Thread: A Polish American Contemplates Polish Illegals in Chicago

From: Dave Gorak

More by Dave Gorak

According to the recently retired head of the INS' Chicago District, Poles rank second behind Hispanics among the Chicago area's large illegal alien population. (A recent report by FAIR estimates there are 500,000 illegals living in Illinois.)

So my socks weren't blown off when I received a forwarded copy of an August 5 letter written to members of the Illinois General Assembly by Christopher Kurczaba, president of the Polish American Congress' Illinois Division.

In his letter, which asks support for proposed legislation sponsored by Sen. Miguel del Valle that would give drivers licenses to illegal aliens, Kurczaba (e-mail him) parrots the now familiar but very lame argument that licenses would "improve highway safety" and, of course, greatly enhance national security.

"The current situation [i.e., upholding the rule of law] leads to a deplorable condition in which [illegal] immigrants (regardless of their driving ability) are forced to use their foreign driver's licenses because they cannot obtain a license in Illinois. In case an [illegal] immigrant is involved in an accident or another incident that requires a license as identification, they do not have such a document."

Here's where it really becomes heart-breaking:

"This inconveniences other drivers who are involved in these incidents. There is no way to track or identify who these persons are unless they have a drivers license, or form of identification issued by a state authority."

None of this would be a problem if illegals weren't here. So the solution, as I see it, is to

(a) make it uncomfortable enough for those who wipe their feet on our laws to return home on their own, and

(b) serious interior enforcement that leads to deportation.

Voila! Fewer people on our already congested roads and, as Kurczaba says, "a greater level of security for all Americans."

OK, OK, there's a couple trade-offs: Some of us may have to cut our own lawns and have fewer ethnic restaurants from which to choose.

But, as a nation of immigrants worthy of the name, we'll again show the world how tough we are in the face of adversity.

The letterhead on which Kurczaba's whining appears is particularly annoying: At the top is PAC's logo that includes the upper portion of the Statue of Liberty,a symbol that glorifies a system of government that rests on the rule of law. (Uh-oh! Maybe that will have to go in light of PAC's apparent disenchantment with that notion.)

In the bottom left corner of the letter is a colorful reminder that October is "Polish Heritage Month," which leaves me wondering: Is it part of Polish tradition and culture to encourage people to enter other countries illegally and then demand to be treated as well as citizens?

Growing up in a Polish family on Chicago's South Side, I don't recall my parents, other family members or neighbors pushing the idea that criminals should be rewarded and, in the process, encouraging others to do the same.

Even our seedy Democratic precinct captain at the time stopped way short of that. OK, so he once tried to buy my late grandmother's vote with $2 and a box of candy, but she told him to go to hell. (Gramma loved Harry Truman, and she thought this guy gave the party a bad name.)

Dave Gorak (email him) is executive director of the Midwest Coalition to Reduce Immigration in Lombard, IL.

I met a Polsh American coyote on a train. His legal business consisted of shuttling flowers between Chicago and Detroit. A contact had him apply to shuttle flowers from Windsor, Ontario. There is an expedited clearing service for flowers. He would pack flower boxes against the door hiding the presence of an empty space with incoming Poles.
He eventually got caught and was given a probationary sentence.

GFC, my husband grew up in Chicago, near Wrigley Field, small world (We live in Oregon though).