Posted on 07/09/2005 1:08:39 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
The local Catholic archbishop and immigrant rights activists want to roll up the welcome mat before the Minutemen arrive to patrol for illegal immigrants in Houston.
The Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, an organization working to stop the flow of illegal immigrants, announced this week that it would send observers to watch day laborers in Houston beginning in October. Previous plans called for placing patrols only along the Mexican border.
But Archbishop Joseph A. Fiorenza said the Minutemen would not be welcome in Houston.
"We stand against any attempts of outsiders to come into Houston to abuse and intimidate our immigrant communities," Fiorenza said in a statement issued Friday.
Separately, immigrant rights organizations announced that they would fight fire with fire by forming an organization to counteract the Minutemen.
"For every Minuteman patrolling, we will have at least 10 people patrolling them," said Maria Jimenez, a longtime local activist now associated with the Central American Resource Center, or CRECEN.
Jimenez and CRECEN leader Teodoro Aguiluz threatened to file a lawsuit if they observe the Minutemen doing anything illegal.
"We will respond to your organization with our organization," Jimenez said to the Minutemen. "We're not shy about it."
The advocates have called on the city to officially "disinvite" the Minutemen, but city leaders say that is unlikely. The mayor has said he does not see the need to pass an official resolution on the subject, and City Councilman Adrian Garcia said it would be hard to promote such a measure without mayoral support.
Jimenez estimated that there are 50 informal labor markets in Houston where day laborers gather looking for work from contractors. She said pro-immigrant groups would have at least 10 observers at each site.
One of the sites is just down the street from the CRECEN office, at the corner of Bellaire and Hillcroft, where dozens of workers gather every morning looking for work.
A city-funded day labor site is in the area, but the vast majority of workers prefer to seek work in the streets.
Some of those workers said Friday that they worry about the Minutemen.
"It's like racism," said one, who identified himself only as Juan. "All we want is a chance to survive."
Drawing some support
Business owners in the area say they might welcome some effort to get the day laborers off the streets.
"They mess up the surroundings with their trash, and they are very aggressive, which scares the customers," said Mohammed Uddin, an immigrant from Bangladesh who owns the Citgo station at Hillcroft and Bellaire. "It's bad for business."
Some of the immigrants say they worry about the potential for violence. At the CRECEN news conference, representatives noted that many Latin Americans have had bad experiences with vigilantes back home, and they drew direct parallels with the Minutemen.
"In the countries we come from, these groups outside the law are known as death squads" or paramilitaries, Aguiluz said.
But Bill Parmley, who heads the Minutemen in Texas, dismissed the comparison to Central American death squads as absurd.
"The only thing we're going to be carrying is a video camera," Parmley said. "That's the difference between their country and our country."
There were no reports of violence during the initial patrols the Minutemen held in Arizona last April. But some law officials have expressed a concern about the potential for vigilante violence.
The Minutemen in Texas originated out of a series of meetings this year in Goliad County, where landowners have become alarmed by the illegal immigrants being smuggled along the area's rural roads. Ranchers and other owners began holding meetings, and area law officers attended.
Bee County Sheriff Carlos Carrizales said he attended the first two meetings but stopped going after becoming concerned by the tone.
"During the second meeting, someone in the back shouted: 'Can't we just shoot 'em,' " in reference to illegal immigrants, Carrizales recalls. "Then others started to feed on that."
Checking backgrounds
Parmley concedes that the statement was made, but he disputes the sheriff's contention that others joined in. The Minuteman leader said those who want to join his organization must go through an extensive background check, which includes looking not only for criminal history but also for things like white-supremacist tendencies.
Parmley is the official Texas leader of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, the group that was formed in Arizona. He said the campaign in Houston will be led by volunteers who live in Houston.
A separate group, which calls itself the Texas Minutemen, has been formed out of the Dallas area and plans to patrol near El Paso in October.
edward.hegstrom@chron.com
The Archbishop and the others can go to hell. I plan to do a few days auxiliary observation with the Minutemen out at Belleaire and Hillcroft- and God help any of those weasels that are foolish enough to get in my face or give me grief over it
Archbishop Joseph A. Fiorenza said the Minutemen would not be welcome in Houston.
"We stand against any attempts of outsiders to come into Houston to abuse and intimidate our illegal immigrant communities," Fiorenza said in a statement issued Friday.
traitor....
Archbishop Joseph A. Fiorenza said that the Minute Men were not welcome in Houston because they might bring an end to us being able to diddle little Mexican boys.
They want to tag along!
The Houston Police Department held a meeting with the supporters of lawlessness where they promised that they would not enforce the law. Seems that people who complain about illegals trespassing and damaging property will not have the support of our police department. I guess that means we no longer have to support the police department.
Earlier Story: [July 6, 2005] No photos of immigrants, chief tells officers***The Houston Police Department has instructed officers not to photograph illegal immigrants seeking day jobs, after an incident last month prompted an outcry from an immigrant rights group.
Houston police Capt. Juan Trevino made the pledge to 400 people who attended a meeting Tuesday night organized by The Metropolitan Organization, an interfaith grass-roots political action group.
Trevino said that "an isolated handful of officers" took immigrants' photographs after a business owner on North Shepherd recently complained that they "were walking on private property."
Addressing the TMO gathering in Spanish and English, Trevino said that the Houston police department will work with the organization to encourage immigrant workers to seek work at the east side day labor center.
"We have initiated a policy where, at this time, we are instructing all officers that they cannot photograph any of the day laborers that are currently out in the field," Trevino said.
After the meeting at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, Trevino said the photographs of immigrants involved "an isolated handful of officers — it was maybe only one or two."
"But currently the department has given directions down through the captains to instruct all officers to cease that practice until our legal services investigation ... until that matter has been clarified," Trevino said. ..........................***
Who died and made this bozo god?
Here we have the enemy from within and they are doing this on your Catholic donations, the same as they are doing for their ungodly coverup of their "Father pedifilic Confessors" and laughing(all the way to the bank)at the suckers who continue to support this activity with their (ha)love offerings.
Watchers watching watchers, watching watchers, watching watchers,,,,Hey!! This could close the border!! The 3 Stooges couldn't come up with better joke! Holy Hazmat License Batman!!! Don't look, Ethyl!!
Illegals + mostly from Latin America + most of Latin America is Catholic + church needs the money ... even for a liberal arts guy the math isn't too complicated.
As for the cops, I wouldn't be too surprised if the rank and file aren't secretly cheering the Minutemen on. It's not the cops' fault the chief is a quota black and the INS has better things to do than round up illegals in Houston. No reason to pull the 100 Club decals just yet.
Wasn't Fiorenza involved in the pedophile cover-up in some way? My memory seems to want to connect his name with it for some reason.
Let us use eminent domain and close his church down for a tax generating condo site.
The good bishop's tirade notwithstanding, the Minutemen will indeed be welcomed by good, conservative people that love America and prefer to punish lawbreakers.
$50 for the background check and other costs. . .
https://secure.responseenterprises.com/minutemanhq/registration.php?a=100
A great many of these high handed Arrogant Bishops and Arch bishops will most certainly end up in Hell, if there is any truth to the teachings of Jesus Christ.
Where was this "Bishop" during the Rape and Pillage of the Catholic Children.
His Job is to welcome all People , Not just the People he decides to welcome.
Just another Bigot in the Church, Stop the Money- Stop the Bishop.
If they know someone is breaking the law, Federal or state, or county, or city, they must try to stop the person, right??? Am I missing something???
Great Pythonian possibilities!!
Another fine piece of work representing the catholic church.
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