More on Getting to the Root of the Problem

While the American people continue to be fed a daily dose of inflammatory rhetoric and simplistic solutions to the complex issue of immigration reform, that rely far more upon ignorance and bigotry than facts and practical proposals, the real-world problems that are the cause of the current worldwide migration remain trivialized or utterly ignored.

And while arguments over border walls, drivers licenses, and who can inflict the most pain and suffering upon the unauthorized migrant population, might make for effective sound-bites and attack ads in the circus that now passes for political campaigning, they do little towards addressing the root causes of the issue….or reaching any meaningful solutions.

While politicians, pundits and the media try to avoid the issue of root causation like the plague, any serious examination of the issue cannot ignore the United States' roll in fostering the very conditions that have driven millions of people in this hemisphere to uproot themselves for the uncertainty of life as unauthorized immigrants in the US.

Here is just one example:

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Which is why any meaningful attempt to reform US immigration policy must go beyond the scope of the current debate and legislation and move towards addressing the policies that have promoted conditions that can only lead to social and political unrest and poverty in sender nations.

The US has power to do both great good and great harm throughout the third world with its economic and foreign policy decisions and we must start to look at the long term ramifications of these policies. Rather than allowing US business interests to dictate trade and economic policy, we need to view these policies in light of their long term effects on both foreign economies and our own.

…As long as US foreign and trade policy is based solely upon the interests of big business, this race to the bottom will continue. Until we begin to address the true causes for the mass migration of people who live in abject poverty in countries that have more than enough resources to provide a reasonable lifestyle for its entire population, we will never get a handle on the "immigration problem"

…(We must) address the root causes of immigration, and change US policy so that it doesn't foster and produce conditions that force millions of people each year to leave their countries of origin in order to simply survive. (We must) tie all future trade, military, and foreign aid agreements to not only worker protections both here and abroad, but also to their ability to foster economic progress for the working class and poor in sender nations.

Getting to the Root of the Problem: Comprehensive Immigration Reform and Working Americans

For those wishing to know more about US policies and practices in Latin America, pull up a chair, pop some corn, pour a cool one, and spend an hour or so seeing a different perspective on our relations with our neighbors to the south….a region that Richard Nixon once proclaimed "People don't give a shit about...." Even if you're not quite sold on Chavez as a modern day Simón Bolívar, the film has much to offer.

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A game of intertubes tag

A little game of Internet tag has been going on over the past week or so throughout liberal blogtopia. The premise is quite simple. Each bloggger lists his or her five favorite blogs, then each of them must list five more. It's a nice way to highlight your favorites and throw them a link and maybe some traffic.

My good friend Manny over at Latino Politico was nice enough to give me a plug, so it's only right that I continue this intertubes chain letter and highlight some of the blogs that I think are making a difference by getting out important information while being just plain great reads.

As Migra Matters tends to deal with a lot of policy, politics, legislation, and other sometimes dry and wonkish topics, I figured it would be nice to highlight some of my favorite blogs that feature the more human side of the immigration debate. Great writers with unique and provocative voices, the kind of voices not always easily heard in the din of talking points, media sound bites, and catch phrases that swirl around political discourse. Voices of the heart, voices of the soul, voices sometimes of anger and rage, other times heartbreak and compassion … The voices of humanity in a debate that often seems devoid of that very commodity.

First off, no list of great immigration/ human rights writers would be complete without the inclusion of Man Eegee-Latino Politico. And although the rules of intertubes tag would dictate that there are no "tag backs" I have to make an exception in Manny's case. He was one of the first writers I started reading when I first came to blotopia, and his unique voice has been with me ever since. He truly is the "heart" of my little circle of internet friends and acquaintances. The compassion and reason he brings to his writing coupled with a humanity that seems to ooze off every page have made him the conscience, the soul and the heart of the movement.

Next, in no particular order would be Nezua Limón Xolagrafik-Jonez at The Unapologetic Mexican, simply because the mans one of the most brilliant writers in all blogtopia bar none. A poet, revolutionary, voice of the resistance, who harkens back to a time when writing meant something and words could stir the masses to action. His views on everything from racism to cinema are provocative and challenging. If Nezua doesn't make you think…you must be comatose.. it's just that simple.

Then there's Kyle de Beausset at Immigration Orange. The Harvard student would never have had to write another word after his series "The Trip" where he sent back dispatches from his journey retracing the migrant odyssey from Guatemala, through Mexico to the US border. From the train of death to coyotes in border towns, de Beausset lived the life of a migrant and tells a story few Americans ever get to hear. The series was truly what great investigative journalism is supposed to be about. But he did not stop there and Immigration Orange is a daily must read for immigration/migrant news.

Another unique voice in the immigration/human rights field is Marisa Treviño at Latina Lista. Mixing a witty and sometime irreverent writing style , with passion and just the right touch of indignation, Treviño creates one of the most entertaining and a thought provoking blogs out there. Plus Marisa lends a much-needed feminist perspective to an issue that sometimes seems much too dominated by male voices.

Lastly I must mention my old friend and ally, Xicano Power over at ¡Para Justicia y Libertad!. Like Manny, I met XP when I first starting blogging on a regular basis. Prior to Migra Matters or ¡Para Justicia y Libertad! we would both post at the big liberal community sites like Daily Kos or My Left Wing and often be the only ones reading and commenting on each others work. But since then things have changed. XP has become one of the premiere writers on a variety of issues. His well-researched and thought provoking writing has him in much demand as a guest poster at various sites in blogtopia and like Nezua, he evokes the fire of indignation and the poetry of the soul with every post.

That wraps up my little game of tag. I hope I've piqued your interest in reading more from these fine writers…and now it's their turn to be "it" in this little game of intertubes tag.

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Mayan priests to "cleanse" holy site after Bush visit.

Only days after immigration raids in Massachusetts resulted in the arrest and possible deportation of 361 undocumented immigrants, most from Guatemala and El Salvador, President Bush was met with disapproval during a visit to Guatemala City intended to shore up deteriorating relations in the region.

Even while engaging in what should have been a simple photo opportunity, typical of any tourist to the region, controversy followed the beleaguered President. As Bush's entourage arrived at a local Mayan ruins, hundreds of indigenous demonstrators faced off with police and soldiers to oppose the president’s visit to the spiritual site. After the visit to the ruins of Iximche, the ancient capital of the Kaqchiqueles kingdom, local Mayan priests vowed that they would have to "spiritually cleanse" the area of Bush's negative energy.

According to Mayan leader Juan Tiney, "That a person like (Bush), with the persecution of our migrant brothers in the United States, with the wars he has provoked, is going to walk in our sacred lands, is an offense for the Mayan people and their culture."

Perhaps the priests could be persuaded to do the same kind of "cleansing" in Washington.

Tiney said the "spirit guides of the Mayan community" decided it would be necessary to cleanse the sacred site of "bad spirits" after Bush's visit so that their ancestors could rest in peace. He also said the rites _ which entail chanting and burning incense, herbs and candles _ would prepare the site for the third summit of Latin American Indians March 26-30.
Washington Post

But the President's problems in the region go far beyond the exorcism of his "bad spirits." The backlash from last week's immigration raid is strong in Guatemala where 10% of the population currently lives in the US.

President Bush came to this struggling Central American nation on Tuesday bearing a message that free trade with the United States would improve conditions for even the poorest Latin Americans.

But he was also confronted with an angry, outside-in perspective on the immigration debate raging at home, with even his otherwise friendly host, President Óscar Berger, using a ceremonial welcome to criticize the arrest of several hundred illegal workers, many of them Guatemalans, in Massachusetts last week.

“As is the case in every mature relationship, once in a while differences of opinion arise,” Mr. Berger said in the central courtyard of the grand presidential palace here. “For example, with regard to the issue of migrants, and particularly those who have been deported without clear justification.”

The remark, coming during otherwise warm comments by Mr. Berger, reflected the longstanding anger here over deportation of Guatemalans from the United States, which has been stoked by a raid last week in which more than 300 workers were arrested at Michael Bianco Inc., a company in New Bedford, Mass., that provides vests for the military.
New York Times

News of the New Bedford raid has dominated the Guatemalan press in recent days with stories of families torn apart and children left behind as their parents were sent off to Texas and New Mexico for deportation.

Bush stood by the raid, saying, “People will be treated with respect, but the United States will enforce our law” when face with questions from Guatemalan journalists. (Watch Video)

When asked about “conspiracies” that children were taken away from families on purpose, he denied such accounts. “No es la verdad,” Mr. Bush said, “That’s not the way America operates. We’re a decent, compassionate country. Those are the kind of things we do not do. We believe in families, and we’ll treat people with dignity.”

Adding even more fuel to the fire is the recent change in US policy towards Guatemalan asylum seekers living in the US since coming the 1990's to escape civil war and political unrest.

…activists who represent Guatemalan immigrants say asylum officers from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services have begun to systematically deny thousands of asylum claims from Guatemalans who fled in the 1990s, arguing that normalcy has returned to Guatemala since the 1996 peace accords.

… immigrant rights group in Los Angeles - Casa de la Cultura de Guatemala - recently discovered that USCIS asylum officers had begun denying asylum claims of many Guatemalans who arrived in the 1990s.

Byron Vasquez, president of the group, said his organization is preparing a lawsuit in federal court to prevent asylum officers from denying these claims, arguing they should have been decided earlier.

Immigration officials said the agency is not seeking to deny all petitions from Guatemalan asylum-seekers and they are being decided on a case-by-case basis. Denials are referred to immigration judges to reverse or affirm.

But officials acknowledged the agency delayed decisions on many Guatemalan asylum applications because at the time the number of green cards available to asylum seekers was limited.

…snip…

According to Vasquez, as many as 250,000 Guatemalans could face removal proceedings. Immigration officials said the figure may be much lower than that.
Kansas City Star

As Bush continues of his journey to attempt mend fences throughout Latin America after years of neglect, he's bound to face even further criticism. Perhaps he can convince some Mayan priests to work some mojo in his favor…but somehow I doubt they'd be too receptive to the idea.

tags: immigration, Bush , Guatemala, Maya

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