The Blood Moon Will Still Rise

I just read this article and, while predictable, it still made me sick to my stomach.

Hopes for a quick compromise on immigration were dealt a blow Tuesday after House Speaker Dennis Hastert said he wanted to take a "long look" at a Senate bill offering possible citizenship to millions of illegal immigrants.

Hastert said hearings on the Senate bill should be held before appointing anyone to a House-Senate committee to negotiate a compromise immigration bill. Later, he said he was unsure what the House's next move would be.

The Republican-led Congress made a gamble by focusing on immigration last December with HR4437. I don't think they realized the backlash that would be unleashed from their draconian and xenophobic pontifications. The streets across the United States were filled in March and April with over a million activists who were everyday people demanding that their voices be heard in a debate that has been monopolized by extremists. The passion continued on May 1st with El Gran Paro (The Great Boycott) that showed the economic power of the people being targeted.



tags: immigration



The politics of division have been given the spotlight since George W. Bush and his gang of thugs entered the scene in D.C. in 2000. There were many of us who knew that the immigrant community would eventually become the targets of their policies. While I'm halfway glad the congressional "negotiations" have been stalled for the time being, it doesn't stop the fact that everyday there will be horrific news items like this.

The Border Patrol found more dead when a Customs and Border Protection helicopter with a search-and-rescue agent aboard spotted a campfire near Cowlick on the Tohono O'odham Nation on Saturday night, Hawkins said. Five illegal immigrants had run out of water and started the fire to signal for help. Agents reached the group and found two men dead.

Border Patrol agent found a sixth body in Gardner Canyon in Sonoita on Sunday, Hawkins said. An apprehended illegal immigrant told an agent he had passed a body on his trek north.

Six dead human beings in one weekend. You would think this would be enough to cause a major outpouring of support and compassion, but instead it's met by the congressional leadership with a blind eye and a "perhaps this wasn't a good issue to bring up after all"-type reaction. It's disgusting.

This past weekend was the deadliest so far in this fiscal year. It brings the total deaths to 95 since October 1st. Again, disgusting.

Why the spike? Two words: Full Moon

According to the Sheriff, more illegals make their way into this country using the light of the full moon to illuminate their way through the southwestern desert. - linkage

That short exerpt comes from an article that announced the beginning of Maricopa County's deputization of civilians last month to seek and capture "illegals". It is a controversial move by Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who ironically is a child of Italian immigrants, but he's never been one to care much for human dignity or shy away from wave-making.

I know this a complex issue, but I would not be able to sleep at all each night if I didn't fight against policies that are designed to destroy the lives of human beings who are simply seeking financial stability for themselves and their families. For me, this is a fundamental question of human rights. While I try not to ignore the economic, environmental and racial facets of the discussion, the fact is, I'm trying to minimize the loss of life. Period.

I just wish the prevailing wind was at my back instead of blasting me in the face. Until that changes, there is one thing that remains constant: the moon will continue to cycle each month and every time it lights up the deserts de la tierra frontera, the great trek to el norte will begin in desperation for a better life.




Crossposted from my humble blog and at The Left End of the Dial