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Published: Tuesday, Sep 19, 2006

Heated debate over immigration
Participants in SR forum divided between proposals for tighter borders and legal residency
By MARTIN ESPINOZA
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT



A forum on immigration drew about 125 people to the downtown Santa Rosa Library Monday night, with some people urging tighter border security and others calling for a legal path toward citizenship for millions of illegal immigrants.

"I'd like to see the border secured and illegal immigrants deported," Chris Donnellan of Santa Rosa said after the forum.

"If we can send hundreds of thousands of troops half way around the world to Afghanistan and Iraq, we can certainly bring a fraction of troops, maybe 100,000, to enforce our border and deport illegal aliens," he said.

Jack Wikse of Santa Rosa, who teaches U.S. government at Santa Rosa Junior College, said the problem of undocumented immigration will persist as long as governments continue to ignore economic forces driving global migration.

"Immigration is no longer just an issue of legality and illegality," he said. "It's largely an economic issue because of the interdependency between Mexico and the U.S. created by such things as the North American Free Trade Agreement."

The forum, sponsored by the library, included a debate between a well-known Bay Area advocate for lower immigration rates and a Sonoma County immigration resettlement worker.

"Most illegals are low-skilled and therefore have low incomes," said Yeh Ling-Ling, executive director of the Diversity Alliance for a Sustainable America, an Oakland-based organization that contends immigration is hurting the United States.

She said poor undocumented workers are a drain on the economy and consume more money in public services than what they contribute in taxes.

Vicki Mayster, director of immigration and resettlement services at Catholic Charities of the Santa Rosa Diocese, charged Yeh with fear-mongering. Mayster blasted a proposal in Congress that would make it a felony for an illegal immigrant to be in the United States.

"It also creates felons out of those who are clergy, people who work at food banks," she said.

Although Mayster said she did not advocate for open borders, she argued it would be unrealistic to try to deport the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants in the country.

"They cook the food we eat in our nice restaurants. They clean our homes," she said. "This whole issue is about what kind of America we want to be."

Tempers often flared during the forum, with some members of the audience booing or hissing at statements they disagreed with.

Herb Castillo, a longtime Sonoma County immigration advocate who now works with at-risk youth, moderated the forum.

Rep. Lynn Woolsey, D-Petaluma, participated in the forum, making clear her support for immigration policies that provide a pathway to legal residency and citizenship.