It's been two days since Gilberta Estrada-Vega committed suicide and decided to take 3 of her 4 young daughters with her.

Gilberta Estrada-Vega

As always happens when news spreads of a mother committing suicide and taking her kids with her, newspaper columnists and talk show radio hosts take turns villifying the woman.

Yet, Gilberta's actions underscored a problem that is HUGE, but not discussed enough within the immigrant community, and mainstream society needs to pay attention before more tragedies like Gilberta's find their way regularly into the headlines.

There are some topics worth talking about over…and over…and over… and, well, you get the idea.

Aside from politics where issues are put to a vote by an assembly of people, I'm talking about the kind of politics that basically are mandated by one entity. In this case, it's Nielsen Media Research.

For longtime readers of Latina Lista, you know that there is a push by our friend Robert Rose at AIM TV to get Nielsen to recognize that not all Latinos in this country watch Spanish-language television. He is spearheading the campaign Help! Change TV.

It was thought only Nielsen had a problem wrapping their minds around this obvious truth, but it seems that the New York Times has the same problem.

By now, the vast majority of states in the nation have considered or have passed legislation targeting undocumented immigrants living and working within their city limits.

(Source: Angus Reid Global Monitor)

The driving force to get this legislation passed has always been the accusations that undocumented immigrants are costing taxpayers money and taking advantage of such programs as welfare, food stamps, etc.

The funny thing is that the politicians and pundits who are making these accusations never fully explain how this is happening. They just have repeated it so often that people are duped into thinking it must be fact.

At least, that's what happened in Alabama and now they're learning a hard truth.

One of the most contentious parts of the Senate-proposed immigration bill is the point system it proposes to implement making access to this country easier for immigrants with advanced education.

But along the way, the authors of this bill forgot that not all jobs that are necessary and have a place in our society need an advanced degree.

This Monday is Memorial Day. Yet, too many of us only know it as one of those rare 3-day holidays from work.

Most don't really know what the holiday stands for, except it may have something to do with our country and patriotism, like the 4th of July. That deduction comes from all the red, white and blue-themed shopping circulars in today's newspapers or the mini flags stuck on street corners.

But ask somebody not schooled in history or older than 50, and chances are the only answer will be a shrug of the shoulders and a half-hearted attempt to even think up a less-than-stupid answer.

At one level, any immigration debate concerns a raw political calculation: Who ends up with more voters?

An article in today's Washington Post makes an interesting observation about the Latino community as a whole — though not all of us agree on illegal immigration, none of us appreciates being the butts of a witch hunt perpetuated by members of the Republican Party.

When the Senate first passed their version of the immigration reform bill, Latino groups and organizations who advocate for undocumented immigrants, urged us all to politely applaud the effort and be thankful that SOMETHING was put together and passed.

"We'll worry about the details later" was an often heard refrain coming from Latino leaders who wanted to show the Senate how much the Latino community was behind them in getting immigration reform off the media talk show circuit and onto the Congressional floor.

Well, worrying about the details has arrived and by the looks of it, if this is what is being proposed by people supposedly sympathetic to undocumented immigrants, what will happen in the House of Representatives is sure to turn this country upside down.

Excuse me if I don't laugh at the latest comic who thinks it's hilarious that Ken Burns is including Latinos in his PBS documentary about WWII called "The War."

A monologue joke is one thing, sarcastic comedy falls into another category but ridicule being passed off as humor is a sad excuse any day for ignorance.

The last time I wrote about Bill Richardson when he was just thinking of running for President, it was to wonder why more young voters hadn't heard of him or why more Latinos didn't realize he was Latino.

Since then, Bill not only has officially declared his bid for President but has been making up for lost time. He is getting his face out there before young people on YouTube, Jay Leno, The Daily Show — all the while reminding people that he is Latino, in espanol no less.

But given the national climate as the immigration debate rages, I can't help but wonder if being a Presidential candidate, who is Latino, a sure ticket to the ultimate American Dream or a suicide mission waiting to happen?

Thanks for making the journey across the Blogger border to the new site for Latina Lista.

After so many months of dreaming of a better site to not only house my pensamientos but support my fellow Latinas/os, it's a dream come true.

With so much more content, you're probably wondering why go through all this work.

It's simple: I have a passion and a mission — and I enjoy sharing the journey.

Latina Lista has moved. The new location of this blog will be http://www.latinalista.net/palabrafinal

The new Latina Lista site main page is at http://www.latinalista.net

Please update your blogrolls, bookmarks, and feed subscriptions! See you there.

Being a journalist first and a blogger second, I get impatient not being able to comment.

With so many good stories that are crossing my desktop today, my impatience to write something is at an all-time high but I promised myself, and a few others, that I would dedicate this post to let you know that Latina Lista won't be here tomorrow — WE ARE MOVING TO OUR OWN URL!

Starting tomorrow, you can find Latina Lista at www.latinalista.net.


New Latina Lista logo

I used to have Latina Lista at www.latinalista.com but during the time I didn't know my registration had expired, some money-hungry opportunists at Navigation Catalyst Systems, Inc., swooped in and bought that domain.

Of course, they can't do anything with it but if I make an offer between $100 - $25,000, after I pay a $190 fee, they might sell it back to me - if they like my offer.

But this is a whole other post in and of itself.

At any rate, I don't want to spoil all the surprises - and there are a lot - but suffice it to say that Latina Lista is changing its look (don't worry, we're still pink), expanding the content, branching out to be seen in more places and, above all, making more new friends.

One hint: Latina Lista has already made one new friend. His name is "Tom."

I do have to say that none of this would have been possible if it were not for one particular Latina Lista reader known to most of you as the Unapologetic Mexican.

Nezua, to his readers, is an amazing talent. If you haven't seen his blog, you're missing out. He encompasses the creative in both his artistry and writings, which I guess some would argue are one and the same.

All I can is that without his interpretation and his instinct to know what this Latina wanted, the new Latina Lista would not look as fabulous as it does.

Without boasting, the redesign rivals the redesign of any print or online product — you'll see.

So, please join us tomorrow at www.latinalista.net where we'll be talking about the national movement to impeach Attorney General Gonzales or the beefed up Border Patrol classes or …

Not even 24 hours after it was announced the Senate had passed their version of the immigration reform bill, critics were jockeying for place in front of television cameras to denounce it.

Now, you would think that the criticism would be from the organizations that advocate for immigrant rights but, not surprisingly, all the anger was coming from House Republicans who still can't wrap their minds around what happens if you tell 12 million people they can't stay here anymore.


(Source: CNN)

In light of the Senate's action and their proposed bill where it's stipulated that anyone who arrived here before January 1, 2007 will automatically receive a Z visa that gives them immediate work authorization, I wondered if there would be a stronger push for a moratorium on worksite raids.

Douglas Rivlin of the Immigration Forum answered my question.

In part, he replied in an email, The raids will continue until the community forces the Government to adopt a more sensible and humane immigration policy that includes wider legal channels for immigrants in the future, relief for people caught in endless backlogs, an earned citizenship program to reduce or eliminate the undocumented immigrant population, and, yes, enforcement of the new legal system in a fair and just manner.

Though most immigrant advocates don't like the Senate's bill in its entirety, they all agree that it is an important start and that without this bill the issue may not have ever reached the floor of Congress this year.

But yet again, as the House begins to tackle the issue, we should prepare ourselves for an ugly fight that will attempt to demonize and dehumanize the Latino undocumented immigrant.

It is a political tactic that was done before. This time, with new leadership in the House of Representatives and a savvier Latino community, those same critics will have a harder time of accomplishing it this next round.

We can only hope they want to do "field surveys" again.

Not even 24 hours after it was announced the Senate had passed their version of the immigration reform bill, critics were jockeying for place in front of television cameras to denounce it.

WASHINGTON, May 17 — Senators from both parties announced an agreement this afternoon on immigration-reform legislation that would bring illegal immigrants and their families “out of the shadows and into the sunshine of American life,” as Senator Edward M. Kennedy put it.
New York Times</span>


(L-R) Chertoff, Bush and Gutierrez discuss immigration bill
(Source: NYTimes)

The bill, by Senator Kennedy's own admission, is far from perfect but there's no sense in saying anything because it's not the final bill. We still have to wait and see what happens in the House next week, and I have a feeling that is where the real "show" will take place.

But the fact is the government is finally moving on crafting an immigration bill.

Which leads me to wonder what will happen in all those towns and states that have passed their own immigration ordinances.

Will they happily scrap those laws that are now on their official books or will they carry on "business as usual."

After all the fighting and threats, it will be hard for some towns to heal, especially if the House actually passes a bill in close agreement with what the Senate passed.

Yeah, there may be a show next week in the House but the real showdown will take place in the Farmers Branch and Hazelton towns across the nation.

WASHINGTON, May 17 — Senators from both parties announced an agreement this afternoon on immigration-reform legislation that would bring illegal immigrants and their families “out of the shadows and into the sunshine of American life,” as Senator Edward M. Kennedy put it.
New York Times

The United States' global reputation as being a World Power who sets the standard for other countries when it comes to championing the human rights of the less fortunate has officially been unmasked by a Mexican named Jorge Bustamante.


UN Inspector Jorge Bustamante
(Source: protocolo.com.mx)


Bustamante, a distinguished professional who served as president of a Mexican college, is also an independent United Nations inspector on immigrant rights. He's on a three-week tour to investigate immigrant issues in the United States, most notably conditions at immigrant detention facilities. His findings will be the basis of a report he is to present to the United Nation's Human Rights Council.

Yet, Bustamante has been getting mixed signals from Washington.

On the one hand, State Department officials are telling him he has free access to visit wherever he chooses. On the other hand, ICE, who is responsible for overseeing the detention facilities, denies him access only hours before he is scheduled to visit.

It happened on May 7 at the T. Don Hutto facility in Taylor, Texas where women and children are basically incarcerated and subjected to emotional abuse from some prison guards.

And it happened this week at New Jersey's Monmouth County Jail where the same stories of unnecessary harsh and abusive treatment are being reported.

For an Administration that has manipulated and used UN inspectors to their benefit in the past, this current behavior is not surprising.

It is extremely triste (sad) that we have allowed a select group of people to ruin our international reputation and flagrantly abuse their power, but it is unforgivable to stand idly by and only listen to the cries of abused men, women and children, happening on our soil, next door to our communities, and not raise an objection.

If patriotism means anything to us, it should mean safeguarding our heritage as a compassionate, open and fair nation where people should be treated with dignity.

Though many of Latina Lista readers from South America will argue that the US has never been that role model for their countries, it is an image that until 7 years ago was still true to a great extent on this side of the border.

In browsing some other blogs the other day, I came across a challenge, if you will, in a blog written by someone named James McGovern. This person was writing about education but his statement easily applies to this situation too:

If we are to save America, we have to figure out how to wake up the Hispanic population and get them to learn how to become more outraged...

Well, when it comes to imprisoning and mistreating our Mexican and Latin American cousins, familia o no, the outrage that Mr. McGovern wishes to see in all of us Latinos is finally simmering to a boil.

Advance word tells Latina Lista that tomorrow LULAC (League of United Latin American Citizens), the national Latino organization, will hold a press conference in San Antonio to announce they are joining Amnesty International, Children and Families for Humane Treatment Alliance, the Council on Islamic Relations and a few other Dallas-based organizations in staging a vigil outside the T. Don Hutto facility on June 23.

Where is the National Council of La Raza, or the GI Forum or the Mexican American Legal Defense Fund the many other local, state and national Latino organizations whose own communities have been hit with these immigration raids and the carting off of parents and children to detention facilities?

Why are not more of us outraged?

Why are not more of us speaking out?

Why don't more of us care?

The United States' global reputation as being a World Power who sets the standard for other countries when it comes to championing the human rights of the less fortunate has officially been unmasked by a Mexican named Jorge Bustamante.

UN Inspector Jorge Bustamante
(Source: protocolo.com.mx)

Sometimes the people in Washington say the darndest things.

Education Secretary, Margaret Spellings, appearing before a special conference in Washington D.C. last week said that inner-city schools are nothing more than dropout factories — DUH!

It's taken this long for people who are mandating the educational curriculums in this country to realize that inner-city schools have the worst track records in meeting the academic needs of low-income and children of color?


No Child Left Behind still has to address inner-city schools.
(Source: sportspickle.com)

The conference organized by MTV, the National Governors Association, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, among others, was an attempt to find the reasons why only half of children of color are graduating from high school on time and too few are electing to go after a college education.

What they discussed have long been known in Latino communities, and other, "minority" communities: too little money invested in the school for maintenance, basic equipment and security; a different definition of the term "dropout" by each school district; and not always the best suited teachers for a student population that needs more help than students in middle to high-income areas.

The suggested solutions the conference attendees came up with are, well, not a whole lot. With such high-profile sponsors, one would expect suggestions bordering on being innovative or cutting-edge.

As it was, the following were some that attendees came up with:

Funding: Spellings recommended $1 billion more for the federal Title I education program to help low-income high schools.

Accountability: Summit organizers said the nation's governors have pledged to develop a common definition of the term "dropout." To help educate families, they also will release an online resource with the on-time graduation rates for every school district nationwide.

Teacher training: Schools of education must give all teachers a stronger grounding in math and science. Even prospective elementary teachers need required coursework in these subjects so they can better help students, said Rhode Island Gov. Don Carcieri. "There's a complete disconnect" on this issue, he added.

Thankfully, there are legislators who are taking a hard look at the fail/dropout rates in their school districts and have decided to do something about it.

In Texas this week, State House members voted to do away with requiring high school students to pass a standardized test before they be allowed to graduate from high school.

Why?

It seems that a record number, 40,000 to be exact, 2007 high school seniors will have to watch graduation exercises from the audience. These 40,000 students, one of every six high school seniors, failed to pass all sections of the standardized exit test.

Of course, doing away with any kind of testing goes against the grain where legislators feel there has to be accountability, on the part of both students and teachers, to measure each is doing their job — one side teaching and the other learning.

So, there are a variety of bills being discussed on how to keep the testing requirement in there.

Some feel that doing away with the testing is lowering academic expectations.

For the 40,000 kids who failed the standardized test, low academic expectations were made of them before they even left elementary school. Otherwise, why are so many children of color not able to read on grade level, or do simple math equations, etc.?

These children had the potential to succeed and the enthusiasm to learn until something happened to shatter their belief in themselves.

Was it flunking a standarized test?

Was it being called stupid by a teacher? A parent?

Was it being publicly embarrassed in front of their classmates by someone?

Was it coming to school hungry and in dirty clothes?

There are a host of reasons that could be the cause but there is a basic reason why some kids make it and others drop out — the ones who make it just didn't give up on themselves, they had somebody who believed in them too.

A lot more kids need somebody to believe in them to make sure that they keep believing in themselves.

Sometimes the people in Washington say the darndest things.

Education Secretary, Margaret Spellings, appearing before a special conference in Washington D.C. last week said that inner-city schools are nothing more than dropout factories — DUH!

Immigrant family who must move from their Farmers Branch home
holds a garage sale to help raise money.
(Source: Aldiatx.com)

People who are in favor of sending the undocumented packing in their towns or states must have this vision the people will go quietly into the night and that neighboring towns and cities will cheer the departure of the undocumented.

Well, that's not what will happen and Farmers Branch, Texas is already proof of that.

With the passage over the weekend of Ordinance 2903 that starting May 22 will fine landlords $500 a day for leasing to undocumented immigrants, neighboring suburban apartment complexes have already thrown out the Welcome Mat to those who must move.

It's a situation that some apartment complexes in Farmers Branch have reported is already affecting their businesses — adversely.

Farmers Branch may have been successful in making undocumented immigrants unwelcome but they are also endangering their own economy.

Don't believe it?

It was enough of a reason for the Mayor of Farmers Branch to go public with his opposition to the Ordinance.


Farmers Branch Mayor Phelps
(Source: Pegasusnews.com)

Mr. Phelps and a handful of attorneys and staff members seem to be the only people in town who realized that passing this ordinance could – and probably will – cost a king's ransom in legal fees.

Why isn't anybody else seeing this?

According to the Mayor, the issue has let the most hate-filled people have a platform to not only threaten the undocumented but the Mayor himself. After going public with how he thought the Ordinance was bad business for the city, someone vandalized his home. On top of all the hate mail he got as well, the FBI advised him and his family to go out of town last weekend instead of waiting for the election results.

So voters in Farmers Branch may have gotten their wish to drive out people who want to work, but it looks like they'll be paying a higer price than whatever undocumented immigrants cost the city in the first place.

Immigrant family who must move from their Farmers Branch home
holds a garage sale to help raise money.
(Source: Aldiatx.com)

In light of what has happened this week in the state of Oklahoma and the town of Farmers Branch, Texas where legal grounds have been created to help drive undocumented immigrants out of town/state, it seems talk show pundits and right-wing cable tv hosts are filling the airwaves touting the passages of these anti-immigration measures and warning those who are still helping the undocumented as doing nothing more than "subverting the law" and should be jailed as well.

All this mean-spirited rhetoric made me think about what it must have been like for the slaves of the late 1800s. In the past, readers have criticized any comparison between those times and now, but these times beg to be compared to the days when slaves were not seen as equal citizens, if citizens at all, of this country.

So, I did a little research and found that what is happening to the undocumented today, also happened to the slaves of yesterday.


An 1851 poster cautioning slaves to not talk to Boston police because they had been authorized to act as slave catchers.
(Source: Wikipedia)

Police were authorized to act as slave catchers back then. Today, police officers are screening and detaining undocumented immigrants.



In 1850 Congress passed the Fugitive Slave Law. Only John P. Hale, Charles Sumner, Salmon Chase and Benjamin Wade voted against the measure. The law stated that in future any federal marshal who did not arrest an alleged runaway slave could be fined $1,000. People suspected of being a runaway slave could be arrested without warrant and turned over to a claimant on nothing more than his sworn testimony of ownership. A suspected black slave could not ask for a jury trial nor testify on his or her behalf.

Any person aiding a runaway slave by providing shelter, food or any other form of assistance was liable to six months' imprisonment and a $1,000 fine. Those officers capturing a fugitive slave were entitled to a fee and this encouraged some officers to kidnap free Negroes and sell them to slave-owners. Frederick Douglass, Wendell Phillips, William Lloyd Garrison and John Greenleaf Whittier led the fight against the law. Even moderate anti-slavery leaders such as Arthur Tappan declared he was now willing to disobey the law and as result helped fund the Underground Railroad.

At the rate this train has traveled out of the station, it won't be long before a 21st Century version of the Underground Railroad is created.

Last week's announcement from churches of different faiths that they have formed a network of "sanctuary" places are providing the stops along the new Underground Railroad that is bound to be created if what has started continues.

The Underground Railroad of the past still serves as a symbol of an ugly part of our history.

Why are we so anxious to repeat it?

In light of what has happened this week in the state of Oklahoma and the town of Farmers Branch, Texas where legal grounds have been created to help drive undocumented immigrants out of town/state, it seems talk show pundits and right-wing cable tv hosts are filling the airwaves touting the passages of these anti-immigration measures and warning those who are still helping the undocumented as doing nothing more than "subverting the law" and should be jailed as well.

It is said that the only thing more Mexican than tequila is mariachi.


The rise of all-female mariachi groups is becoming more popular.
(Source: utb.edu)

Yet, regardless of where our Latina cultural roots lay, one aspect of the Latina culture that transcends all of them is music and serenades.

Como ya sabe, (As you alredy know,) Mariachis are known for their serenades. From love-struck boys, or borracho men, serenading their novias or mujeres with the help of mariachis to the early morning birthday greetings of Las Mañanitas, a mariachi serenade brings a smile to anyone's face.

And since Mother's Day is just around the corner, who wouldn't want to send their mother a serenata?

That's why when I discovered the following site, I was so excited to share it with Latina Lista readers.

In this wonderful age of technology, we can now send all of our mothers a mariachi serenata — via cyberspace!

At the official Mariachi USA web site, you can actually send a mariachi serenata to your mom for Mother's Day — and it's free.



It is called an E-serenata and for anyone who wants to bring an extra smile to their Mom's face this Sunday, you can't go wrong with this site.

I could describe it, but why spoil the surprise.

I will say that the people behind the site are organizers of the National Mariachi USA Festival held at the Hollywood Bowl in June. They have information, pictures and CDs available of different mariachi groups.

It is a worthwhile to take a few minutes to browse the site, especially if you want to add to the serenata and purchase a CD or even tickets to the June event.

It is said that the only thing more Mexican than tequila is mariachi.

The rise of all-female mariachi groups is becoming more popular.
(Source: utb.edu)

Yet, regardless of where our Latina cultural roots lay, one aspect of the Latina culture that transcends all of them is music and serenades.

The violence is escalating — not in Iraq, but in our own backyard.

This week there have been reports of the drug cartel violence that has long plagued Mexico moving north into towns along the border.



In New Mexico this week, the state's two US Senators have formally asked Homeland Security for extra security for the area near the border town of Columbus after two men were killed in the Mexican border town across from Columbus, Palomas, and a US resident living in Palomas was wounded and drove himself to Columbus' port of entry where he was taken to a hospital.

The violence in Palomas is too close for comfort for New Mexican residents and authorities.

Thankfully, our government is finally realizing this but what is more important is Mexico is realizing this as well.

The Dallas Morning News reported that both sides are realizing that they must work together to eradicate the violence that threatens to invade our borders and turn Mexico into a country under siege.

Because both sides are actually fueling the violence: the drug cartels in Mexico are funneling their drugs into the U.S. where there is a market for them and the from the US comes illegal weapons that the drug cartels use to murder anyone who gets in their way.

Yet, what may surprise those who think the original wall Congress wanted to build would keep all this violence out of our country and would be a natural choice for border residents, the Texas Border Coalition, a group comprised of Texas border mayors, county judges, and communities, — people who live along the border — say no to any wall or fence.

Por que?

Because these border communities know that no fence is infallible in keeping anything or anyone out but does a good job of buildling walls between people.

At a time when drug violence equally threatens both sides of the border, it doesn't make sense to still want to build something that keeps one side from seeing what is coming.

Even the guys at The Alamo had that advantage. Their problem was not anticipating just how big their adversary was.

Strange how history can repeat itself.

The violence is escalating — not in Iraq, but in our own backyard.

This week there have been reports of the drug cartel violence that has long plagued Mexico moving north into towns along the border.

News has arrived that Elvira Arellano, the young Mexican mother who has sought sanctuary in a Chicago church and who went on a hunger strike to protest the government's actions against undocumented immigrants, is now eating.

She gave up her fast in light of the official adoption of churches across the country of a National Sanctuary Movement.



Churches, from all faiths, are opening their doors to undocumented immigrants who are in danger of their families being split by deportation.

Participating churches in San Diego, Seattle, Chicago and New York will provide the immigrants with legal counsel, accompany them to court hearings and only provide housing for them in the churches when the authorities attempt to deport them.

Even though churches of all denominations have been preaching against the tactics of the government, aka ICE, in conducting pre-dawn or worksite raids and carting parents off while leaving the children behind, this show of solidarity against the government brings the immigration reform debate to a new level.

It is no longer just a legal fight; it has officially become a moral/social justice war.

And when people have the moral conviction to defend their beliefs, no amount of legal rulings will ever be enough to counteract those beliefs — not even the law.

By letting it go this long and making churches take this stand, the government has relinquished their control of the issue.

At this point, it doesn't matter what is passed in Congress. If it fails to fall in line with the moral thinkers of this nation, whatever law that is passed will be fought.

The only question is how fiercely will the law be enforced and how fiercely will it be fought?

Congressional leaders have only themselves to blame for furthering the divide in this country.

News has arrived that Elvira Arellano, the young Mexican mother who has sought sanctuary in a Chicago church and who went on a hunger strike to protest the government's actions against undocumented immigrants, is now eating.

She gave up her fast in light of the official adoption of churches across the country of a National Sanctuary Movement.

While the Latino community is over 42 million strong, surprisingly there are still very few of our voices that have been able to find a platform from which to be heard.

One either has to be in the media or have their own blog (;)) to be recognized as an individual voice. For too long, we, as a community, have let organized groups be our voice and our conscience — the National Council of La Raza, LULAC, GI Forum, etc.



Those days are eroding fast and there's no better example than the latest Action Alert from the National Council of La Raza.

The title of the Alert is "Say No To A Permanent Subclass of Workers, Say Yes to a Path to Citizenship."

There's nothing wrong with that. The last thing any of us fighting for when it comes to undocumented immigrants is that their labor is exploited and they are not given the opportunity to become citizens — IF they want it.

Where I find myself asserting my own voice, rather than letting NCLR speak for me this time, is when they say

The immigration debate must include a path to citizenship for two groups of immigrants: 1) those who are already living and working in the U.S., and 2) those who will come to the U.S. as workers in the future.

I see no problem with those immigrants who have established roots here and WANT to be citizens take the oath, but I don't agree that we should assume that those who come in the future with only the desire to work should be expected to want to become citizens.

In fact, it should be discouraged.

What we should want is to help Mexico grow their middle class and build up their economy. We know immigrants are the most industrious and entrepreneur-driven group of people on the planet - they've proven it in this country.

What they need is capital so they can do it at home. Also, there are too many cases of men coming and leaving their families behind. If they come temporarily, as is planned, then they can return home, help keep their families intact and save those communities that are dying because of the mass exodus of people norte.

What would be ideal is to let workers come for the proposed 2-3 year stay and bring their families, otherwise provide for them to travel back to visit their families while they are here.

For those who bring their families, let the children attend school and everyone learns English and gets to experience a new culture. Whereas traditionally, only the rich and elite were afforded the opportunity to travel abroad, more people will be able to take advantage of the opportunity.

Studies have shown that exposure to other cultures and languages is nothing but an advantage to both children and adults.

With the time they've spent in the United States, living freely, the families can return to Mexico with new skills and a broader perspective. If one day, those children would like to come back to the US for college, then they will have just one more advantage because they were exposed to the culture when they were younger.

But it is important to reinforce the pride they should have in their own citizenship.

To assume that all workers come here so they can be citizens is plain wrong and misleading to the politicians and concerned people who truly want to help in this debate.

People come here to work. They stay because it is too dangerous and costly to make multiple trips across the border. They become citizens because they have been here so long and have started new lives and families.

For those who want to become citizens, it is their choice.

Yet, no one has the right to force that choice on anyone.



Say No To A Permanent Subclass of Workers, Say Yes to a Path to Citizenship

Take Action!
Tell Your Senators that a Path to Citizenship for Immigrant Workers Is Essential


Reports indicate that the White House is considering a proposal to create a temporary worker program that would allow workers to come and work in the U.S. for two or three years at a time, and then insist on their return to their countries with no meaningful path to permanent status. The immigration debate must include a path to citizenship for two groups of immigrants: 1) those who are already living and working in the U.S., and 2) those who will come to the U.S. as workers in the future.


• An immigration bill must not create a permanent subclass of workers who are expected to support the American Dream for others without having access to it themselves.
• If we need them to work, we should want them to belong. Communities work better when people who wish to become part of that community are given that opportunity.
• America has successfully operated as a nation of immigrants precisely because we invite people in. As a nation, we value opportunity and hard work. Our inclusion of all who also share this value is what makes this country great.
• Insisting that “temporary means temporary” is a recipe for failure. The workers who come to the U.S. should have the chance to remain if they choose. Otherwise, workers will simply stay and continue to work illegally.
• The American public strongly supports a path to citizenship. An overwhelming majority of Americans understand that a path to citizenship for those who are willing to play by the rules is the right decision.

While the Latino community is over 42 million strong, surprisingly there are still very few of our voices that have been able to find a platform from which to be heard.

One either has to be in the media or have their own blog (;)) to be recognized as an individual voice. For too long, we, as a community, have let organized groups be our voice and our conscience — the National Council of La Raza, LULAC, GI Forum, etc.

Those days are eroding fast and there's no better example than the latest Action Alert from the National Council of La Raza.

It has always been too easy to depersonalize individuals when using group adjectives like: "immigrants" or "illegals." When this is done, it is very easy to forget that they are human beings, like us all, with families and lives — and with children who are being traumatized by the senseless (yes, senseless) raids that amount to nothing more than terror tactics.

We all should be asking ourselves what makes this time and place any different than 5 years ago when the same undocumented workers were living and working at the same businesses? Why the stepped up enforcement? Who is directing the raids?

In light of what is happening now, the following letter is long overdue.

Time, or days, will tell if anyone in Washington is really listening — or cares.

IN LETTER TO WHITE HOUSE MORE THAN 100 GRASSROOTS ORGANIZATIONS EXPRESS CONCERN OVER THE TREATMENT OF CHILDREN IMPACTED BY RECENT IMMIGRATION RAIDS

Washington, DC – The National Council of La Raza (NCLR), the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the U.S., today released the text of a letter to President Bush signed by more than 100 Latino grassroots organizations expressing their deep concern over the short- and long-term impact of stepped-up immigration raids on the children in affected families. The organizations in the communities where these raids have occurred are often the first to respond to the humanitarian crisis created by these events. Below is the text of the letter:

President George W. Bush
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President:

We, the undersigned Latino organizations, write to express our outrage and deep concern over the manner in which workplace raids have been conducted all across the United States in the past few months. As organizations that work closely with the communities that are directly impacted by these raids, we are often the first to respond to the immediate humanitarian crisis that occurs when a raid is conducted. Particularly, we are concerned about the raids’ short- and long-term impact on children. There are approximately 3.1 million U.S. citizen children who have at least one undocumented parent, and there are 1.8 million undocumented children in the U.S. We believe that the U.S. must take the needs of these children into account and fix the broken immigration system that separates them from their parents.

Workplace raids leave a long-lasting impact, not only on the local economy, but on the children who are separated from their parents as a result of a raid. Recently, thousands of immigrant workers have been detained as the result of raids. Many of these workers are parents of young children, many of whom are U.S. citizens. While it is our understanding that single parents are occasionally released from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody to care for their children, there are many parents who are transported to ICE detention facilities far from their homes, and their family members have no ability to communicate with them.

In the aftermath of the raids, churches, schools, and social service agencies have scrambled to determine which workers have children, assess which children must be picked up from day care and school, find caregivers for the children, and provide basic health and nutrition services. In addition to providing basic necessities, advocates have encountered other problems trying to care for the children of detained parents. For example, after the Swift and Co. raids in December 2006, advocates highlighted cases in which they were not able to interview parents to determine any special needs their children may have. It has also been difficult, if not impossible, for advocates to gather information about sick children who needed medication. Following the recent raid in New Bedford, Massachusetts, a dehydrated infant was hospitalized because her mother had not been able to breastfeed her. Family members or friends have been put in the difficult position of having to care for the children of detained parents, and teenage children have been placed in the unfortunate and unfair position of having to care for younger siblings on their own.

Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick correctly characterized the recent raids as a “humanitarian crisis.” Our children deserve better, and it is up to the Administration and Congress to deliver to them a sound immigration policy that does not result in parents being separated from their children. The time is long overdue for our nation to stop tearing apart these hardworking families and bring about real, comprehensive solutions to our immigration problems. We strongly urge you to work with Congress to bring about an immigration reform that will allow immigrant workers to work legally, American communities to prosper, and children to thrive.

cc: Michael Chertoff
Julie Myers

Sincerely,

Academia Cesar Chavez – Saint Paul, MN
Acercamiento Hispano de Carolina del Sur – Columbia, SC
AltaMed Health Services Corporation – Los Angeles, CA
Bridge Academy Charter School – Bridgeport, CT
Calexico Community Action Council – Calexico, CA
CARECEN – Washington, DC
Carlos Rosario School – Washington, DC
CASA of Maryland – Silver Spring, MD
CASA of Oregon – Newberg, OR
Center for Hispanic Policy & Advocacy – Providence, RI
Center for Training & Careers/WorkNET – San Jose, CA
Centro Campesino Farmworker Center, Inc. – Florida City, FL
Centro de Amistad – Guadalupe, AZ
Centro de la Comunidad – Baltimore, MD
Centro de Residentes Bolivianos – Madison, WI
Centro de Salud Familiar La Fe – El Paso, TX
Centro Hispano of Dane County – Cambridge, MA
CentroNía – Washington, DC
Centro Presente, Inc. – Cambridge, MA
Cesar Chavez Academy – Pueblo, CO
Cesar Chavez Dual Language Immersion Charter School – Santa Barbara, CA
Chicano Awareness Center – Omaha, NE
Chicano Federation of San Diego County – San Diego, CA
Coalition for New South Carolinians – Columbia, SC
Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition – Denver, CO
Colorado Rural Housing – Westminster, CO
Committee for Hispanic Children and Families, Inc. – New York, NY
Community Child Care Center of Santa Clara County – San Jose, CA
Conexión Américas – Nashville, TN
Congreso de Latinos Unidos – Philadelphia, PA
Council for the Spanish Speaking – Milwaukee, WI
Del Norte Neighborhood Development Corp. – Denver, CO
Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation – Detroit, MI
Dolores Huerta Preparatory High School - Pueblo, CO
DRAW Academy - Houston, TX
East Las Vegas Community Development Corporation (ELVCDC) - Las Vegas, NV
El Centro de la Raza - Seattle, WA
El Centro de las Americas - Lincoln, NE
El Pueblo, Inc. - Raleigh, NC
Emigrantes Sin Fronteras - Phoenix, AZ
Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center - Miami, FL
Florida Immigrant Coalition - Tallahassee, FL
Gads Hill Center - Chicago, IL
Georgia Association of Latino Elected Officials (GALEO) - Atlanta, GA
Hands Across Cultures - Española, NM
HELP - New Mexico, Inc. - Albuquerque, NM
Hispanic American Student Association (HASA), University of Central Oklahoma - Edmond, OK
Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Minnesota - Minneapolis, MN
Hispanic Coalition of Florida - Miami, FL
Hispanic Committee of Virginia - Falls Church, VA
Hispanic Interest Coalition of Alabama - Birmingham, AL
Hispanic Women's Organization of Arkansas - Springdale, AR
HOLA - Hispanas Organizadas de Lake y Ashtabula (OH) - Painesville, OH
Hyde Square Task Force - Jamaica Plain, MA
Idaho Community Action Network - Boise, ID
Kentucky Coalition of Immigrant and Refugee Rights - Lexington, KY
Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights - Chicago, IL
Information Referral Resource Assistance Inc. - Edinburg, TX
Instituto del Progreso Latino - Chicago, IL
La Casa de Esperanza - Waukesha, WI
La Casa Health Network, Inc. - Little Rock, AR
Latin American Coalition - Charlotte, NC
Latin American Community Center, Inc. - Wilmington, DE
Latin American Research and Service Agency - Denver, CO
Latin American Youth Center - Washington, DC
Latino Community Development Agency - Oklahoma City, OK
Latino Economic Development Corporation - Washington, DC
Latino Family Services - Detroit, MI
Latino Leadership - Orlando, FL
Latino Memphis, Inc. - Memphis, TN
Latinos for Education and Justice Organization - Calhoun, GA
Latinos United for Change and Advancement - Madison, WI
Law Offices of Navarro & Associates - Santa Ana, CA
Mary's Center for Maternal and Child Care - Washington, DC
Mississippi Immigrant Rights Alliance (MIRA) - Jackson & Biloxi, MS
Montebello Housing Development Corporation - Montebello, CA
Mujeres Latinas en Acción - Chicago, IL
NAF Multicultural Human Development Corporation - North Platte, NE
National Association of Latino Independent Producers - New York, NY
Near Northside Partners Council, Inc. - Fort Worth, TX
New Jersey Immigration Policy Network - Newark, NJ
NEWSED CDC - Denver, CO
Parent Institute for Quality Education - San Diego, CA
Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund - New York, NY
Repertorio Español - New York, NY
Rural Opportunities, Inc. - Rochester, NY
Salem/Keizer Coalition for Equality - Salem, OR
San Diego County SER/Jobs for Progress, Inc. - Oceanside, CA
SEA MAR Community Health Centers - Seattle, WA
Servicios de La Raza, Inc. - Denver, CO
Siete del Norte CDC - Embudo, NM
Southern Poverty Law Center - Montgomery, AL
Southwest Key Program, Inc. - Austin, TX
Spanish Speaking Citizens' Foundation - Oakland, CA
St. Matthew Immigration/Detention Committee - Baltimore, MD
Tejano Center for Community Concerns - Houston, TX
Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition (TIRRC) - Nashville, TN
United Dubuque Immigrant Alliance (UN DIA) - Dubuque, IA
United Hispanic Americans, Inc. - Fort Wayne, IN
University of Wisconsin Latina/o Law Student Association - Madison, WI
Vecinos Unidos - Dallas, TX
Washington State Migrant Council - Sunnyside, WA
Watts/Century Latino Organization - Los Angeles, CA
Western Colorado Justice for Immigrants Committee - Grand Junction, CO

It has always been too easy to depersonalize individuals when using group adjectives like: "immigrants" or "illegals." When this is done, it is very easy to forget that they are human beings, like us all, with families and lives — and with children who are being traumatized by the senseless (yes, senseless) raids that amount to nothing more than terror tactics.

In cities across the country this weekend, there will be Cinco de Mayo celebrations.


Cinco de Mayo

Always a chance to see Mexican folklorico dancing, eat tacos, drink flavored aguas and let the children play games, the annual observance has always been a family affair.

Yet, in Colonial Beach, Virginia, the chance to let children be children and families to celebrate with their neighbors has been cancelled because of a telephone call from Homeland Security.

According to the article in the Free Lance-Star, organizers of this year's Hispanic American Heritage Day were busily getting ready for their third annual community-wide celebration when Maria Roe, a Latino advocate and perhaps (the article didn't make it clear) one of the organizers of the event, received a phone call from a community relations officer at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services office in Arlington, Virginia.

What transpires next is classic she-said-she-said scenario but what is clear is that the intimidation felt by the phone call was enough to cancel this year's festivities in Colonial Beach.

Roe said, "I asked her why she was interested in this festival. She became very authoritarian and wanted to make sure I knew who she was. She really made me nervous," said Roe.

"She asked for the physical address of the festival so she could look it up on a map. Do you mean the Department of Homeland Security can't find Colonial Beach?" Roe said.

"I had to inform the festival committee about that call," Roe said. "If someone had been taken away, I would have been the cause."

Though all the different organizations who were helping to put on the event agreed that it should be cancelled in light of Homeland Security's interest in it, even though the caller said she only wanted to know about the festival so she could set up a table with flyers and brochures about immigration regulations, the cancellation sets a bad precedent.

Just as we as a nation refuse to let terrorists cower us into hiding or alter our everyday routines because they might strike against us, the same should be practiced against a government entity that abuses its power by intimidating and coercing fear in people.

The argument will be made that people illegally here wouldn't be afraid to appear in public if they didn't break the law but that is not necessarily true. In many, many cases maybe only one member of the family may be without their papers while the rest of the family are legal citizens.

Yet, the threat felt by that one family member is enough to make the whole family feel under siege.

That any government branch can wield such indiscriminate intimidation harks back to the Cold War days.

It was too good to hope that that kind of intimidation fell with the Berlin Wall.

Yet, it is ironic that this kind of implied threat is being resurrected at the same time the building of a new wall is being debated.

In cities across the country this weekend, there will be Cinco de Mayo celebrations.

Cinco de Mayo

Always a chance to see Mexican folklorico dancing, eat tacos, drink flavored aguas and let the children play games, the annual observance has always been a family affair.

Yet, in Colonial Beach, Virginia, the chance to let children be children and families to celebrate with their neighbors has been cancelled because of a telephone call from Homeland Security.

Every once in a while, I get a question from my peers that challenges me to define myself in today's changing media world.

The question usually goes like this: "Do you consider yourself a journalist or a blogger?"

When I first began blogging, I used to answer that I was a journalist who blogged. Over the last three years, I've come to see blogging as an extension of my journalism career and not just as a hobby on the side.

Through both outlets, I deliver news and commentary that, I hope, inform my readers. I think this is true of most "news-commenting" blogs today.

It goes without saying that blogs have empowered the "common person" in greater numbers and more quickly than what newspapers could ever have claimed.

In fact, I've just come back from spending two weeks in Europe where I attended conferences that dealt with the future of the newspaper/print industry. While trying to predict what the future held for the industry, it was agreed that newspapers will come to see, if they haven't already, that citizen journalists will be considered another news source like Reuters or AP.

Bloggers, to a certain extent, are definitely considered to be part of that citizen journalist circle.

That is why today's World Press Freedom Day is as much for bloggers as it is for journalists.



It is not news that journalists are under siege. With rising government corruption and suppression of a free media and escalating violence due to drug cartel activity, journalists who expose the lies and trace the lines of accountability for the corruption and violence are marked for death or retaliation.

According to the World Association of Newspapers, a total of 110 journalists were killed last year around the world.


(Source: WAN)

Others are being jailed.

Bloggers are also suffering from trying to fulfill a natural mandate that obligates any moral person to expose corruption and injustice.

From Iran and Malaysia to Egypt and even the United States, bloggers are suffering the same consequences as their journalist cousins.

The most widely known case of an American blogger being jailed is the case of Josh Wolf. Wolf is a video blogger, freelance journalist and filmmaker who was jailed by a Federal district court on August 1, 2006 for refusing to turn over a collection of videotapes he recorded during a July 2005 demonstration in San Francisco, California. He served 226 days in prison at the Federal Correctional Institution, Dublin, California, longer than any journalist in U.S. history has served for protecting source materials. With permission from the prosecution, U.S. District Judge William Alsup ordered Wolf's release on April 3, 2007. (Source: Wikipedia)


Longest-jailed American journalist Josh Wolf
(Source: sf.metblogs.com)

On Josh's web site, he writes about whether or not bloggers should be considered journalists. Needless to say, he has had time to develop a unique perspective on this subject.

In an ironic twist, today's World Press Freedom Day falls just a couple of days after another example of a rising trend in American society among government and law enforcement officials' disdain of the media.

By now, we've all heard how Los Angeles police used force against journalists during this week's immigration rallies.


Journalists being hit by Los Angeles police
(Source: CBS PublicEye)

Now, the CBS network is reporting that the Los Angeles police beat the journalists because they couldn't tell the difference between citizen journalists.

According to