Thread: Hispanics mobilize against city immigration act

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Hispanics mobilize against city immigration act
Thursday, 29 June 2006
By KENT JACKSON
and KRISSY SCATTON
editorial@standardspeaker.com

Latino supporters from Allentown, Harrisburg, Scranton and New York converged in Hazleton on Wednesday to oppose the city’s anti-immigration proposal, which they believe has national ramifications. “This is another part of the civil rights movement. That is not just for Hazleton. Hazleton is just a mirror of what’s happening in the nation,” Dr. Agapito Lopez, a Hazleton physician, said at the inaugural meeting of the Hazleton Area Latino Taskforce.

HALT just formed and has no officers, said Lopez who told more than 30 people, in addition to media, at the inaugural meeting at the Sport Center Restaurant, 58 N. Wyoming St., that he didn’t expect such a crowd.
The meeting was the first organized opposition to the Anti-Illegal Immigration Act that Hazleton Mayor Louis Barletta proposed and city council tentatively adopted on June 15.

Introduced in response to increases in crime, crowded classrooms and emergency rooms, the ordinance fines landlords $1,000 for renting to illegal immigrants. Firms that hire illegal immigrants face a loss of business licenses, city contracts and city grants for five years. The ordinance also makes English the official language of Hazleton City government.

Copies of the ordinance were available at the registration table, and attorney David Vaida of Allentown told guests to read to pick up a copy “so you can all read for yourselves the hateful language.”

Vaida said he thinks the ordinance is unconstitutional and noted that three representatives of the Puerto Rican Legal Defense Fund came from New York to the meeting because of the ordinance.

“Irrespective of legality, it is promoting state-sponsored racism. It’s going to allow hatred to come out in our neighbors,” Vaida said. “Ultimately ... we need to guard against hatred among ourselves.”

Amilcar Arroyo, publisher of El Mensajero in Hazleton, said the group needed to stick together.

Allentown Councilman Julio Guridy, introduced as the first Dominican elected to office in Pennsylvania, said the ordinance could “keep people from reaching the American dream that many of us want to reach.”
Others at the meeting who introduced themselves came from

Pennsylvania Association of Latino Organizations, the state Democratic Party, the Lehigh Valley Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the American Civil Liberties Union, the Community Justice Project, and the Governor’s Advisory Commission on Latino Affairs.

Anna Arias, a member of the advisory commission from Hazleton, said before the meeting that Barletta disappointed her by backing the ordinance.

“Instead of creating trouble, he should be looking for solutions,” Arias said.

The English language provision has nothing to do with illegal immigration, she said.

“I never hear of undocumented (people) doing business with the City of Hazleton so he’s not punishing them. He’s hurting the ones buying homes, the ones opening businesses,” she said.

Hundreds of people signed up for classes in English as a second language at Luzerne County Community College, and hundreds more would take the classes if the college could accommodate them, Arias said.
She said the provisions for employers will hurt Hazleton’s economy.

“There’s going to be some going out of businesses,” Arias said. “There are jobs here that Americans don’t want to do. I’ve never seen a white person planting and harvesting tomatoes.”

The organization met for three hours in private, after which Lopez exited the restaurant to speak with the media.

He said the group is prepared to go to court to block the ordinance but prefers to convince the city to drop the proposal.

“We went to make life in Hazleton better. We think targeting undocumented workers is not going to do it,” Lopez said.

“There’s going to be some going out of businesses,” Arias said. “There are jobs here that Americans don’t want to do. I’ve never seen a white person planting and harvesting tomatoes.”

Well two mistakes in this persons thinking, one is if you have a business and are legal ,then you should have no problem. If you are illegal, then you do have a problem and it was caused by yourself for coming here illegally. So then this person goes on to say he/she has never seen a white person planting and harvesting tomatoes, well I would say that is a pretty racist remark. How do they know for sure that only the Latino people can or will plant and harvest tomatoes? Do they have actual numbers to back that statement up?

Besides, notice how they ONLY mention the white people? Whats that about? Why are they not mentioning other racial groups? Why did this person not say "I've never seen an Asian/Black person planting and harvesting tomatoes"? So thsi person is the one who is highly racist in this remark, it is obvious that they have issues with white people only.

Besides, whatever happened to hiring teenagers? These are the same people who promote having illegals here, but also talk so bad about Americans and how they "will" not do these jobs, yet if we wanted out teenage kids hired for these as summer jobs, then they would go on to say it is "too dangerous" and all sorts of stuff to keep Americans from having these jobs in the first place.

“There’s going to be some going out of businesses,” Arias said. “There are jobs here that Americans don’t want to do. I’ve never seen a white person planting and harvesting tomatoes.”

That's because the job NEVER paid enough to support a wife and kids. When will these idiots start realizing that they can't expect someone to live on sub-standard wages.. what a bunch of jerks.

See Rockfish, that is a truthful valid point. Right now, my husband makes just over 11 hourly, I have stayed home with our kids and homeschooled, but am now looking for a night job so I can continue to homeschool.

Even on that we are sinking. How would anyone expect a person to raise kids on minimum wage? You just cannot do it. Heck, we cannot on what my husband is getting (which in my book is far too little for his hard work for this company).

These OBL people just whine about all sorts of invalid points to try to justify their racist feelings, they want to look like they are real caring people, only caring about "disadvantaged" folks, but lets say it like it is, they ONLY care if the disadvantaged are Latino, and care the least if the disadvantaged are white. It is the absolute truth. I have seen it in my own community.

I am all for people from Latin countries coming here so their kids do not have to grow up in such corrupted societies, as long as they come here legally and assimilate. This does not mean they give up speaking Spanish at home, it does not mean they give up their foods, their ways of celebrating, it means they learn English, live in OUR society the way it is and not expect accomodation.

But, I have never seen them do this, oh, maybe a few have, but I have yet to meet them, but would love to.

AmericanElizabeth wrote

See Rockfish, that is a truthful valid point. Right now, my husband makes just over 11 hourly, I have stayed home with our kids and homeschooled, but am now looking for a night job so I can continue to homeschool.

Even on that we are sinking. How would anyone expect a person to raise kids on minimum wage? You just cannot do it. Heck, we cannot on what my husband is getting (which in my book is far too little for his hard work for this company).

We homeschooled for the first 5 years, after that, our schedules wouldn't allow it. Kids did fine in public schools since (although we know their education is somewhat watered down). Anyway, I know what you are going through. I was a carpenter for alot of years and wasn't able to get very far. These idiots would have us living 20 in one room if they could get away with it. Good to hear from you, AmericanElizabeth..

Hazleton is just a mirror of what’s happening in the nation,” Dr. Agapito Lopez, a Hazleton physician, said at the inaugural meeting of the Hazleton Area Latino Taskforce.

“

Irrespective of legality, it is promoting state-sponsored racism.

The pot calling the kettle black.