Tomorrow, May 1, is the anniversary of the massive immigration marches that have taken place over the last couple of years. While not even the Latino community is exactly sure how many will turn up yet again to walk in support of undocumented immigrants, it seems the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is not taking any chances.

Elvira Arellano and Flor Crisostomo, two of Adalberto United Methodist Church's well known sanctuary petitioners.

Latina Lista has received word that officials of the Adalberto United Methodist Church in Chicago, which gave sanctuary to Elvira Arellano and now houses another undocumented immigrant, 27-year-old Flor Crisostomo, are bracing for the arrival of representatives from the US Marshall's office.

Rev. Walter Coleman of the Adalberto United Methodist Church told Latina Lista that he and his colleagues received word over the weekend from a credible government source that DHS had handed the case over to the U.S. Marshall's office so they can obtain and execute a warrant for Crisostomo's arrest.

Rev. Coleman says that this move by DHS is predictable as it seems to follow a pattern in which on the eve of a large mobilization like the May 1 marches, DHS makes a high-profile arrest. Unsure if DHS is trying to intimidate or reinforce their authority, Rev. Coleman says he and his colleagues intend to "stand firm" against whatever the government has in mind to do.

Rev. Coleman, along with members of the Familia Latina Unida/Sin Fronteras, plan to hold a noon time press conference today to answer questions about the DHS action.

As a special favor to Latina Lista, Rev. Coleman has released the following statement which will be read at the noon press conference:

It's being reported on the Indystar.com web site that almost 90,000 Hoosiers have already cast their ballots in early voting.

(Source: El Mexicano News)

And the big question on everyone's minds is how Hispanic Hoosiers will vote? Will they give the election to Clinton or Obama? Does it really matter?

While it's true that Hispanics don't comprise anywhere near the numbers of heavily Latino populated states like Texas, California, New Mexico, etc, the fact is the population is growing in Indiana.

Latinos eligible to vote may make that little difference which will be enough to let one of the candidates declare a win.

There's something inherently wrong when an elected government official insults fellow citizens, regardless of his stand on any issue.

By virtue of his political office and power, an elected official should exercise diplomacy when speaking in public.

Yet, time and time again, we've seen politicians in states like Arizona, Oklahoma and Colorado clearly illustrate their disdain for people who disagree with them over the illegal immigration issue.

Colorado Rep. Tom Tancredo listens to his fellow Congressional peers during a hearing on the construction of the border fence along the Texas-Mexico border.
(Source: The Brownsville Herald)

The latest Congressman, who actually has a history of being offensive, is Colorado Representative Tom Tancredo.

Today, Tancredo accepted an invitation to serve on a congressional panel hearing that was held at the University of Texas at Brownsville regarding the construction of a border fence along the Texas-Mexico border.

His response to some of the residents' concerns underscore the lack of compassionate compromise and understanding of life along the border that exists in Washington, or at least among a group of elected officials who have declared the people south of the border to be enemies of the state.

Dr. Federico Subervi, a professor at the School of Journalism and Mass Communications at Texas State University-San Marcos, is well-known for his research into mass media and their impact on ethnic minorities. He is the director of the Latinos and Media Project and is the author of the recently published academic title "The Mass Media and Latino Politics."

Dr. Subervi's recent research sheds light on how big a role media plays in the political participation rates of Latinos and how both political parties tailor their messages to reach Latino audiences.

Latinos have received significant attention during the 2008 presidential campaign. Democratic and Republican contenders have made numerous efforts to persuade Latinos to vote for them, while issues of importance to many Latinos—e.g., immigration reform, anti-immigrant bashing, and Free Trade agreements—have had center stage in the political campaign rhetoric.

Latino leaders have been courted to advocate for presidential candidates, Hispanic barrios and events have been visited for rallies and delivering speeches, Latinos have been asked for campaign contributions, and media spots have been produced in Spanish and English specifically targeting Latinos.

None of this is new, except that it started much earlier than in previous campaigns.

A common denial heard a lot these days is I'm not racist!

Whether it's CNN's Lou Dobbs or Arizona's Sheriff Arpaio or every other supporter of punitive measures targeting undocumented immigrants, the denial is the first argument used to provide credibility to an already weak justification — the rule of law.

Yes, it's true that the law should be obeyed but it's also true that no law is infallible or perfect. Laws are as imperfect as the men and women who create them. It's been seen time and time again throughout history.

Why can it not be seen now?

Have we reached the point in our society where racism is so institutionalized that it can't be recognized?

Rebecca Aguilar, the Dallas-based award-winning broadcast journalist whose firing was as controversial as the grounds of her initial dismissal, has filed a discrimination charge with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in Dallas, Texas.

Former Dallas Fox 4 reporter Rebecca Aguilar

Steve Kardell, Aguilar's attorney, said "that Aguilar conducted more than 6,000 interviews in fourteen years at the owned and operated Fox station, but news management retaliated against her for advocating change inside the newsroom."

"I'm confident the EEOC will uncover what our investigation has unveiled. Fox 4 wanted my client to advocate change in the community through her reports, but to keep silent in improving working conditions in the newsroom," says Kardell.

For a reporter to be fired over one story certainly indicates an ulterior motive on behalf of this Dallas Fox station.

It will be interesting to see how they defend such an action.

A breakdown of voters by CNN shows that Clinton has women voters and rural America to thank for her win.

Sen. Hillary Clinton
(Source: cnn.com)

It's a pattern that has upheld throughout most of this election. What it means for Obama is that while urban America, a.k.a. young voters and first-time voters, comprise a large part of his foundation, it just may be rural voters and women who give Clinton the nomination unless Obama can deliver more than inspirational speech.

And while it's great news that Obama voters have dived into the political process, reports are already surfacing that if voters' candidate of choice doesn't win, they would rather not vote at all — the number appears to be rising with each new poll.

Once the Democratic nominee is decided the biggest fight for voters won't just be between parties.

Oscar Casanova, 6, (from left) Karla Casanova, 7, and Fernando Casanova, 11, are reported to have been abducted at 2:30 p.m. on Friday from the 1800 block of North Richmond Street in Chicago. They may be in a a silver/gray Dodge Dakota with single Illinois license plate, No. 86196HB. (National Center for Missing & Exploited Children photo)

The Casanova children were seen picked up after school last Friday by the father of Oscar and Fernando, Benito Casanova. It wasn't until Monday that the body of their mother, Sofia Garcia, was discovered with a plastic bag over her head.

Benito Casanova

It's believed the father and children may be headed towards Mexico.

For further details, go to the Chicago Tribune story. To report a sighting, call 1-800-843-5678

Earth Day is a time to celebrate gains we have made and create new visions to accelerate environmental progress. Earth Day is a time to unite around new actions. Earth Day and every day is a time to act to protect our planet.

Ironic that such an inspiring statement should emanate from a government that has turned a convenient blind eye to the deteriorating state of the planet only to suddenly become enlightened at the end of a second presidential term.

Even more ironic is that on the U.S. government web page for how everyday citizens can get involved with Earth Day, there is a suggestion to join the "Take Pride in America" program:

Take Pride in America® is a national partnership program aimed at increasing volunteer service on America’s public lands. It is the goal of Take Pride to empower volunteers from every corner of America to maintain and enhance our natural, cultural, and historical sites.

Yet, does the government really mean what it says?

There's a group of citizens in the Texas Rio Grande Valley who are following to the letter what the Take Pride in America program preaches and they are getting hauled into court by the Department of Homeland Security and are seeing their property rights and civil rights trampled.

Not to mention seeing the delicate balance of nature that exists in the area threatened with destruction because it's too convenient for the government to look the other way as it imposes its will on the people.

Isn't this how the planet got into trouble in the first place?

One crux of immigration enforcement is identifying undocumented immigrants in the first place.

Visually identifying people as being potentially undocumented falls under racial profiling. So, unlike the military standard — Don't ask, don't tell — anyone suspected of being an immigrant these days is being asked to prove their citizenship.

Yet, the current climate of immigrant bashing takes this a step further — anyone who is Hispanic and is involved in a crime is suspected of being undocumented by the media unless proven otherwise.

Which leads to an interesting question: Should the media identify the immigration status of Latino crime suspects at all?

(The following is a reprint of a column that was written by Latina Lista publisher Marisa Treviño and published in USA Today.)

Politicians have described Barack Obama as "inspiring," a "leader" and a "visionary" of late. Indeed, he finds himself in an enviable position.

He has begun to establish himself as a leader capable of uniting not just blacks but the entire country. His political ascent has been remarkable and historic, yet Latinos have reason to watch wistfully.

Why?

It reminds us of what we don't have: a leader of national standing who can unite us.

Last week, the Senate cleared the way for a serious study to be conducted on whether or not a national museum dedicated to the American Latino should be built.

The museum would be dedicated to the art, culture and history of U.S. Latinos.

When Ramon Del Castillo, chair of the Chicana and Chicano Studies Department at Metropolitan State College of Denver, heard about the Senate ratifying the bill to explore the development of the museum, he said, "It's about time. The Latino has been left out of American history."

Arizona Rep. Russell Pearce
(Source: azcentral.com)

Yet to Arizona legislator Rep. Russell Pearce, such a museum would be anti-American. He's already declared that college student groups that are based on race are anti-American and he's trying to pass a measure in the state legislature that would forbid such groups from operating on campus.

This morning, the Department of Homeland Security's ICE division was busy.

The department fanned out over 8 states — Arkansas, Florida. Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Texas, Tennessee and West Virginia — to capture undocumented workers at worksite raids.

At least, at five of those sites, ICE had the full support of the employer, Pilgrim's Pride Corp, or so the company says.

The company that employs thousands at their chicken processing plants across the country, and who had been the target of a work site raid before, took credit for alerting the government to the fact that some of their employees were engaging in "immigration-related crimes," such as using bogus identity documents.

In a press release sent to Latina Lista, Pilgrim's Pride spokesman Ray Atkinson said:

…Pilgrim's Pride cooperated fully with ICE and the U.S. Attorney's office to help them apprehend these individuals. In fact, it was Pilgrim's Pride that uncovered the identity theft situation in Batesville and notified the federal government, and we worked closely with them to identify those individuals who were apprehended at the Batesville site.

Yet, that's only one site and four other Pilgrim's Pride plants were raided as well. Also, ICE told local reporters in TN that the raid was part of a year-long investigation.

So, are we to believe that Pilgrim's Pride worked covertly for one year with the Department of Homeland Security to set up their own people?

If that's the case, then the Department of Homeland Security has done a great job in their goal of striking fear into the heart of the business community.

Today, an unprecedented marketing move to get (Latino) youth to register to vote was launched. A three-way partnership between get-out-the-vote organization Voto Latino, iTunes and Nacional Records made possible a special album of Spanish Rock, Latin and Pop music created by famous Latino artists.

All proceeds of the Voto Latino album are being donated to Voto Latino to help with their efforts to get more Latino youth to register to vote.

Yet, some youth are wondering how much value their vote has in the face of a government official who can waive laws at will.

One of the great lessons of technology is that video can speak so much louder than just the printed word.

In a series of videos taken along the Texas/Mexico border, videographer Nat Stone meets Babs who lives along the border and has a few things to say about the government's decision to build the border wall, about undocumented immigrants and how the government "talked" to her about their plans for her property.

(To see the rest of what Bab has to say, follow the link to the next page)

By Hon. Rebecca Jimenez

The state of Arizona has enacted some of the most punitive legislation targeting undocumented immigrants. One man, Joe Arpaio, the Sheriff of Maricopa County, has made it his mission to root out the undocumented in the Phoenix area.

In the following post, Jimenez outlines the reasons why she nor the Town of Guadalupe want or need the Sheriff's help.

My name is Rebecca Jimenez and I am the current Mayor of Guadalupe, AZ. Guadalupe is a Yaqui and Latino community of about 6,000 residents between Phoenix and Tempe at the base of South Mountain. The town proudly maintains a strong cultural and ethnic identity. It is named after the Virgin of Guadalupe, the patron saint of Mexico. Guadalupe was founded by Yaqui Indians around the turn of the century. The Town of Guadalupe is approximately one square mile in area. Although Guadalupe did not incorporate until 1975, our history dates back to 1907.

Guadalupe is a dual-culture community, those cultures being of Yaqui and/or Mexican descent. The Yaqui Indians have endured many turbulent times beginning with wars fought among the Spanish and Mexicans. When Porfirio Diaz’ regime persecuted them, the Yaquis fled North into the United States for safety.

Many of the Yaquis came up to the Salt River Valley to work on the construction of canals in the area. A community sprung up here – where we became Guadalupe. Over the years many Latino families have settled in Guadalupe and added their cultural heritage to the community as well.

Guadalupe does not have its own police department. Over the last two decades, the town has had a $1.2 million contract with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO).

It has been a tumultuous relationship from the start.

It's no big secret that a lot of Latinos like Senator John McCain. In fact, rumor has it that some Latinos will actually switch parties to vote for the Arizona senator if their candidate of choice isn't selected as the Democratic presidential nominee.

Sen. John McCain

Latinos like McCain's military service and the fact that McCain's own son is serving in Iraq. With so many Latino families in his same shoes, it's no wonder they feel a kindred spirit with the man.

McCain's efforts to try and get Congress to reform the immigration issue did not go unnoticed either. Regardless of how imperfect the proposed legislation was, it was more than what most members of Congress have done.

The fact that he's from a border state and is intimately familiar with the Latino culture doesn't hurt either.

So why isn't McCain reaching out to Latinos, especially if he's been invited?

Last week, 13-year-old Melanie Bowers, of Athens, Texas, created a poster for a U.S. History class assignment. Her homework was to pick an issue and create a protest poster either for or against the particular issue.

Melanie Bowers
(Source: wltx.com)

Melanie chose a topic that she hears about pretty regularly living in Texas — illegal immigration.

So she created a poster that read: "If you love our nation, stop illegal immigration."

According to Melanie, she brought her homework to school and was showing it to some classmates when about 20 people surrounded her and started scratching her and grabbing at her and the poster. She said that several boys threatened to rape and kill her.

Three Latino boys were given in-school suspension over the incident.

The story has been fanned by FOX NEWS and other anti-illegal immigration sites.

Melanie shows the camera her scratch marks that she says some fellow students gave her.
(Source: wltx.com)

There's only one problem with the story — this innocent 13-year-old lied about being beaten up.

Unfortunately for her, the attack was caught on school surveillance cameras, and it showed quite clearly that Melanie scratched herself to make people think she had been attacked by these boys over her poster.

Last week, a friend of mine who lives in Mexico sent me a picture of a map of North America and Mexico. It was part of an ad campaign for Absolut vodka.

The map was obviously a joke on the expansionist theory that Mexico wants to reclaim territory in the United States. Knowing that some of my regular readers are somewhat paranoid over this piece of fiction, and continually claim it's for real, I decided against posting it.

Why fuel the flame of anti-Mexico hysteria?

Yet, now because of the absurd reaction over an ad campaign that wasn't even appearing in this country — like Mexico is really going to plot with a vodka company to take over the United States, puhleeze — it's time to set the record straight on what a fringe group of fanatics is trying to legitimize with their calls to boycott the vodka maker — Is Mexico plotting a Reconquista?

What has erupted between the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, Michael Chertoff, and the US-Mexico border residents over the border fence construction is a showdown that is more than just a challenge of the federal government — it's defending against the arbitrary decisions made by one man.

Sec. Chertoff feels that the law is a cumbersome process and one in which he has no time nor patience for. So, he authorized that 30 laws and regulations be ignored so the construction of the fence can proceed.

One by one, groups have risen up to challenge Chertoff's decision saying it's blatantly unconstitutional.

The latest challenge came today from 14 Congressmen who have given notice that they are filing a brief in the US Supreme Court against Chertoff.

“The Department of Homeland Security’s decision to issue waivers to expedite the construction of a wasteful fence along the Southwest border is disappointing at best. As a former Border Patrol Sector Chief and current Chair of the House Intelligence Committee, I know the importance of securing our borders and fully support providing our agents with strong tools to carry out their jobs. I do not, however, support DHS’s continued disregard for border communities. This recent attempt to bypass more than 30 laws and regulations to pursue an already ill-advised idea should not move forward,” added Intelligence Committee Chairman Silvestre Reyes.

One of the major consequences of this border fence is the closure of two major nature preserves in South Texas. For a region of the country that depends on tourist dollars that come and see these nature preserves, it is a major blow to the local economy.

So why doesn't Chertoff, a.k.a. the government, care more? Care more for preserving the Constitutional rights of its citizens or care more for one of the major ways a poor region creates income for its towns.

Because — he doesn't live there.

By Jonathan Browning

Jonathan Browning is a Midwest-raised actor and filmmaker who now lives in Los Angeles, California pursuing his passion. With a background in comedy, it's not unusual for Browning to see things from a "twisted" angle. It was exactly that vision that he brings to his work and which inspired him to create a 3-minute short film called "The Job."

(At the end of Mr. Browning's piece can be found the video of "The Job.")

My name is Jonathan Browning and I wrote and directed the short film, "The Job."

I was born and bred in the small blue-collar town of Benton, Illinois. Both of my grandfathers were coal miners, in a time where the tools that they used were considered to be more valuable than the lives of the miners themselves.

I grew up hearing stories about life underground and the treatment they received. One of my grandfathers was almost killed in the mines and the company didn’t want to provide the basic medical needs to save his life. These stories do color the way I see the world.

Because of their hard work and sacrifices, I never had to work the mines. I have however spent the majority of my life working “undesirable” jobs. I spent one entire summer hauling buckets of rotting fish up three flights of stairs into an outdoor dumpster warmed by the sun.

In 2001, my wife and I moved from Chicago to Los Angeles where I started working as a production assistant. (My first few jobs I worked for free…until I worked my way up to $50 for a 14-hour day. Eventually, I got the sweet, sweet standard $100 a day.) Production Assistants (P.A.) are pretty much the lowest person on the pecking order and you spend your day doing whatever you are told.

I was working as a P.A. when I drove past a Home Depot on Sunset Blvd. Sitting at the red light, feeling sorry for myself for not having a better job, I watched a group of Latino men try and get hired by a guy in a pick-up truck.

As I sat there, I couldn’t help but wonder how long those men had been there and how far they had traveled to stand in this parking lot to TRY and get work. Here I was feeling sorry for myself that I had a job that paid well and these guys were working harder than me to TRY and get work.

That image stuck with me as I pulled away.

I kept wondering if I would be willing to get up every morning at the crack of dawn and fight to get my job. What if everyone had to do it? What if that was how the world worked for everyone? What if every single working person in the world had to get up every morning, get dressed, go down to some location and fight for his or her job?

"The Job" was born.

Earlier this week, Latina Lista reported that the Department of Homeland Security, under the direction of Secretary Michael Chertoff, was tired of going through the legal channels to satisfy Texas border residents who are fighting the intent to build a wall along the southern U.S.- Mexico border.

So to speed things up he has decided to forego a few laws (30 of them) to get things moving.

In a transcript of a roundtable discussion that Sec. Chertoff had with some bloggers yesterday, he admits that the law is just in his way.

Question: Can you give us an update how things stand with the fence? I know there was some big news yesterday.

Secretary Chertoff: Well, we've got about 310 miles built -- about 170 of pedestrian fence and about 140 of vehicle fence. We're on track -- I want to get 670 miles done by the end of the calendar year, of which 370 will be pedestrian and 300 will be vehicle.

To do that, although we want to be respectful of the environment, we cannot afford to get enmeshed in the kinds of litigation that have traditionally caused projects to take decades to complete…

Unfortunately, that's what working through our judicial system means. Look how many innocent men have sat on death row waiting to be exonerated because of all the litigation that had to be endured to reach a just conclusion?

Yet, that's not the most disturbing item from this transcript.

The market research firm Synovate wanted to do a survey showing how whites, blacks, Asians and Hispanic voters feel about the major issues being debated in these presidential elections.

Nothing wrong with that. The more insight in knowing the priorities of different groups of voters is helpful to campaigns in knowing how to tailor their messages, to journalists in focusing on stories to highlight within a particular ethnic community and to the average person who is curious as to what common ground they may have with their neighbors on important issues.

Surveys are also a way to validate what may be known anecdotally but never documented.

Yet, the new survey released by Synovate doesn't provide the expected validation on Hispanic voters one would think. In fact, the survey presents a distorted picture of Hispanic voters to the extent the question has to be asked: Who answered these questions?

The AP reports that the final result of the now infamous Texas two-step has resulted in Obama winning 99 Texas delegates to Clinton's 94.

Sen. Hillary Clinton
(Source: fiveandten.net)

Given the fact that Clinton won the popular vote with a slim 51% of the vote versus Obama's 47%, it's hard to make a strong case that Texas LOVES Clinton.

Sure there are pockets of the state who each love their own candidate but the Texas announcement now puts Obama ahead in the delegate count with 1,631 delegates versus Clinton's 1,501. While it's only 130 delegate difference, it's still 130.

Clinton reiterated that she's not going to quit the race — and who can blame her? This is something that she has aspired to all her life. If she doesn't go to the end, she will be forever haunted not knowing if her fortunes could have changed in the final hours.

Latina Lista supports Clinton's stay in the race for three reasons:

1. Having two strong Democratic nominees, each instilling their own brand of passion and determination and, in turn, motivating people of all ages to come out and get involved in the election process, is nothing but a good thing.

2. Because of both candidates involvement, every primary/caucus has the feeling that it is important and that those votes matter. Because of that, more people care about the election process and are feeling the power of their votes.

3. Everyone should be allowed to follow their dream to see where it will lead them.

News that the Department of Homeland Security had grown impatient with efforts by environmental groups, land owners and border towns to thwart the building of a border fence along the southwest border was no surprise.

The Bush administration plans to use its authority to bypass more than 30 laws and regulations in an effort to finish building 670 miles of fence along the southwest U.S. border by the end of this year, federal officials said Tuesday.

Only this morning, there was an announcement that Brownsville Mayor Pat M. Ahumada Jr. was the latest border city official to deny DHS access to city land. The Mayor plans to join a proposed lawsuit spearheaded by the Texas Border Coalition against the government's intent to build the fence.

"We should make the federal government earn every inch to get on our land and not compromise," Ahumada said

Evidently, the federal government doesn't want to earn anything — they would just rather take in one of the most blatant abuses of federal authority.

The reason?

“Criminal activity at the border does not stop for endless debate or protracted litigation,” said Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff. “Congress and the American public have been adamant that they want and expect border security.

Really? In the last poll on presidential issues, immigration and terrorism rounded out the bottom of the most pressing issues worrying Americans today, but that fact seems lost in light of the policy of the Bush Administration:

Force takes precedence over democracy.