Thread: 2 places, big contrasts on immigration

Two communities, a Virginia county and a Connecticut city, have taken very different paths as they deal with undocumented migrants.

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation/ ... 36983.html

By BARBARA BARRETT
bbarrett@mcclatchydc.com

WOODBRIDGE, Va. -- As her husband steps out the back door of their suburban rental home and into the early light each morning, Veronica makes the sign of the cross. Keep my husband safe, she prays to the Virgin Mary, and away from the police.

Jorge goes to find work as a construction laborer, and Veronica mostly stays inside, tending to the children. Since early summer, she's been afraid to take her three boys to the park, afraid to visit the Latino market up the road.

The couple, who didn't want their surnames used because they're in the country illegally, are among tens of thousands of undocumented immigrants who are hunkering down after the board of supervisors of Prince William County, Va., decided in June that it would do everything possible to deny services to illegal immigrants. Some leaders want police officers to check immigration status in every encounter with a suspected illegal resident.

Congress has been unable to figure out how to deal with the estimated 12 million undocumented residents in the country, and as illegal immigration spreads to suburban and rural regions, local and state governments are enacting their own get-tough measures. The result has been an increasing number of anti-illegal immigrant ordinances, many of them intended to drive undocumented residents out of town.

''If they let us work, if they let us just live . . . ,'' said Jorge, 33, talking in a sparsely furnished living room as his oldest child sorted crayons from a green school box. ``We're just trying to stay alive and keep going. This resolution is very hard, you know?''

OPPOSITE ENDS

Two places -- Prince William County, south of Washington, and New Haven, Conn., -- are the opposite ends of policies that other local leaders around the country may find themselves considering.

''We hope Prince William County can conduct a national pilot program in what to do to crack down on illegal immigration,'' said Corey Stewart, the chairman of the Prince William County Board of Supervisors. Last week, he testified before Congress that it should enable local governments to do more immigration enforcement.

In New Haven, however, city leaders have welcomed immigrants as integral to the community. This summer, New Haven became the first city in the country to issue special identification cards to its undocumented residents, guaranteeing them access to services such as bank accounts.

In addition to the activity in cities and counties, more than 1,400 immigrant-related bills have been introduced in state capitals, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

In South Florida, some officials in Miami-Dade and Broward counties have expressed interest in increasing protections for undocumented immigrants by giving them identification cards similar to those in New Haven, Conn. But so far no municipality has taken formal steps to issue immigrant IDs, and other South Florida officials have opposed the idea.

IMMIGRATION STATUS

The Miami-Dade Police Department and Broward Sheriff's Office generally will not inquire about immigration status unless the person being questioned is a criminal suspect. Officers will contact immigration authorities if during a suspect's background check they discover an immigration agency alert.

Immigrant activists have responded loudly. Led by Ricardo Juarez Nava, a group called Mexicanos Sin Fronteras -- Mexicans Without Borders -- organized a weeklong business boycott, a caravan to Washington and a rally on Labor Day weekend that drew at least 2,000 people to protest Prince William County's move.

''Immigration reform failed, and that's an excuse for anti-immigrant proposals to go forward,'' said Juarez Nava, an immigrant from Mexico who doesn't discuss his legal status. ``Our goal is that the resolution get rescinded.''

Miami Herald staff writer Alfonso Chardy contributed to this report.

The Miami-Dade Police Department and Broward Sheriff's Office generally will not inquire about immigration status unless the person being questioned is a criminal suspect. Officers will contact immigration authorities if during a suspect's background check they discover an immigration agency alert.

Thats why Miami - Dade is in the shape that it's in

Illegals don't want to just work, they want welfare and social benefits. They want in-state tuition for their illegal children. They want free medical care and they want to take over jobs which should be filled by Americans. They take the jobs at low rates and then cry that they are not being paid equal rates with Americans. This is still cheaper for companies since the companies don't have to medical insurance or provide a retirement plan. Illegals haven't gotten to where they are worried about retirement benefits other than social security but that is coming. Illegals are mostly paid cash so that they don't pay taxes but use schools, benefits, and medical which is a crime as it is thier of benefits that they don't deserve.

The Miami-Dade Police Department and Broward Sheriff's Office generally will not inquire about immigration status unless the person being questioned is a criminal suspect.

Stuck on stupid.

The U.S. Supreme Court should revisit the issues that are tying the hands of the people who are put on the streets to protect us.

In South Florida, some officials in Miami-Dade and Broward counties have expressed interest in increasing protections for undocumented immigrants by giving them identification cards similar to those in New Haven, Conn. But so far no municipality has taken formal steps to issue immigrant IDs, and other South Florida officials have opposed the idea.

Soooooo Stupid. As if they don't have enough problems.

''If they let us work, if they let us just live . . . ,'' said Jorge, 33, talking in a sparsely furnished living room as his oldest child sorted crayons from a green school box. ``We're just trying to stay alive and keep going. This resolution is very hard, you know?''

We will let you work and live but we must insist that you do your working and living in your own country, not ours! However, you're welcome here under the condition that you go back to your own country and apply for legal entry. You're not special, apply through the proper channels (from your own country) and get in line behind all the other legal applicants.