http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?news ... 4903&rfi=6

What a year it was in Western Queens
by Elizabeth Daley, Editor
12/30/2010

[This lengthy article has been clipped to address only the illegal immigrant section]

"....Immigration was another big issue to rock the nation and the borough this year. In April, Woodside residents objected to day laborers using Hart Playground to eat food provided by charities. According to the city Administrative Code, it was technically illegal for them to be in the park unaccompanied by a child.

In May in Jackson Heights and again this month in Sunnyside, illegal immigrants complained that their employers were withholding their wages. Good news came with the recent passage of the Wage Theft Prevention Act which increases penalties for thieving employers.

Undocumented immigrants spoke out again when Arizona announced in May that it would adopt a policy authorizing its police force to detain persons suspected of illegal immigration until their status could be verified. Protesters took to the streets in Jackson Heights and held a sleepover at a church in Corona, rallying against the policy.

In October, more bad news came for undocumented immigrants, as community members gathered in Corona to learn about the Secure Communities Program, which would make it easier for illegal immigrants to be deported if they were arrested. Though the Department of Homeland Securities claimed it would deport high-level offenders first, immigrants expressed fear that they might be deported for minor infractions.

Undocumented immigrants were hit again when the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act failed a Senate vote in December. The act would have granted legal status to undocumented immigrants who came to the country as minors, after they completed two years of college or military service...."