http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent ... 2afec.html

I emailed the author back at the end of her article

Mercedes Olivera:
Immigration bill cause for alarm
11:47 AM CST on Sunday, December 18, 2005
During this season of peace and hope, some Republican lawmakers have brought anger to many U.S. households by introducing new immigration legislation.
The House bill, introduced by U.S. Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., would criminalize as many as 11 million illegal immigrants, including 3 million children; deny due process rights; and harm U.S. businesses and communities that would lose employees overnight without any way to replace them, immigrant advocates and legal experts say.
It would make every violation of immigration law a federal crime and make illegal immigrants ineligible for legalization.
What has also alarmed many is an amendment being considered for inclusion that would deny citizenship to those babies born in this country if their parents don't have the papers to prove they are in this country legally.
In Dallas, it could affect as many as 10,000 babies born at Parkland Memorial Hospital each year and 380,000 nationwide.
The provisions of HR 4437 are so severe that it has alarmed and united a diverse group of opponents from all sides of the political spectrum: the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Immigration Forum, Americans for Tax Reform and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, to name a few.
"This bill is devastating to not just the Latino community but to all American communities," said Michele Waslin, director of immigration policy research at the National Council of La Raza in Washington, D.C.
"It makes criminals out of spouses, employers, churches and organizations that help immigrants by broadening the definition of smuggling. Yes, the system is broken, but this is no solution."
Bernard Weinstein, director of the Center for Economic Development and Research at the University of North Texas in Denton, said criminalizing immigrants would be devastating to the U.S. economy, not just to immigrants.
"There is overwhelming evidence that their labor is adding to the economic growth of our country," Dr. Weinstein said. "I understand the demands placed on our health care and education systems, but the benefits far outweigh the costs."
He said the U.S. economy has been creating 200,000 jobs a month for the past couple of years.
"Without immigrants, the numbers would have been much smaller," he said. "We're all in this economy together."
Manuel GarcÃÂ*a y Griego, a Mexican-American studies and immigration scholar at the University of Texas at Arlington, compared the proposed legislation to Proposition 187 in California.
That law, promoted by a Republican governor, passed in 1994 but was largely invalidated in the courts.
It would have denied health care and education benefits to undocumented immigrants. It ended up galvanizing Latinos to become naturalized and register to vote, and it converted California into a predominantly Democratic state for years to come.
"Supporters of 187 wanted to attract attention to the issue of immigration, perhaps to distract attention from other issues," Dr. GarcÃÂ*a y Griego said. "I see this as a game. It's scapegoating."
Ms. Waslin agreed.
"There are Republicans and Democrats working on real solutions," she said. "The people who are supporting this bill just want to look tough on immigration for the next election."
But Roberto Calderón, a UNT history professor, warned that it is a "very dangerous kind of political posturing."
Mexican-Americans, especially, have been down this road before, and many have not forgotten the journey.
Dr. Calderón pointed to the Great Depression of the 1930s, when as many as 2 million Mexican-American U.S. citizens were forcibly repatriated to Mexico. While the chances of this happening again are remote, Dr. Calderón sees the same kind of attitudes toward Latinos being revived.
"This is an outrageous debate to be having at the beginning of the 21st century," he said. "This is not subtle stuff. This is in-your-face, a kick-in-the-stomach kind of stuff. And it is very specific to our community.
"What we need is a rhetoric of justice, but where are the leaders to say it?"
Mercedes Olivera can be reached at molivera@dallasnews .com or at P.O. Box 655237, Dallas, Texas 75265.

(My response)
I read your editorial about HR4437. In it you state "In Dallas, it could affect as many as 10,000 babies born at Parkland Memorial Hospital each year and 380,000 nationwide." I know I'm reading you correctly, you say this is a "bad thing." I have to educate you young lady, this is a good thing.
When you say 380,000 nationwide and that is in one year, multiply it each and every year and watch the number grow larger from year to year, this is devastating to this nation. I know of a very small community here in Southern Arizona that has to build a new elementary school because they've run out of room for their 14, yes count them 14 kindergarten classes. This is an outrage and you having this public forum to promote and rally for this damage to this wonderful nation is an outrage.

Tucson, AZ