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You nailed it on the head. That is the strategy. The people who support illegal immigrants always scream racism when a Republican wants to enforce our laws, which is bogus. If it was racist to deport “undocumented” people, then 100% of latinos would be democrats. But they aren’t. There is right and wrong, and it isn’t divided up based on race.

I’m an American citizen and my family was in Texas before it was a state. I know that nobody is going home, but as I said in another post, my fear is that having so many people here without any rights will endanger the rights of everybody with brown skin and a Spanish surname.

I still stand by the comment that at some point, they will need to fix their own countries. I don’t know why the governments in their home countries are never an issue in the immigration debate. Mexico is not a poor country, and there is no reason their government could not pursue a plan of economic development. Imagine if millions of Mexicans who have now been exposed to democracy went home and worked for change in that country. They could fix it, and not have to live here doing menial labor and fearing arrest.

I don’t think I’m speaking out of both sides of my mouth by acknowledging the very real threat to all of our rights. I feel sorry for the plight of undocumented/illegal workers, but I should not have to lose my rights over them. That is what is slowly happening. Again, I do not see immigration reform on the horizon. So now what?

As it is, the only political issue ever discussed in the context of Latinos is immigration. There is no longer any discussion of education, the economy, etc. It’s all immigration, all the time. All of our political capital is used on that one issue.

What about the rest of us?

It’s divide and conquer if I don’t take a backseat to illegal immigrants and all of their issues? They don’t have any rights, so the rest of us shouldn’t have any rights either? Unbelievable.

Frankly, you really didn’t answer my question. CIR isn’t going to pass, or even be brought up for a vote. The Dream Act might but only because of its military component. Meanwhile Secure Communities is going national, and US citizens might be deported.

Are you going to vote for Obama in 2012? I’m not. I voted strraight Democrat in the midterm election, but only because Obama wasn’t on the ballot.

Karen–how about, what they will do to the least of us, they will do to all of us. If they will fuck with workers becaues they don’t have papers–then they will fuck with ALL workers. And that has been a consistent truth throughout US history. The US had such a huge problem with people like Emma Goldman (etc) because those people were immigrants who knew how to organize the masses. And god forbid, a capitalist system has workers who are organized and unionized and know their rights.

is it a possible that we want to keep people out of the US because they will share information and educate us?

In all of this, reality must be acknowledged.

Even assuming CIR has no chance of passing, the undocumented are here. They will continue to be here. Thus, by urging them to “go back” because they are endangering legal resident/citizens’ rights is unrealistic and can only empower the unchecked enforcement ire of ICE, dragging more and more into its web, regardless of status.

What is the point of community organizing if not to change the law?

I agree that we can stick up for each other in our communities and do our best to help each other. I am going to try and do that. Republicans speak so much about personal responsibility and that it’s not the gvmt’s job to fix the problem. Maybe this will force those of us who believe in equality to find our own way of making it happen.

I am still pissed off because I am actually hearing people in my (PUBLICALLY FUNDED) university, and also people who work for the state of Florida, who voted for Rick Scott, our governor-elect here in FL. When I say “why are you voting for somoene who doesn’t support public education, or who wants to get rid of your job”…they say they aren’t sure that is the states job. One of my classmates is doing his internship at Department of Children and Families who said “I home schooled my three kids, I pay for my tuition here out of my own pocket, I don’t ask anyone else to pay for it…” I want to say “what about those kids at DCF…who’s going to homeschool them huh?” I did say “Oh sure you built this school brick by brick and all of these gvmt grants the school got were actually all from your pocket…” And when I said that his kids were lucky that they could have a good education because of their dad’s lifestyle…travelling, going to doctors, the people his dad knew, I said “there are many people besides you who contributed to your kids education..they were exposed to a lot, not everyone gets that without a good school…”…he said “sorry it doesn’t take a village to raise a child…”…whatever. I am sick of people who don’t seem to get it but I hope I am fighting the good fight because I think what I said could go with the immigration argument too. So many people take for granted the role immigrants, whatever their documentation status, play in our society, and I feel like I could say “yes, you were able to buy that house so cheap that you think you worked so hard for because somoene else worked just as hard building it…no shame in that, but then give them their rights, too, y’know?” I feel like I am trying to show what the power of fair laws can do. They can do a lot.

But it’s not the only thing, and I think that could actually be a positive affect of this election is to be forced to look at those other ways to take action.