Obama and Immigration Reform
Immigration, immigration laws, illegal immigration and immigration reform won’t stay in the background for much longer. It’s not about republicans or democrats, it’s about trying to get our arms around some type of comprehensive immigration reform. It’s had to take a back seat to other pressing issues in our country as of late. President Obama has promised to address this urgent issue.
Current immigration law is very harsh, especially for those with criminal records. While I’m a liberal on the issue of immigrants and immigration; I’m in full support of deporting dangerous criminals. Immigration laws have been on the books in the United States going back to 1798 that ushered in the Alien Act known as the Alien and Sedition Laws, which empowered the President to expel any alien, or non-citizen, he deemed dangerous.
Categories: immigration, latino culture, latino legal, latino news Tags: immigration, immigration reform, latinosrepublican or democrat, obama
Tea Party has Blood on it’s hands
Following story by guest writer: James Porter
The vicious attack on Rep. Gabrielle Giffords was horrific but not surprising. As shocking and repugnant as the attack was, it was inevitable. There has been a climate of hate and intolerance that has been in the air since President Obama’s election.
Rep. Giffords by all accounts was a moderate democrat, not quite a blue dog democrat. She was pro NRA and a staunch defender of the constitution. She narrowly defeated a tea party candidate winning a third term during the mid-term elections. Not quite the liberal target you would suspect for such a politically motivated attack.
Categories: latino news, latino politics Tags: gabby giffords, obama, tea party, tucson
Joe Arpaio America’s Sheriff
Immigration debate has intensified as of late in Phoenix Arizona. Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio is regarded as the ultimate law enforcement officer when it comes to illegal immigration. This man seems to go above and beyond the call to harass and intimidate and persecute Arizona’s undocumented population. He is scorned by the likes of the ACLU and other civil rights organizations. But he is hailed as a hero by the hard right who believe that the undocumented alien is affecting the quality of life in the Phoenix area.
Sheriff Joe Arpaio likes to brag that he has been reelected five times in Maricopa County. Unfortunately there is a hard-core racist anti-immigrant faction in Arizona as well as other parts of the country that see Sheriff Arpaio as some sort of hero. I have had the opportunity to listen to
Sheriff Arpaio on several occasions on podcasts news programs and each time during interviews he is very recalcitrant, defensive and most importantly an unrepentant oppressor of undocumented aliens in Maricopa County Arizona.
My question is how much longer this will go on? As long as you have a faction of the population who sees this man is eligible for sainthood in his relentless pursuit of undocumented aliens. It appears that Mr. Arpaio has shredded the United States Constitution and thumbed his nose at federal authorities. This is being perceived by most sane people as extreme anti-immigration persecution.
I believe at some point Sheriff Arpaio will be held to account for these racial profiling type raids that he conducts on anyone looking Hispanic or appears to be undocumented. There’ve been countless reports that Sheriff Arpaio and his goon squad kicked down doors hauling off legal residents as well as some undocumented in these raids. Countless people have come forward showing that they are legal residents of Maricopa County and were unfortunate enough to be in the crosshairs of Sheriff Arpaio’s anti-immigrant posse.
At some point Sheriff Arpaio will cross the line and he will be brought to justice are held to account for his actions. Moreover, it will force the Obama administration to look at and review current immigration policy or reform. The dialogue on immigration has taken a backseat to more pressing issues like two wars the economy and health reform. I’m sure sooner or later immigration reform will be brought back to the fore. Ironically, Mr. Arapaio’s parents were both immigrants to this county! Go figure.
Categories: latino politics Tags: immigration, immigration reform, obama, sheriff joe arpaio