Irish put green tint on immigration cause


mcclatchy tribune

Tucson, Arizona | Published: 03.07.2007

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — The immigration debate has swept through Mexican cantinas, Argentine bakeries and Caribbean music shops in the United States. But now it has a new home: the local Irish pub.
Thousands of illegal Irish immigrants are joining the drive to grant legal status to about 12 million people of various origins living in the United States without proper documents.
In their most vocal demonstration so far, 6,000 supporters are expected to show up today at a Washington, D.C., rally organized by the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform. They'll sport "Legalize the Irish" T-shirts and cast the bitter and polarized immigration debate in shamrock green.
"Everyone reacts the same way. They don't even understand the Irish have a problem with immigration," said Lisa Handley of Fort Lauderdale, the lobby's Florida delegate. "We're just a small part of the immigration wave," she said. But given the way so many Americans trace their roots back to Ireland, she added, "we're a very significant part."
The Irish presence puts a new spin on a movement largely associated with Latin Americans, and it pulls enthusiasm from important political allies, even though only about 50,000 Irish immigrants live illegally in the United States.
A smaller rally last year drew Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz. and Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., both presidential hopefuls. McCain plans to attend today's rally, along with Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart, R-Fla.
Under the current system, advocates say, the Irish ancestors of Presidents Ronald Reagan and John F. Kennedy would not have been able to legally enter the United States.
Those working to reduce immigration say no group should be singled out for special treatment.
"The Irish are no different from anyone else," said Caroline Espinosa, a spokeswoman for the grass-roots Numbers- USA group. "It doesn't matter where you're coming from but how you came here, and if you came here illegally, you broke the law."
Today's rally comes as U.S. senators work on a new immigration bill that likely will combine legalization with tighter border control and higher caps on many visa categories.
"This reminds us we've got 12 million folks here (without documents), and you can't reduce them to a single stereotype," said Angela Kelley, deputy director for policy and programs at the National Immigration Forum.




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