Going Back into the Shadows
By Kevin Robinson in News on Jun 29, 2007 1:50PM
Yesterday was a big day in national news. The Supreme Court struck down voluntary programs adopted in Seattle and Louisville to attain racial diversity in public schools. The conservative court also determined that it is unconstitutional to execute a prisoner that is mentally ill (adding to a previous ruling that the mentally retarded cannot be executed).
But the big news was Congress's refusal to pass a comprehensive immigration bill. In a vote of 53-46 Thursday, the Senate effectively killed any substantial immigration reform until at least 2009. Why did this bill, after massive marches, heated debate, and a Democratic-led Congress that has struggled to pass major initiatives failed? The reasons are myriad, but can be distilled to a few key reasons. A President that was asking Congress to take a big risk while having no credibility (can you say lame duck?), coupled with apathy on the part of business (a group that was supposed to be the catalyst for this legislation), and you have a recipe for dead legislation.
So why are you reading about this on Chicagoist?
Take a walk down just about any street in Chicago, and you'll understand why. If it isn't the dishwasher at the next hot restaurant in the West Loop, it's the engineer downtown; if it isn't the cleaning lady or landscaper in the Lincoln Park, it's professor in Hyde Park or the programmer in River North. Immigration, both legal and otherwise, impacts all of us here in the City by the Lake. As Louis Gutierrez pointed out to Lou Dobbs last night on the Communist News Network, there is no better time to amend the clearly broken immigration laws that we are suffering under than now.
Perhaps the greatest tragedy of this vote is that it leaves all of us hanging. The borders aren't any more secure - a serious concern for more than just economic reasons - and nobody's job is safe, except maybe the boss's. While George W Bush had made immigration reform a key component of his presidency, fantasizing with Vicente Fox over the great chance to import cheap labor with no strings attached, with the added opportunity to push down wages and bust some unions in the US and the chance to export poverty and alleviate some of the economic frustrations in Mexico, it seems that this year isn't the year that we will actually get economic justice and border security from Washington. Perhaps the saddest thing about the vote yesterday is that much of the working class will continue to buy into the line they are being fed by the capitalist: that illegal Mexicans are stealing our jobs. Until the Federal government puts it power and resources behind stopping bosses from accepting bogus identification, and attaching real consequences to hiring undocumented workers, American workers will continue to suffer depressed wages and benefits. Immigrants will continue to work in the shadows of our economy, missing out on the supposed benefits of the global economy and the promise of prosperity that we were sold in the 80's and 90's.
Although a controversial issue, practical matters should prevail, especially in the Senate - the great house of debate and reason - cooler heads must prevail. Border security is important, but shouldn't we also bring these people out from the shadows? Certainly we can't deport 12 million people: it would be a logistical nightmare and an economic disaster.
Until business owners are held accountable for their employment actions, the stream of undocumented workers will continue to pour into the US, hoping for a chance at a better life. And the US will continue to miss out on the benefit of bringing workers with advanced degrees and technical expertise into the country to work and contribute. If we're trying to set an example and export democracy around the world, how can we effectively do this if we don't let more people into the US to experience work and life on our shores?
Image via Victor J Blue