Thread: Illegal alien tells Congress not to call him illegal

Illegal immigrant tells Congress not to call him illegal

By Stephen Dinan - The Washington Times
February 13, 2013, 12:11PM

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  **FILE** Jose Antonio Vargas, Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and immigration reform activist, ... more >

Jose Antonio Vargas, an illegal immigrant and former reporter, scolded a congressional panel on Wednesday, saying that he should not be called illegal, and saying it is an insult to his family who brought him here.

“When you inaccurately call me illegal, you not only dehumanize me, you’re offending them,” he said. “No human being is illegal.”

Mr. Vargas testified to the Senate Judiciary Committee alongside Chris Crane — a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent and president of the ICE agents’ union — who is unable to arrest him under the administration’s new non-deportation policies.

Mr. Vargas, who “came out” as an illegal immigrant several years ago, delivered an emotional plea for the country to legalize him.

“What do you want to do with us?” he asked the committee.

Last week, a top House Democrat also warned colleagues against using the term “illegal immigrants.”

“Our citizens are not — the people in this country are not illegal. They are are out of status. They are new Americans that are immigrants,” Rep. John Conyers Jr., Michigan Democrat, told colleagues on the House Judiciary Committee.

Many immigrant-rights advocates object to the terms “illegal” and “alien,” saying that people cannot be deemed illegal, and that the word “alien” makes them sound inhuman. They argue the better terms are “undocumented migrants.”

Many newspapers, including The Washington Times, use the phrase “illegal immigrant,” deeming it the most accurate description.

Mr. Vargas called himself an “undocumented immigrant.”

He is one of a number of illegal immigrants who have come out of the shadows to argue their case for legalization.

He came to the U.S. to live with his grandfather, who was a naturalized citizen, but Mr. Vargas was never legal himself — a fact he found out when he went to get a driver’s license at age 16.

He said he became a reporter to try to validate his presence in the U.S.

At least five other formerly illegal immigrants were scheduled to be guests at Tuesday’s State of the Union address, though each of those has been granted specific tentative legal status through one of the Homeland Security Department’s programs.

Illegal immigrant tells Congress not to call him illegal - Washington Times

He is what he is and he has no respect for our laws and therefore he has no respect for this country. JMO

So let me guess, did the repubs fall in line and kissed his butt?

How come Cspan has no video of this hearing?

"Many immigrant-rights advocates object to the terms “illegal” and “alien,” saying that people cannot be deemed illegal, and that the word “alien” makes them sound inhuman. They argue the better terms are “undocumented migrants.”

So he goes and calls himself an undocumented immigrant which is incorrect. Illegals have documents. False ones! He sounds like a very nice young man but we're not going to change the laws of country to suit people who break our laws.

It's like illegals won't be happy until we call them sweetheart. Sheesh! LOL

Originally Posted by jd421

So let me guess, did the repubs fall in line and kissed his butt?

How come Cspan has no video of this hearing?

I watched it on line live at the Senate Judiciary Website. I posted the link at the beginning of the hearing.

I thought he was doing an "Illegal Alien Stand Up Comedian" bit.

Just another example of political correctness that is helping to ruin this country which is intended to silence people that disagree with you. "Out of status?" That's as pc as it gets.