Illegal immigrants come to Franklin County 'to improve their lives'
By TERRY TALBERT Staff writer

FRANKLIN COUNTY -- Illegal immigration is an issue faced by communities across the United States. Chambersburg and surrounding communities are no exception.

No one knows the exact number of illegals living and working here among the growing Hispanic population, which 2000 Census figures showed at 4 percent.

Jack Jones, who is director of the Elm Street project and affiliated with the Hispanic-American Center in the borough, said, "I think there is a large population here."

Jones said those illegal immigrants "are working and making a decent wage," and have by and large come to this community to improve their lives and, by sending money home, the lives of their families.

Some say illegal immigrants victimize American society. Jones said that in Chambersburg, they are being victimized by landlords who are charging them exorbitant rent.

Jones emphasized he was speaking as an individual, not as spokesman for any organization. "I'm telling you what I see," he said.

"The amount they are charging Hispanics, whether illegal or not, to live in substandard living conditions is deplorable," Jones said. "Now, I'm not saying they're all doing that.

"They're taking advantage of these people. They're making top dollar. To the borough, they've been an economic windfall."

Jones said some landlords are also charging extra for each additional person who moves into an apartment.

Illegal immigrants here are living with relatives or other people,
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making them vulnerable to those practices, he said.

Jones said government is obligated to provide health care to all people and the school system must provide all children with education, and in that sense illegal immigrants have an impact on those systems, if only in terms of numbers.

Jones sees a more menacing social impact occurring -- discrimination -- if the United States doesn't tighten its immigration enforcement, and illegals continue to come here in numbers.

"If it gets to the point that people see a large group of Hispanics hanging out on a street corner and feel they have to cross the street," discrimination previously directed at African-Americans will once again raise its ugly head, Jones fears.

A problem here, and in other areas of the country, is that policies regarding illegal immigrants differ depending on where you go, according to Jones.

"The bureaucracy has different rules," he said. "We're not uniform as a country."

Jones had a suggestion on how immigrants could be better assimilated into society -- a tack that some major retail companies have already adopted.

"I think there needs to be bilingual signs in businesses and banks and government," he said. "That would make them feel more welcome. If you go to Sears or J.C. Penney's you'll get receipts in Spanish and English."

Dave Sciamanna, Chambersburg Area School District board member and president of the Greater Chambersburg Chamber of Commerce, said he was aware illegal immigrants are in Chambersburg, but had "no clue" as to the numbers.

Sciamanna said he is well aware of the argument that illegal aliens take jobs away from Americans, but didn't think that impact was being felt locally.

"I don't think that's an issue around here, because recently we've had more jobs than there are people here to fill," he said.

As far as the children of illegal immigrants are concerned, Sciamanna said, "I do know, being on the school board, that when a young child shows up, we don't get into that. We must provide all children with an education."

"Hispanic growth has been significant" within the school district, he said, adding that the sheer number of children for whom Spanish is their first language has put pressure on the district's English as a Second Language classes.

As far as illegal immigration in general is concerned, Sciamanna said, "You look around and you see that people come to this country for the most part for opportunity -- to build better lives.

"I'm not condoning illegal immigration, but immigration has been what's built the U.S. Illegal immigration is a big problem and created problems that have filtered down to communities. But I think that for the most part these people are coming here for the right reasons, if I can put it like that. They're here to improve their lives. One of the problems is there's no uniform policy."

Wilma Shatzer of Shatzer Orchards on Lincoln Way West, has a special perspective on the issue. Her business has come to know the Mexican immigrants who work her family's fruit business as individuals.

"I guess there are some who are here illegally," she said. "But my boys live and work in Chambersburg all year-round and have all their paperwork."

Shatzer described the Mexican natives who work the orchards as hard-working and dependable.

"They thin the trees. They pick the cherries in June, and then we have apricots and pears and apples. They do anything I ask them to do.

"People talk about immigrants going on welfare and things like that. Well, when the work was done, I said to one of my boys, 'You know, you can draw unemployment.' He said, 'In Mexico, you don't work, you don't eat.' He didn't believe in taking unemployment."

She said he instead found other work to get him through the off-season.

Shatzer agreed with Sciamanna that immigrants -- legal or illegal -- are by and large here not to wreak havoc, but to improve their lot.

She put it in historical context.

"This country was founded by people coming here to find religious freedom," Shatzer said. "We're all descendants of immigrants. We have to treat them like human beings."

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Terry Talbert can be reached at 262-4747 or ttalbert@publicopinionnews.com.

http://www.publicopiniononline.com/ci_10938919