Thread: Feds check harassment allegations in Farmers Branch

Two separate articles on the cover of the Dallas Morning News about this today!! So lots to read!! (Actually, there's also a video link with local FB residents in the shadows complaining about the alleged harrasment in the article. I haven't had a chance to watch it yet.)

Why doesn't it surprise me that the opposing side would resort to dirty tactics? They're getting desparate from the sheer number of "FOR" signs up all over town. But it also wouldn't surprise me if a rogue agent on the FOR side would ask someone's legal status, either. If someone did ask those questions, the campaign manager failed, because they should have trained anyone going door to door to stick to the subject at hand and NOT ask anyone's legal status, due to the possibility of the opposing side taking that situation and running with it!!

Everyone who has come to my door has been nice. Including Tim O'Hare this weekend. But I have to say that my boyfriend and I were laughing this weekend over the stream of people coming to our door on Sunday for both sides, fighting for my vote. I've never seen so many politic-minded people come to my door!!

I also included one other front-page article on 40 illegal-immigrant bills being killed in the Texas senate (some are being allowed to proceed at least).

TexasGal



Feds check harassment allegations in FB

Supporters of rental ban deny bullying Hispanic residents

08:10 AM CDT on Wednesday, March 28, 2007

By DIANNE SOLÍS / The Dallas Morning News
dsolis@dallasnews.com

The U.S. Justice Department is looking into complaints that supporters of a crackdown on illegal immigrants in Farmers Branch are bullying Hispanic residents and asking about their legal status in a door-to-door campaign that appears to be heating up.

Some residents said that they were told crackdowns were coming and that they were strong-armed into putting up campaign yard signs supporting an ordinance to ban renting apartments to most illegal immigrants.

Ordinance supporters denied that Hispanic residents are being harassed. And they countered that their yard signs were yanked by anti-ordinance factions and that police were called Sunday to investigate.

Rick Johnson, a Farmers Branch resident and activist in support of the ordinance, denied that his group was harassing residents.

"We're about following the law, and none of our individuals have broken the law or would break the law," he said. "We welcome anyone who has a visa."

Mr. Johnson said some residents disclosed that they were not citizens, but that no one was threatened with a coming "crackdown."

Some were told that "the rules are going to change in the near future and they might want to seek to become legal residents," he said. But "our side did not threaten anyone."

Andrew Ames, spokesman for the Justice Department in Washington, D.C., said: "We are aware of these allegations, and we are reviewing information related to the allegations."

He declined to give any more detail.

The Justice Department has requested a videotape of last week's Farmers Branch City Council meeting, said Elizabeth Villafranca, a co-owner of a Cuquita's restaurant in Farmers Branch and the local leader for the League of United Latin American Citizens.

"They are intimidating people," including first-time voters who registered during the anti-ordinance faction's registration campaign, Ms. Villafranca said.

Farmers Branch, a suburb of 27,500 residents, is the first Texas city to attempt a renters ordinance that cracks down on illegal immigrants.

Across Texas, many mayors and political activists are waiting to see how the Farmers Branch ordinance fares and wondering what the outcome could mean for their cities.

Frustrated with the broken immigration system, some cities and states are taking matters into their own hands, even as Congress prepares to once again overhaul immigration policy. Most notably, a bipartisan House bill recently emerged that would provide tough enforcement, a path to legalization and a guest worker program.

Debate over the Farmers Branch ordinance has inspired lawsuits, a successful effort to place it on the May 12 ballot and voter-registration drives.

Both sides have marshaled forces and created Web sites and are campaigning at night and on weekends. Those who back the ordinance call themselves Support Farmers Branch. Those against it call themselves Let the Voters Decide.
Harassment claims

In Farmers Branch, Annel Guerrero said she was asked her legal status when she told campaigners that she didn't vote.

"I said, 'Listen, the elections don't interest me because I can't vote,' " said Ms. Guerrero, in Spanish. "He asked if I had papers and how was I here."

Another Farmers Branch resident, who agreed to speak on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution, said he had a similar experience.

"I had a problem with this campaign member who came and asked me impolite questions, uncouth questions, such as are you illegally here," he said. "He said, 'I don't know where you are from or if you are a U.S. citizen or not, but I just want you to know that the law is going to be enforced and they are going to kick you out.' "

Ana Reyes, who lives in Farmers Branch and has been fighting the ordinance, said: "They are taking advantage of these Hispanic families with limited English."

On Tuesday, Farmers Branch City Council member Tim O'Hare denied that the pro-ordinance camp threatened people.
Threats denied

"I have not asked any Hispanic if they are here legally," he said. "I haven't heard of intimidation of anyone"

And Mr. Johnson complained that Support Farmers Branch has had "droves" of yard signs disappear. A substantial number of the 500 printed are gone, he said. The group called police Sunday about the problem, he said.

Farmers Branch spokesman Tom Bryson called the dispute a "misunderstanding." No charges were made or offenses committed, Mr. Bryson said.

Under the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, employers may ask about people's legal status. But at least one campaign expert said Tuesday that the protections of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 do not extend to those who aren't citizens.

Amendments to the Voting Rights Act have addressed gerrymandering and at-large districts in Texas that impeded blacks and Latinos from acquiring political representation. There are now voting protections for language minorities, such as those within the Asian and Latino communities.

But the act covers voters, and illegal immigrants and legal permanent residents can't vote, said Toni Pippins-Poole, Dallas County assistant elections administrator. "The Voting Rights Act protects our voters and is only for those who are registered to vote," Ms. Pippins-Poole said.

Generally, immigrant rights activists advise illegal immigrants that they can refuse to answer questions about their legal status when not related to a job matter covered by the Immigration Reform and Control Act.

Know-your-rights campaigns are increasing in the U.S. as federal immigration raids have picked up steam.

Staff writer Katherine Leal Unmuth contributed to this report.
OPPOSING VIEWS

The fight over a proposed anti-illegal immigrant measure in Farmers Branch is dividing the city. Ordinance 2903 would ban apartment complexes from renting to most illegal immigrants.

PRO ORDINANCE:

• Supporters say they just want the city to uphold federal laws by making it harder for illegal immigrants to live in Farmers Branch.

• They want their actions to spread to other cities.

Members of Support Farmers Branch say the fight has become one of us vs. them, but not one of Anglos vs. Hispanics.

ANTI-ORDINANCE:

• Opposed residents say the ordinance is mean-spirited, discriminatory and bad for business.

• They say it is wrong to ask people to work, but not live, in the city.

The measure has sparked a counterattack from a platoon of political activists, many of them from outside the suburb.

www.dallasnews.com


**************************************************

O'Hare brings his message to GOP in Irving

Both sides of illegal immigration debate express concerns at talk

08:01 AM CDT on Wednesday, March 28, 2007

By KATHERINE LEAL UNMUTH / The Dallas Morning News
kunmuth@dallasnews.com

Farmers Branch City Council member Tim O'Hare crossed city lines Tuesday night to bring his message of fighting illegal immigration locally to an enthusiastic audience of Irving Republicans.

"What I'm doing I think is needed in our city, and I think it's needed in cities and states across the country," Mr. O'Hare told the crowd.

Irving has experienced a huge influx of immigrants, mainly Hispanics, in recent years, and roughly a third of its residents are foreign-born.

At one point, Mr. O'Hare poked fun at Irving Mayor Herbert Gears, who has said he would oppose similar efforts in Irving and would like to raise funds for politicians opposing ordinances proposed in Farmers Branch.
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"I understand that I won't be getting a Christmas card from Herbert," Mr. O'Hare told the audience, prompting laughter. "But I did not come here to tell Irving what to do."

Instead he urged residents to vote politicians out of office if they don't share their stance on the issue. Voters in Farmers Branch will decide in May whether to ban apartment owners from renting to most illegal immigrants.

Mr. O'Hare addressed about 100 residents at a Greater Irving Republican Club meeting at the First Church of the Nazarene.

"I think it's important for communities to stand in solidarity with one another on issues of national security," said Sue Richardson, the club's vice president, who extended the invitation.

Before the meeting, a group of about 20 residents walked around the church shouting, "Tim O'Hare, go home." Among them was Pedro Portillo, pastor of a Lutheran church in Irving, Santa Maria de Guadalupe.

"I'm here to support all immigrants. They are humans, not criminals," said Mr. Portillo, an immigrant from El Salvador.

Inside, the meeting opened with a prayer led by resident Lucia Rottenberg, who praised Mr. O'Hare for his courage, and the singing of "The Star-Spangled Banner." Many in attendance wore clothing depicting American flags.

"I do feel you can be a Christian and feel this way about this issue," Mr. O'Hare said.

Several Farmers Branch residents opposed to the ordinance also attended. Among them was Jim Manning, a leader of Uniting Farmers Branch, who said the issue had divided his community. When several handed out leaflets opposing the ordinances, a number of Irving residents ripped up the fliers.

At the close of the meeting, residents expressed their frustrations on a number of issues.

T.J. Franklin complained about the impact on the schools.

"My wife and I are in our mid-80s and we're paying school taxes for these illegals to feed them lunch, and we don't think that's fair," he said.

Irving City Council member Beth Van Duyne thanked Mr. O'Hare for attending the event and criticized Mr. Gears' comments to The Dallas Morning News that he would like to help raise money for people running for office in Farmers Branch who opposed the ordinance.

"I think it's irresponsible to call out another city," she said. "What I would like to see in Irving is an open and honest discussion about the issue."

Ms. Van Duyne said she would like to see Irving find its own solutions, though she stopped short of saying she wanted Irving to consider the same ordinances as Farmers Branch has.

Mr. Gears has said he does not want anti-illegal immigrant sentiments to spread to Irving and divide it as they have Farmers Branch.

On Thursday, an Irving City Council meeting grew contentious when residents voiced support and opposition for Irving's joining a federal immigration enforcement program. A pair of dueling petitions has circulated. Council members decided last fall against joining the program.

www.dallasnews.com

**************************************************

House panel chair to kill immigration bills

Legislature: 40 may languish, stifling efforts to restrict illegal residents

11:26 PM CDT on Tuesday, March 27, 2007

By KAREN BROOKS / The Dallas Morning News
kbrooks@dallasnews.com

AUSTIN – A powerful House committee chairman plans to kill dozens of immigration-related bills, saying he doesn't want legislators to waste time debating proposals that are divisive, unconstitutional or have the potential to induce long court battles.

"Good try, but we aren't in the immigration business," said David Swinford, chairman of the House State Affairs Committee.
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Mr. Swinford, R-Dumas, said this week that he would let about 40 bills, such as one that would challenge the citizenship status of children born to illegal-immigrant parents, languish in his committee. He asked Attorney General Greg Abbott's office to review the measures first to determine whether they violate the U.S. or state constitutions or federal law.

Their impending death puts the brakes on a movement in the state Capitol to restrict or punish illegal immigrants and their children. Proponents said that they were disappointed and that lawmakers should have a chance to debate the issues.

Still alive – so far – are bills that would make illegal immigrants pay out-of-state tuition rates at state colleges; resolutions demanding that the federal government crack down on illegal immigration; and a bill that would require local police to ask people they contact about their citizenship status. Mr. Swinford declined to identify all of the bills he wants to squash.

"It's not exactly progressive," committee member Jessica Farrar, a Houston Democrat, said of Mr. Swinford's decision. "He still wants to use police as immigration agents. We should not divert state resources to do the job of the federal government."
Testimony today

The decision comes as a long list of witnesses prepares to testify today on immigration before a joint meeting of Mr. Swinford's committee and the House Border and International Affairs Committee.

Rep. Leo Berman, a main sponsor of bills to restrict the rights of illegal immigrants in Texas, said he was disappointed and surprised that the campaign-season rhetoric about cracking down on illegal immigration was abandoned after lawmakers won re-election.

"I'm the only one who's not pulling back," said Mr. Berman, R-Tyler. "It's ridiculous that we can't talk about this in committee or on the floor of the House. ... Divisive bills are what Legislatures do."

His bill challenging birthright citizenship for children born to illegal immigrants has been blasted by Gov. Rick Perry and pro-immigrant groups as punishing children for their parents' actions. But some House Republicans and grassroots conservatives see it as a way to take the issue to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Mr. Berman or other lawmakers could try to revive such proposals by offering them as amendments to other legislation before the full House. But the chamber allows only related items to be considered, and House Speaker Tom Craddick keeps tight control of such parliamentary rulings. He has said the House should not spend a lot of time on what is largely a federal matter.

And Mr. Berman said he doubted such an effort would succeed.

After historic protests against anti-immigration proposals across the nation last year, several lawmakers ran on platforms that included reining in illegal immigration. The state GOP included restrictions in its platform that immigrant advocates decried as inhumane and divisive – including a wall along the border with Mexico.

Texans consistently say in polls that they don't think illegal immigrants should have access to public services such as health care. They are more receptive to allowing immigration as part of a guest-worker program.

One of Mr. Perry's key campaign promises was getting the Legislature to approve $100 million for beefing up border security – although he shunned proposals such as a border wall and taking away access to state-funded health care, calling them divisive and unnecessary. Mr. Perry also signed the law giving illegal immigrants the right to pay lower state resident tuition rates.

Now, other efforts to crack down on illegal immigrants appear to be faltering.

Mr. Abbott's office told Mr. Swinford last week that most of the bills go against "either state law or federal law, or the state constitution or the federal constitution," the chairman said.
Avoiding a fight

Mr. Swinford refuses to put the House through a bitter fight in a losing battle, he said – particularly after a statue bill that passed his committee unexpectedly sparked an emotional, racially tinged two-hour debate in the House last week.

"On purpose, I'm not putting anything down here that just tears the House apart ... and that we'd just lose on appeal," he said.

The only way an unconstitutional bill would be allowed out of his committee, he said, is if Mr. Abbott "wants to use one of them as a court case" – but Mr. Abbott hasn't indicated that he wants to, Mr. Swinford said.

"If he does, I'm going to ask him, 'Do you want to spend your budget' " to fight appeals, Mr. Swinford said. "Because we're not going to fund it. That's five years" of litigation.

Mr. Swinford has taken criticism for how he plans to run today's hearing, too.

Some lawmakers have questioned why he and Rep. Tracy King, the Batesville Democrat who runs the border committee, didn't grant a request to testify by some residents of Farmers Branch, where voters will consider a ban on the rental of apartments to most illegal immigrants – a measure that Mr. Swinford said he has been advised is also unconstitutional.

"We're obviously disappointed the chairman decided not to have them as part of the invited testimony," said Fort Worth Democratic Rep. Lon Burnam, a member of the Mexican-American Legislative Caucus, which submitted the names of Farmers Branch residents who wanted to testify about the debate roiling their town.

"The situation in Farmers Branch is symptomatic of a problem statewide, and we should have heard from the people that are directly involved in that."

Mr. King and Mr. Swinford said that they recognized Farmers Branch is a lightning rod but that they had to prioritize members' requests and get a cross-section of opinions on the issue.

Included on the list of invited witnesses are city officials from border towns such as McAllen and El Paso, Mexican consulate officials, a bank president from Laredo, elected officials, immigration advocates, groups opposing illegal immigration and judges.

Mr. Swinford's involvement in the immigration issue is due to his chairmanship of the committee hearing the bills – but it's not a new issue to the 15-year House veteran or to his Panhandle district.

His Panhandle district includes portions of Packing House Alley, which includes Swift & Co.'s sprawling meat plant in Cactus. Generations of blue-collar workers have found employment in the Cactus meat plant, where jobs are dirty and dangerous but unionized.

That plant was one of six Swift sites hit in December by the largest enforcement action ever against a single employer by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. About 300 workers were apprehended at the Swift site.

Staff writer Dianne Solís in Dallas contributed to this report.
WHICH ONES WILL SURVIVE?

House State Affairs Committee Chairman David Swinford plans to kill numerous bills designed to crack down on illegal immigration. He didn't specify which bills, but here's a look at a few of the measures he wants to squash and some he intends to send on to the full House:

ALIVE

• A bill to require police to ask about citizenship status.

• A bill to require proof of legal residence to pay in-state tuition.

• Resolutions urging the federal government to tackle illegal immigration.

DEAD

• A bill designed to test the "birthright citizenship" principle, under which all children born in the U.S. are citizens, even if their parents are illegal immigrants.

www.dallasnews.com
[/b]

Is there a way we can help Farmer's Branch here?

Is there a contact organization that people can contribute and volunteer with? If so, let us know and we will get them some more help.

ALIPAC has been working with Farmer's Branch since the beginning on this and we would certainly like to help them finish it!

W

http://www.supportfarmersbranch.com/

I keep saying this, they have to be the vicitims. Woe is me. The only way they are going to gain any support is to be a victim and hope some people come to their rescue. Oh please, stop the dirty tricks.

Also, there are no laws against knocking on someone's door and asking if they are legal residents. If you don't want to answer, then shut the door. If they offer their opinion, then it's expression of free speech and if you don't like that, then close the door.

Calling the FBI, what a waste of time and tax payer dollars.

Dixie

I need to go driving around my area a little more to see what signs are up. All the FOR signs on my major street are up for a couple of miles. But there are some pretty nice houses on my road, so perhaps if I went to other major roads in FB with the less nice houses on it, I would see far less of the FOR signs up and more of the AGAINST. Who knows? I'm just wondering what part of town is having the issue of the FOR signs being stolen.

I'll drive around and see if the divide between the FOR and AGAINST signs are divided by street as well.

I agree that illegal immigrants can be questioned about their legal status, due to their not being protected by US laws (as non-US citizens). However, Support Farmers Branch is trying hard to look as positive as possible, and any volunteer for Support Farmers Branch that is questioning FB residents on their legal status is doing the cause a disservice. It's just giving the opposing side some great bleeding-heart ammo to use in the print and television media (and they're eating it up!).

The Unite Farmers Branch people are crafty and Support Farmers Branch must be extra extra careful of everything they do and say in the next month and a half if we're going to pass this Prop, as the other side definitely likes to fling dirt!!

TexasGal

OK, we can try go get them some help now.

W

TexasGal,

That ain't mud they is flinging.

Dixie