Thread: Asians protest worker program

Asians protest worker program
By Lisa Friedman Washington Bureau
Whittier Daily News

Asian-American leaders blasted President George W. Bush's newest immigration reform plan Wednesday, accusing the White House of tearing families apart with a guest-worker program that prohibits foreigners from bringing family to the U.S.

The outcry is part of a mobilization of immigrant-rights groups gearing up to oppose the plan hashed out by the administration and a handful of Republican senators.

Under the plan, illegal immigrants would pay $3,500 for a new Z work visa, and pay the same amount to renew it every three years.

To apply for a green card, an illegal immigrant would have to leave the country, apply at a U.S. embassy and pay a $10,000 fine.

It also would become harder for legal immigrants to bring siblings and parents into the U.S., and new temporary foreign workers would be unable to bring their families.

"If the White House proposal becomes reality, it will be nearly the same as the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882," said Michael Lin, executive director of the Organization of Chinese Americans.

The first significant law restricting immigration into the U.S., the Chinese Exclusion Act put a 10-year moratorium on Chinese immigration and placed new restrictions on those who had already entered the country.

"It's hard to believe the White House is contemplating anti-family measures as part of immigration reform," Lin said, charging the proposal would make it nearly impossible for legal immigrants to sponsor family members for immigration.

A White House spokeswoman referred calls about the plan to the Department of Homeland Security, which did not return calls.

Eun Sook Lee, executive director of the National Korean American Service and Education Consortium in Los Angeles, called the plan unacceptable.

"The White House secret plan is anti-worker and anti-family," she said.

Filipino, Southeast Asian and Vietnamese activists also joined in the attack. One advocate noted that in the case of Vietnamese immigrants, many came as refugees and have waited years to be reunited with family members.

"This would undermine Asian-American communities," said Karen Narasaki, president of the Asian American Justice Center.

lisa.friedman@langnews.com

(202) 662-8731


http://www.whittierdailynews.com/news/ci_5597054

They can never write a bill that will please everyone. That is why they need to ENFORCE the laws, SECURE the borders, and let things develop slowly.

With enough illegals protesting the worker program and those of us that disagree with it due to giving amnesty to individuals who broke our laws maybe there will be enough that congress will laugh the president's proposal out of the building.

This is poetic justice. What these groups are protesting is the the proposal to end extended family LEGAL immigration (the parents, siblings, and adult children of legal immigrants). Yet these same Asian organizations also support amnesty for "undocumented immigrants". Well guess what people, there are just too many "immigrants" coming into the US, and since all "immigrants" are the same to you, what is wrong with ending family immigration so the US Chamber and LaRaza can have their "guest worker" program with path to Citizenship?

This is what happens when you get into bed with scum like LaRaza and the US Chamber.

The first significant law restricting immigration into the U.S., the Chinese Exclusion Act put a 10-year moratorium on Chinese immigration and placed new restrictions on those who had already entered the country.

Heres what you do to shut all of them up, put a ten year moratorium on all immigration, work on getting illegals out then figure out if we need guest works at the end of 10 years. If you do not want to leave your family do not come to America or they will just have to get here on their own through the right channels. You all are destroying America, there has to be limits!!!

Actually, I'll add to that.

Put a 10 year moratorium on all immigration. And then at the same time pass laws country-wide making it nearly impossible for anyone to hire an illegal immigrant, to rent or sell a home to an illegal immigrant, or give an I.D. or drivers license to an illegal immigrant. You take away their work and places to live, and they'll start flooding going home on their own.

The moratorium should also be placed on the HB-1 Visas. I'll bet that when their cheap educated labor is cut off, the big corporations will start hiring back the American computer techs at decent working wages out of desperation.

At that point, after the ten years have passed, then we could re-evaulate our immigration and HB-1 programs.

I know this is a pipe dream, as the government would NEVER pass laws supporting this. The big corporations would throw everything they had at our politicians to keep this from happening and losing all their cheap labor.

TexasGal