Thread: Pulitzer Prize winning reporter Jose Vargas an illegal alien

Of course Albor Ruiz had to mention him too:

Immigration Reform Act stirs more hate, hysteria
Albor Ruiz - Ny Local

Sunday, June 26th 2011, 4:00 AM

The anti-immigration crowd is all aflutter about the renewed national attention being paid to comprehensive immigration reform.

This week, Sen. Robert Menéndez (D-N.J.) and five co-sponsors stirred the pot by introducing the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2011.

"Their effort stands in stark contrast with the mass deportation and antiworker agenda espoused by Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Tex.) and his colleagues, who seem willing to risk our economic recovery and drive unemployment rates to unprecedented levels to score politics points," said Tyler Moran, policy director of the National Immigration Law Center.

Of course, while passing such a bill in the Senate is certain to be a titanic task, and getting it approved by the Republican-controlled House will be nothing short of a miracle.

Nevertheless, reactions by the enemies of immigration were fast and furious. Nonstop, often hysterical emails began making their way into the inboxes of hundreds of unsuspecting journalists - this one included - as soon as news of the introduction of the bill broke.

By their apocalyptic tone, one would think the gang of rabid anti-immigration groups were issuing warnings about the Earth's imminent demise. Nothing of the sort. The concern that drives them to send out such ominous messages is simply their belief that Democrats are attempting to grant - horror of horrors - "amnesty to illegals."

"Are you prepared for Obama to grant over 20 million illegals (including dangerous criminals) American citizenship? You better be - or you better be prepared to ACT NOW to stop it. Because TODAY, Obama is holding meetings that could determine if each and every illegal alien will be granted amnesty!" the extremist Minuteman Civil Defense Corps screamed in one of those emails.

Their constant "The sky is falling! The sky is falling!" tactics are - not surprisingl - growing tiresome for most Americans who, in poll after poll, have shown that they favor fair and comprehensive solutions over the fear-mongering and theater of the absurd of these prophets of doom.

The Menéndez bill, which departs not from enforcement but from the enforcement-only mentality of the Lamar Smiths and others like him, has, if nothing else, moved the issue to the front burner.

The new bill emphasizes border security and incorporates E-verify, the controversial federal employee identification system.

However, it allows that system to be implemented only as part of comprehensive reform - including legalization of the estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants now living in the U.S.

The DREAM Act, legislation that would give illegal immigrant students a path to legalization, is also part of the bill.

The revelation of his undocumented status by Pulitzer prize-winning journalist José Antonio Vargas, an immigrant from the Philippines, also has been making immigration headlines the past few days.

Published the same day the Menéndez bill was introduced, Vargas' moving story lifts the veil to expose the reality of those who are undocumented, and the kind of life they are forced to endure under our broken immigration system.

Written as a personal account of his life as an American without papers - which he undoubtedly is - Vargas' story gives a voice to millions of immigrants who live with the sword of persecution, deportation and family separation hanging over their heads.

"The Menéndez bill gives Congress the chance to prove that it is willing to put good policy over political expediency, engage in a serious and constructive debate over immigration reform, and focus on realistic solutions rather than passing this year's political Band-aid," said Ben Johnson, the American Immigration Council's executive director.

That's a chance they should take, for the sake of all decent, productive undocumented immigrants, but also - and more importantly - for the sake of the nation.

aruiz@nydailynews.com
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