Not only have illegals settled in every major city in the US, they have well-established Lobbyists out paving the way for their acceptance.
Posted on 11/06/2005 5:19:03 PM PST by Diana in Wisconsin
Manuel Caro, director of the Multicultural Education Center at Edgewood College, came back from military service in Vietnam an angry and confused man.
Two things saved his life, Caro told an audience of about 500 gathered Friday night for Centro Hispano's 16th annual banquet: reading and writing, and the Farm Labor Organizing Committee, which represents migrant workers.
Caro said he got involved in FLOC after responding in print to a racist letter that had run in the Toledo Blade.
"Two days later, there was a knock on my door," Caro said.
It was Baldemar Velasquez, the founder and president of the group. "He had come to recruit me," recalled Caro.
Velasquez, the keynote speaker at the banquet, opened his remarks by noting the raging debate in the United States over immigration.
"It's not a new phenomenon," said Velasquez, the son of migrant workers.
Velasquez said immigrants, often scapegoats for society's problems, are merely trying to make a living. "If you go to church you know it's a parent's obligation to feed, educate and clothe their families," he said. "This is all these men and women are doing."
Velasquez argued that free-trade agreements promoted by the United States cause the impoverished conditions that force families from Mexico and other Latin American countries to flee their homes.
"People are being pushed to come here," he said.
Velasquez was born in Pharr, Texas, 10 miles from the Mexican border.
When he was 6, his family fell into debt while working in Ohio and could not get back home to Texas.
That first winter in the Midwest, Velasquez said in an interview, they lived in an old farmhouse where the only heating source was the oven.
Because it was winter, there was no field work to do and Velasquez was able to attend school. He learned English and excelled academically.
"It was a blessing in disguise," Velasquez said of the family's involuntary stay in Ohio.
He and his family continued to do farm work, where he witnessed "all the abuses heaped upon workers and their families."
Velasquez attended college during the 1960s and became aware of the growing justice movements for students and minorities.
"It swept me into organizing the farm workers," he said.
In 1967, when just 20, Velasquez formed the Farm Labor Organizing Committee. "It chose me," he said. "I didn't choose it."
The group now has offices in Ohio, Michigan and North Carolina and represents 14,000 migrant workers.
As for the future, Velasquez has faith that a unified voice will improve conditions for new arrivals to the U.S.
"If the Latino voice rises," he said, "the pendulum will swing back toward a more realistic outlook on immigration."
I can't believe the Spaniards have Central and South America and now they want North America too. Sounds a little greedy to me.
Yep. Coming to a town near you. Madison, WI is really accomodating to everyone that wants to move on in.
Hope Mayor Dave is watching Paris burn again tonight...
(Not that I mean Hispanics have anything to do with it; I just mean that a lax immigration policy is just foolish all the way around.)
Velasquez said immigrants, often scapegoats for society's problems, are merely trying to make a living. "If you go to church you know it's a parent's obligation to feed, educate and clothe their families," he said. "This is all these men and women are doing."
Velasquez argued that free-trade agreements promoted by the United States cause the impoverished conditions that force families from Mexico and other Latin American countries to flee their homes.
These SOBs never include the adjective when they talk about how we're all against immigrants - we're all against ILLEGAL immigrants.
The free trade agreements benefit Mexico and the other central and south american countries more than the US. It's not the US's fault that criminal governments in their own countries, high taxes, and corrupt businessmen suck all the opportunity out of the place.
Sort of what Bush has been saying all along.
ping
Not only have illegals settled in every major city in the US, they have well-established Lobbyists out paving the way for their acceptance.
Parents are supposed to feed, educate, and clothe their families without violating the law. Illegal alien parents are violating the law.
Protect our borders and coastlines from all foreign invaders!
Support our Minutemen Patriots!
Be Ever Vigilant ~ Bump!
He got that part right.
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