Thread: Just another Baldwin Park activist

http://www.fresnobee.com/columnists/sal ... 87642.html

Citizenship! Immigrants, make your move
By Maria Elena Salinas
07/17/07 04:14:04


Now what? That is the question that many immigrants in the United States are asking.

The failure to get a comprehensive immigration reform through Congress was seen by millions in the Latino community as a direct attack. The negativity surrounding the debate reverberated throughout the community, affecting not only undocumented immigrants but legal residents as well.

But the issue goes beyond immigration reform. There is a generalized feeling among Latinos that without political participation, their voice is simply lost amid the anti-immigrant rhetoric. If they want respect, if they want elected officials to take notice of issues that concern them, they need to have the power to put them in office or vote them out.

Ya es hora! Ciudadania. Loosely translated, that means "The time is now," the time to go full-throttle with a campaign to motivate legal permanent residents to become citizens of the United States and to help guide them through the process.

The effort is not new. For years, Latino civic organizations, activist groups and Spanish-language media outlets have been dedicated to the political empowerment of the Latino community, mostly with voter-registration drives and get-out-the-vote campaigns. But this year they are joining forces with a massive and comprehensive campaign dedicated to motivating Latino immigrants to become citizens.

To become an American citizen, an immigrant must be 18 years of age or older, must have lived in the United States five consecutive years, have no criminal record, have a good moral standing and must pass a test showing basic knowledge of the English language and American history.

Sounds simple, but it is a complicated process that requires great effort and sacrifices for many. Yet tens of thousands of immigrants have been flocking to federal buildings across the country to attempt to take the oath of citizenship. The number of naturalized citizens has increased tremendously in the past year.

For some, citizenship is a way to protect themselves from the increasingly hostile environment against Latino immigrants. For millions of people who poured their heart, soul and mind into a campaign to try to influence the Senate to approve a bill that would overhaul our immigration laws, becoming a citizen is the logical next step.

Applications for citizenship increased even more when the government announced a significant hike in fees to process immigration services. As of July 30, it will be a lot more expensive to become a citizen. The rate will increase 69% from $400 to $675.

For Latino leaders, the motivation lies in the opportunity to increase the community's political influence. There are 8 million legal permanent residents living in the U.S., 6 million of them of Hispanic descent, and most are eligible to apply for citizenship. That translates into a lot of potential new voters. Voter participation has increased steadily among Hispanics. It went from 5.9 million voters in 2000 to almost 7 million in 2004. In 2008, the goal is to increase that figure by 2 million more voters, among them new citizens.

Studies show that naturalized citizens have higher rates of voting participation than native-born Americans. They are more motivated to take advantage of their newly acquired power and are eager to exercise their right. For some, it is their first time voting. Many come from a country where they either don't have the right to vote or where they feel their vote simply doesn't count.

The sleeping giant began to awaken with the immigrant marches in the spring of 2006 in favor of a comprehensive immigration reform. The marches led to letter-writing campaigns and caravans that took the message all the way to Washington. The Senate failed to fix the broken immigration system, maintaining the status quo and leaving the country more polarized than ever.

Now what? It's time to finally wake up. Ya es hora! Ciudadania. The time is now! Citizenship.

If you get a chance, please send this IDIOT latino activist a note. She forgot one very important fact, to be a citizen you have to be able to read.

To become an American citizen, an immigrant must be 18 years of age or older, must have lived in the United States five consecutive years, have no criminal record, have a good moral standing and must pass a test showing basic knowledge of the English language and American history.

Sounds simple, but it is a complicated process that requires great effort and sacrifices for many.

So now, we're supposed to feel empathy for them in their "great effort and sacrifices" mase in becoming a citizen. Sorry, I for one will not be applauding.

I was under the impression elected officials represented all their constituents not just those of a certain group.
Something I did notice in the article-it looks to be cheaper to become a citizen than it is to pay a smuggler,so why not come here the right way.
They created the problem by choosing to come here illegally so why should we feel sorry for them.

I'm sure that somebody will make sure these people get around all the rules. I've heard that some citizenship tests are given in Spanish!

With all their "supporters", somehow I doubt they'll have to do everything they're supposed to do.

So help me every time I see Maria Elena Salina's column I want to draw devil horns on her.

And yes I have given in a few times. It looks even better when you trace the lines on her face.

It's because of the "great effort and sacrifices" that the majority of Latinos don't, and wont, bother with citizenship.

These folks see a pre-made country which provides everything their own countries don't and it's much easier for them to come here and take what we've built instead of putting in the great effort and making the sacrificies necessary to build their own countries into something wonderful.

Once here, they are not one bit willing to sacrifice allegiance to their home countries or let go of their way of life in those countries. Nor will they put in the great effort it takes to learn our language, history, or what is expected of those who would live in our culture and try to fit in.

They will, however, put in the great effort and make the sacrifices necessary, to mob our streets, interfere with our political process at all levels of government, file one frivolous lawsuit after another, etc., to demand rearrangement of this country to accommodate them and to demand full rights. No effort or sacrifice is too great on their part in order to break our laws and then demand that even the worst of them be exempt from those laws.

The funny part is that the same folks who have been telling the Latino population for decades......and still are......that there is no need for them to learn the language, assimilate, or become citizens because this is their country anyway, are now the ones supposedly encouraging all of those things. lol.......I sure wish them luck with that.

Re:

To become an American citizen, an immigrant must be...

The problem is, 'an immigrant' and an illegal alien are very different things [people]. If, they were 'an immigrant', they would already be in that path to citizenship to some degree.

An illegal alien, on the other hand, is not 'an immigrant' at all. They are foreign nationals that have entered or stayed in the US without permission - simple as that.

I always laugh when I read or hear them say "we have sacrificed greatly...." or "we have had to endure....." why?

1. If tens of millions of illegals can cross that border fairly easily, then its really not that hard.
2. If walking a few miles, then get on a bus or meetup with a relative who then transports you here or there .. is hard. then you are wimp.
3. Your struggle is not ANYWHERE near those of the Black community.
4. You come here illegally, work illegally, get a TON of freebies, overburden our schools, overburden our hospitals and all the while you are having more and more babies......

... so, all in all.. it is WE who are sacrificing.. it is WE who are having our country downtrodden upon.

BTW, I use to walk to school, a 2 mile walk, when I was child - alone, in blizzards and snow storms in Boston, everyday.... its not hard. Its what you do... I was under 8 years old...

Its funny. In Mexico they don't have any jobs.... and when they come here and work fulltime, they consider themselves "working hard" and "sacrificing".... sorry to say, we americans have been working all of our lives!!!!! Its called "work". We all do it.

Originally Posted by cousinsal

I'm sure that somebody will make sure these people get around all the rules. I've heard that some citizenship tests are given in Spanish! .

I think the rule is those over age 55 who have been here more than 10 years can take the test in whatever language they want, including Spanish. I think the main reason for this exemption is as citizens they can get more benefits paid for by us!