Thread: CA-Day laborers pick up trash to send message

Day laborers pick up trash to send message

The Sun (San Bernardino)
Stephen Wall, Staff Writer
January 29, 2010

SAN BERNARDINO - More than two dozen laborers on Friday launched a volunteer campaign to give back to the community by cleaning up the city.

Men who typically wait on street corners hoping to work as construction workers, gardeners, movers, electricians and plumbers spent the morning raking leaves and picking up trash.

The campaign was put together by the National Day Labor Organizing Network, a Los Angeles-based organization dedicated to improving the lives of day laborers.

Wearing orange and yellow vests and carrying brooms, shovels, rakes and dust pans, the group started by clearing trash and leaves from a dirt lot across the street from Home Depot on West 21st Street.

They continued to clean up as they
Pedro Almera, 37, who's from Guatemala, helps to clean a parking lot Friday on 21st Street in San Bernardino. The cleanup was organized by Los Angeles-based National Day Labor Organizing Network, which is dedicated to improving the lives of day laborers. The group is planning cleanups in other cities. (Gabriel Luis Acosta / Staff Photographer)
walked nearly a mile and a half to Central City Lutheran Mission on G Street, where they ate lunch.

Besides making the city beautiful, the workers wanted to answer critics who complain about their presence.

"They think that because we are day laborers we are the dirtiest people," said Rosalino Calderon, a 30-year-old illegal immigrant from Guerrero, Mexico. "That is not the case. We are on the streets to work to feed our families."

The San Bernardino resident, who has lived in the United States for a decade, has seen work dwindle during the recession. He said he typically works two days a week, making about $10 an hour.

Workers and their advocates also wanted to make a political statement that they contribute
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to society and the economy rather than draining resources from American taxpayers.

The campaign is part of the broader strategy to convince Congress and the Obama administration to enact comprehensive immigration reform this year, organizers said.

"We want amnesty," said Oracio Garcia, a 36-year-old illegal immigrant from Nayarit, Mexico.

Garcia said he has lived in the country 18 years and worked for years at a plumbing company. He said he was laid off in November when his employer found out he didn't have papers.

Because plumbing work is so sporadic, Garcia said he stands on street corners willing to do anything to support his wife and five U.S.-born children.

"They complain about us throwing trash," said Garcia, a San Bernardino resident. "We want to be good people. We want to show people that we are workers."

The cleanup campaign will move to Riverside, Rancho Cucamonga, Pomona and other sites where day laborers gather in coming weeks, said Loyda Alvarado, lead organizer for the National Day Labor Organizing Network.

While conceding that some people have a negative view of day laborers because many of them are illegal immigrants, Alvarado said that opinion is slowly changing.

"We're not second-class citizens," Alvarado said. "They need to start respecting our dignity. Dignity has no borders."

The leader of a local group opposed to illegal immigration said he was not impressed by the cleanup.

"It's a political propaganda ploy that they're pulling to try to better their position for amnesty," said Raymond Herrera, founder and president of We The People California's Crusader, a Claremont-based anti-illegal immigration group. "My opinion is they should do this cleanup and volunteer service in Mexico to better their communities and society in Mexico."

stephen.wall@inlandnewspapers.com

http://www.sbsun.com/ci_14298646?source=rss

Sooo many contracdictions in this article, it's hilarious:

The San Bernardino resident, who has lived in the United States for a decade, has seen work dwindle during the recession. He said he typically works two days a week, making about $10 an hour.

Workers and their advocates also wanted to make a political statement that they contribute to society and the economy rather than draining resources from American taxpayers.

Really??? Ok how do you support a family with 5 kids making $10 and hour? You DON'T, you suck at the welfare teet!!

"We want amnesty," said Oracio Garcia, a 36-year-old illegal immigrant from Nayarit, Mexico. HELL NO! We want you outta here and there's more of us!
Garcia said he has lived in the country 18 years and worked for years at a plumbing company. He said he was laid off in November when his employer found out he didn't have papers.

Because plumbing work is so sporadic, Garcia said he stands on street corners willing to do anything to support his wife and five U.S.-born children.

"They complain about us throwing trash," said Garcia, a San Bernardino resident. "We want to be good people. We want to show people that we are workers."

Years of taking a job that belonged to an American plumber, using stolen ID. Filed taxes every year using an ITIN to get the child credit for all 5 kids. I'd be extremely surprised if his anchors didn't collect big welfare bucks.

"We're not second-class citizens," Alvarado said. "They need to start respecting our dignity. Dignity has no borders."

Heellooo?? That's because they are not our citizens! Where was there dignity when they illegally entered our country? Yeah, the same place my respect for them is, moron! They need to start respecting our laws and show their dignitiy by getting out!

"It's a political propaganda ploy that they're pulling to try to better their position for amnesty," said Raymond Herrera, founder and president of We The People California's Crusader, a Claremont-based anti-illegal immigration group. "My opinion is they should do this cleanup and volunteer service in Mexico to better their communities and society in Mexico."

Spot on, Raymond! This is a "photo op" for them, as soon as the reporter left, they stopped. Illegal aliens absolutely hate to volunteer for no pay, even in the event of disasters.

"They think that because we are day laborers we are the dirtiest people," said Rosalino Calderon, a 30-year-old illegal immigrant from Guerrero, Mexico. "That is not the case. We are on the streets to work to feed our families."

Then start cleaning up the trails in our border area where you left trash eyeball high.

"We're not second-class citizens," Alvarado said. "They need to start respecting our dignity. Dignity has no borders."

Their dignity is not a close comparison to our sovereignty, which they violated. They could easily have preserved their dignity by staying home and giving to their community, but they destroyed that dignity in pursuit of the money.

Men who typically wait on street corners hoping to work as construction workers, gardeners, movers, electricians and plumbers spent the morning raking leaves and picking up trash.

Don't plumbers and electricians require LICENSING in CA?


"They think that because we are day laborers we are the dirtiest people," said Rosalino Calderon, a 30-year-old illegal immigrant from Guerrero, Mexico. "That is not the case. We are on the streets to work to feed our families."

As if US citizens didn't have the same needs.

Go rake leaves in your own country.

"We're not second-class citizens," Alvarado said.

Bingo. He got one thing right. He's not any kind of citizen.