Immigration reform addressed in Clark County
By Liz Welter • Marshfield News-Herald • August 1, 2008


OWEN -- Immigration reform was discussed at a community forum at the Clark County Health Center Monday night.


About 50 community members who employ immigrants, county leaders, immigrants and curious residents attended the forum, which was organized by Voces de la Frontera, a Milwaukee-based nonprofit that's working to increase community dialogue across the state regarding the immigration issue.

Legal documentation to immigrate to the United States is difficult to obtain since the nation has drastically cut the amount of visas and green cards available to citizens of all countries, said immigration attorney Vicki Seltun, Eau Claire.

Whether a child was born in the United States no longer carries the same status regarding conferring legal standing upon the parent, nor does marrying a U.S. citizen, she said.

"This has created a huge backlog in visas.... For every one immigrant I help, I have to turn away about 15 other immigrants," Seltun said.

"This has created a huge market for counterfeit documents," she added.

Homestead Farms, Durand, wouldn't stay in business without its small immigrant workforce, said owner Chris Weisenbeck, who began hiring workers from Mexico in 1991 when two men showed up at the farm.

"They were from Mexico and needed a job and I needed help," Weisenbeck said. The relationship has flourished ever since and over the years the farm hired several of the men's family members.

"A dairy needs a reliable workforce. They have the same values; honesty, hard working and family oriented, just like me," he said.

Without migrant labor, about 40 percent of Wisconsin's farms would need to shut down, said Cindy Breuning of Voces de la Frontere.

Many community members said the complexity of the immigration issue was surprising.

"This was very interesting," said Janet Dahlke, Marshfield, who attended to learn more about immigration and what issues could be addressed in her community. "There was a lot I didn't know."

Immigration reform is also under discussion by the Clark County Multi-cultural Taskforce, said Sheila Nyberg, director of Clark County Economic Development Corp. It meets at 2 p.m. the second Monday of every month. For more information, call Nyberg at 715-267-3205.


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