Immigration, Land Titles, and the courts: Thoughts on recent court cases, as brought to my attention by Jeff
Last week, the SPLC won a land title for two Salvadorians who had, according to the decision of the court, been detained and abused by a ranch owner on the Arizona border. The ranch had been "the headquarters of a paramilitary group that promised to use force to keep illegal immigrants from sneaking across the border."
I have no reason to disbelieve reports that vigilante groups were patroling the US-Mexican border, as it's something that was reported quite some time ago. In times of economic trouble, anti-immigrant sentiment tends to run higher. What troubles me, though, is that anti-immigrant sentiments are nothing new.
Some of you may know that, for a short time, I worked as a translator for a social service agency in London. We provided translation and assistance for speakers of Spanish and Portuguese who were seeking asylum or visa to the UK. During this time, I was able to assist people from all walks of life who had one thing in common: they were all from Spanish-speaking countries, and they all desperately needed to immigrate. Some examples:
* Luis, the father of twin girls who could not find childcare for his children so that he could work. Luis's wife was a bystander to a car bombing in their home country of Guatemala. Luis had been with his wife, and had witnessed the guerrillas planting the car bomb. When the bomb failed to kill him as well, the guerrillas came to his home and threatened to kill him if he told anyone what he saw. He had already spoken to the police, so he and his infant girls (who had been sleeping in the back seat of the car when their mother was killed) had to flee to England that night.
* Marisol, the workers' rights organizer and lesbian who had been tortured by her government because of her organizing and sexual orientation in El Salvador.
* Laura, the abused wife from Colombia who had been threatened by her local government because she dared to report her husband's beatings and refused to go back to him.
Obviously, I have some strong thoughts when it comes to immigration. And yet so many Americans think that we should close our borders to "those people," that they should know English before they arrive in the US, that asylum should no longer be granted, that Mexicans (and it's always the Mexicans that they site) are coming to the US to sponge off the welfare system,* and that all of our problems would go away if it just weren't for these damn immigrants.
But before you think that people are just hopping over the border for no good reason, consider the facts:
* Between 1980 and 1991, an estimated 75,000 people in El Salvador disappeared, presumably to extrajudicial executions, kidnappings, and forced inscription.
* Workers who attempt to organize into unions in Guatemala are faced with death threats every day.
* Over 1,000 women and girls have been kidnapped, raped, and brutally murdered in Guatemala. The government has investigated 9% of these crimes.
* In Honduras, indigenous peoples are regularly imprisoned for petitioning for equal rights to education, medical care, and property rights.
* Mexico is just now investigating the abductions of over 20 women from the areas of Chihuahua and Ciudad Juarez. The Mexican government found no need to investigate until recent outcries of US human rights groups, because many of these women were factory workers or prostitutes.
* In many parts of central Mexico, indigenous peoples are forbidden to receive an education past the fourth grade. They are also forbidden to be taught in their own languages, and must struggle through with Spanish instruction only.
* In Colombia, paramilitary groups regularly target private citizens and public workers.
* The 40 years of armed conflict in Colombia has left its women with a legacy of rape, violence, and abuse.
Is it any wonder that people are seeking asylum? Sure, things aren't perfect here--far from it, I would say. You may ask, "Fine then. Do you advocate just letting anyone in?" To that, I answer, yes. The asylum seeking policy of the US should be expanded to include escapees from violence (including political, sexual, psychological, and physical), or credible threats.** All other immigrants should hold to the same requirements as Canada--you must prove that you can make a contribution to the work force before obtaining a visa.
I find it ironic that the very people who complain that immigrants are "stealing all our jobs" are the same ones who don't want to do those jobs.***
What allows the Arizona judge to re-distribute the land to the workers in question is the recent Supreme Court ruling of Kelo et. al. v. the City of New London et. al. Land is allowed to be re-distributed by government entities if they serve the greater good. Apparently, taking land away from morons and giving it to non-US citizens is serving the greater good.
My question is: what good comes from redistributing land? It won't make any difference to the Salvadorians--for the rest of their lives, they will live with the abuse they suffered. It probably won't make any difference to the ranch owners--they owned the property for less than two years, and had paid in cash when they purchased it. My guess is that they have a very wealthy backer out there somewhere. And that's what worries me.
It's no use in getting upset about the ruling if nothing comes of it. It's no use getting upset at the treatment of the immigrants if nothing changes. What's worth being upset about is the fact that negative opinions about Spanish-speaking immigrants is so pervasive in this country, and I don't know what to do about it.
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Notes:
* Ask anyone who has ever been on welfare, and they can tell you that you don't get much, and it's certainly not enough to live on.
** Of course, it's hard to determine if a threat is credible until it happens. Then it's credible.
*** Undocumented workers are most frequently employed as domestic help, janitors, maids, and other low-paying, blue collar jobs.
