Posted on 10/24/2003 2:03:19 AM PDT by sarcasm
Latinos aren't the only group opposing California Gov.-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger's promise to repeal the law granting drivers' licenses to undocumented immigrants. A petition is circulating in the strip malls of Los Angeles' Koreatown asking the governor to view SB 60 as a civil rights issue, not a political one, reports the Korea Times in Los Angeles.
Gi Suk Chon of the Korean Driving School Association (KDSA) in Los Angeles is among those passing the petition among Korean immigrants. "Driving is not a matter of being legal or illegal, it is a daily necessity," says Chon. Licenses are also needed to ensure safety on the road, proponents of the law say.
KDSA and Latino organizations are planning a demonstration backing the law at the Department of Motor Vehicles office in Los Angeles.
Mr. Kim, an undocumented immigrant who lost his job in Korea during the economic crisis in 1997and immigrated to the United States in the same year, is one beneficiary of the law. "The passing of SB 60 will make my life here much easier," he says.
The petition drafted by the Civil Rights Committee for the Undocumented emphasizes that Schwarzenegger, himself an immigrant, should give other immigrants an opportunity to start a new life.
Is a Backlash Against Undocumented Immigrants Returning to California?
Pilar Marrero, political editor of Los Angeles Spanish-language daily La Opinión, reports that one of the most controversial ballot initiatives in California history, Proposition 187, which in 1994 sought to eliminate public services for undocumented immigrants, has been resurrected by backers who hope it will qualify for the November 2004 ballot.
Ron Prince, Prop. 187’s author, is at it again, reports Marrero. Although Prop. 187 was overturned by the courts, Prince has presented another ballot initiative with the same name, “Save Our State,” or SOS, according to Marrero’s Oct. 20 column. Prince has presented the new initiative to state authorities, who must approve the paperwork before backers can begin collecting signatures to qualify it for the ballot, Marrero writes.
Marrero calls the new initiative “Daughter of 187” and says that it is part of a wider “deja vu” that Latino activists, especially veterans of the 1990s immigration battles, are feeling right now, as governor-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger prepares to take office. Schwarzenegger already angered Latino activists by promising to repeal SB60, the California law that after Jan. 1, 2004, will make it possible for undocumented immigrants in the state, who number at least 2.5 million, to receive drivers’ licenses.
The article is still available at http://www.latimes.com/news/local/pilot but you'd need to click on the photo "signing petition" to the right and follow it's link to the story ... and hold your nose long enough to sign up for free access to the LA Times.
"I don't really feel if someone's here illegally that they should be able to drive on our highways and get an official identification," said Matt Lamar, 30, of Costa Mesa. "They're already breaking our laws."
"I think we have too many illegal Mexicans here in town and we're catering to them like they're God almighty," said Smith. "In fact, I'm writing President Bush and I'm going to tell him there's too many of these people standing around doing nothing."
Some have expressed their opposition to Worthington's [the man collecting the signatures] endeavor more vehemently. He has received three death threats, he said. So far, he is unfazed.
Oh yeah, a guy who'll have hundreds if not thousands of new customers is supporting SB60 on purely real civil rights grounds.
That should read:
The petition drafted by the Civil Rights Committee for Law Breaking Foreign Nationals emphasizes that Schwarzenegger, himself an immigrant, should join them by breaking the law himself and aid illegal aliens in their quest to further screw over U.S. citizens and legal immigrants.
The only driving licence needed for an illegal like yourself is the one for the driver of the INS van that is hauling your *$$ to the airport for deportation.
Frankly, I hope all of them - from the Koreas to Brazil start demanding the same @$$ kissing that V. Fox gets. Only then will this get serious attention.
In order to ensure safety on the road, people without driver's licenses shouldn't be driving.
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