Immigration article

[Guest guest]

Other Voices: Congress in denial on immigration

By J. Colgan

March 11, 2006

" Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,

I lift my lamp beside the golden door! "

- Emma Lazarus

Upwards of 20,000 undocumented workers and their supporters rallied for

immigration reform in Washington on Tuesday. Exhibiting the denial that

has plagued efforts to reform our immigration laws in the past, nary a

congressman or senator came to show support. Like ostriches with their

heads in the sand, our elected officials are hoping the whole problem

will just disappear, if only they can keep their heads down long enough.

It won't, and they can't.

To be fair, Congress was not completely unrepresented.

" You do not become American because you're lucky enough to be born of

wealthy parents, " Rep. P. Moran, D-Va., told the crowd, which

spanned the steps to the entrance of the Capitol to its reflecting pool

far below. " You become an American by working hard and providing for

your family. By that definition, you are true Americans. "

In the emotional climax of the afternoon, Senate candidate Kweisi Mfume

from land delivered an impassioned plea for immigrant rights,

quoting Lazarus' well-known refrain etched on the Statue of Liberty.

By and large, however, Congress was AWOL. This was a rally of historic

significance. No one who was present can deny the sense of hope that

pervaded the crowd. From the steps of the Capitol, the energy of the

crowd and the speakers was palpable. Still, our legislators hid under

the Capitol dome. Why are so few willing to come out to support policies

that so clearly will benefit the United States?

The answer lies in electoral miscalculations. Our senators and

congressmen are, first and foremost, interested in keeping their jobs.

They are hearing almost exclusively from a small, determined and

well-meaning minority who feel that legalizing the status of

undocumented workers in the United States is wrong.

Terrified of being portrayed as favoring amnesty, these senators and

congressmen vote only to enforce, enforce, enforce. Never mind that the

forced deportation of 10 million workers will ruin our economy. Our

elected officials know we will never really go down that path of

economic suicide. So they continue to vote in favor of misguided and

illusory solutions such as HR4437, a proposal that would criminalize all

undocumented workers and those who work with them. They do this to avoid

electoral retribution from the vocal restrictionist minority of the

American people.

The silent American majority that appreciates the imperative for

comprehensive immigration reform must motivate their elected officials

to act. Time is growing short.

The Senate Judiciary Committee is shaping a bill for a vote on the

Senate floor at the end of the month. Polls show overwhelming support

for reform that would legalize the status of undocumented workers who

come out of the shadows, submit to background checks and pay fines. The

silent American majority that understands the need for reform must speak

with one voice - and must do so soon.

A good place to find that voice is at the New American Opportunity

Campaign. Its Web site is www.cirnow.org. This Web site educates on the

positive effects of immigration and instructs on how to take action.

Links to your elected officials are easily located. With a few

keystrokes, the power of the restrictionists can be neutralized and

overcome. As this site correctly argues, the time is now for the kind of

reform embodied in the McCain/Kennedy immigration proposal,

S1033/HR2330.

Which brings us back to electoral politics. Our elected officials must

be persuaded through the power of numbers to lift up the lamp to

Lazarus' golden door. If they refuse to do so, after we have spoken,

voters should show them a different door when they run for re-election,

the exit door.

Colgan, the son of a Cuban immigrant, is a partner in the Hampton Roads

law firm Colgan, Kimball and Carnes. He practices criminal and

immigration law. Send e-mail to colgan@....

Kimber J. tti, MSW

CARe Minority Outreach Coordinator

CARe: Communities Against Rape Iniative

Purdue University

615 West State Street

AGAD Room 214

West Lafayette, IN 47907

(765)494-6871

Fax: (765)496-7383