A fellow ALIPAC member who is also a Chicago area resident pointed me to this article.

It shows how fast Illinois is loosing the battle against this invasion. I have mentioned in a number of other posted here at ALIPAC that Chicago is turning in to LA number two.

Well continues, the state of Illinois used our money to aid illegal aliens by opening a welcome center in order to coach them on how to make it here. The article states it helps only legal citizens, but come on! If they were legal citizens why would they need a welcome center? Besides the rapidly increasing numbers of Hispanics in the area is outrageous, and no way can they all be legal. This is turning in to the heart of the Hispanic community outside of the Little Village Community within Chicago. Little Village is comparable to LA’s South Central, and Melrose Park (see article) is equal to Santa Ana outside of LA.

Now for a little confession, my ALIPAC name is MadInChicago, well I am not in Chicago proper. I live in a western suburb; yes! You got it, Melrose Park! And this really upsets me that this happening right here in my community.

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This was in the Chicago Tribune, September 30, 2007


New center to help ease immigrants' transition

The state, with help from area agencies and community groups, launches facility to link newcomers with services such as health care, job training
By Gerry Smith | Tribune staff reporter
September 30, 2007

Every morning, Hilda Gomez drops off her two sons with their grandmother, leaves for work at a motorcycle parts factory and begins to worry.

Without insurance, Gomez, who recently moved from Mexico to Melrose Park, fears being buried under medical bills if Jesus and Pablo get sick.

On Saturday, though, state officials helped Gomez, 29, fill out health-insurance forms for the boys, ages 7 and 3, as the first Welcoming Center for immigrants and refugees in Illinois opened in Melrose Park.

Now, Gomez said, she has one less thing to worry about.

"I have to work, and I need to make sure my children are taken care of," she said. "I need to make sure they have access to health care."

The opening comes less than a year after a panel of state agencies recommended creating centers that would allow recently arrived immigrants to apply for job training, health care and other services at one location.

Officials called the center a "point of entry" for immigrants as they navigate an unfamiliar and sometimes confusing bureaucracy.

"There's a cultural shift in understanding how the system works," said Silvia Villa, director of the Illinois Welcoming Center. "The system might be different from their own country."

On Saturday, dozens of families gathered outside the center to eat tacos and watch Aztec dancers wearing animal-skin loincloths and exotic feathered headdresses move to the drumbeat pulsing down Main Street. Nearby, a row of tables with pamphlets in Spanish offered an array of services, including free cholesterol screenings.

The center, led by the Illinois Department of Human Services, will work with nine state agencies and 40 community-based organizations at a cost of about $1 million annually.

Although the center will provide information to all immigrants, officials said that some programs and services, such as food stamps, will be eligible only to legal residents.

"We welcome everyone, but rely heavily on faith and community-based partners when individuals are not eligible for state services because of their residency status," said Rikeesha Cannon, a spokeswoman for Human Services.

About 1.7 million immigrants live in Illinois, half of whom have arrived since 1995, and the immigrant population is increasing at a rate of 35,000 per year. Illinois is one of at least 11 states with specific offices that help tailor services to immigrants and refugees.

By consolidating agencies, the center represents the latest effort by state and local governments to deal with the effects of immigration.

Sergio Suarez, who sold tacos outside the center, said the facility will help immigrants who are often unaware of the services available to them.

"It's important for the Hispanic community to have a place where people can relate with them, where people can speak the same language and are from the same culture," said Suarez, a Melrose Park business owner.

As the dancers formed a circle and performed a blessing for the center, Suarez said the immigrant community now has a "one-stop shop" to ease their transition to life in the area. "Now, they can come to one place and get all the information they need," he said.

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PS
I am looking for the "motorcycle parts factory" in the area. As soon as I find it I'm calling ICE to tell them about Hilda Gomez. Heck I already found her home address and phone number. She lives across the street of this center.