition to illegal immigration is a racist plot.

By the way, people from Latin American countries come in all races: White, black, Asian, or indigenous – many of us have extended families with all of the above. Being from Latin America doesn’t mean you belong to one racial group.

I have said before, and will continue to emphasize, “Hispanic” is a victimology construct. There is no such thing as “Hispanic” outside the USA: once each one of us LATINOS go back to our country of origin, we call ourselves Puerto Ricans, Colombians, Mexicans, or whatever.

Latino – in the broader sense of the word – may be used on a generic (and faceless) group of people whose native tongue is derived from Latin – such as French, Rumanian, Italian, Portuguese, and yes, Spanish. Additionally, there are indigenous peoples in Latin America who do not speak Spanish, some of whom have immigrated to the US.

You can even make a case that the term “Latinos” is vague enough as to be meaningless. What does it matter to Mexican authorities whether you come from a Latin American country IF you are in Mexico illegally? Not one bit.

The fact remains that Chileans have darn little in common with Mexicans, for instance.

And yes, I’ve been told, “You don’t even look Puerto Rican,” here in liberal Princeton by liberals who are shocked that I don’t toe the ideology line.

Post re-edited to add an omitted sentence.