Anti-BVBL

> From CVDNVA.org - The Center for Voter Deliberation of Northern Virginia

A reminder: You are invited to an information meeting on Study Circles on immigration in the Prince William County area. The meeting is Saturday September 27, from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m., at the George Mason University Prince William campus, in the Bull Run Building, Room 130 (1st floor). Parking is available in the King Lot.

Register, or just to learn more

GMU/PW campus map

Study Circles are facilitated community conversations that help us better understand all sides of the immigration issue, build relationships across groups, and develop action plans and policies based on common ground.

We believe the community needs a respectful, honest and productive conversation about immigration. We hope you can join us at GMU/PW on September 27.

Sincerely,

Charvis Campbell
George Mason University - Prince William

Beth Offenbacker & Bill Corbett
Center for Voter Deliberation of Northern Virginia

To read the full press release, visit - http://www.citizensovereignty.com/princewilliam/PressRelease9-14-8.pdf.

Quick Note: The Study Circles are Confidential and WILL NOT BE FILMED.

An article in the Gainesville Times today provides an intelligent, in-depth review of the 9500Liberty special screening to explain the April 29th roll-back of the Immigration Resolution.

For those who were not there last Friday, there is another screening in the works for next week, probably Thursday. In the mean time, here is the more popular of two clips on the 9500Liberty channel, even though the other one is more interesting:

I feel like this was a much more inquisitive piece of writing. The MJM article focused on varying reactions while this article focused on the content of the film:

The film had its share of suspense and drama, even for those who were familiar with the outcomes of each board vote.

Nohe is presented at some points in a fashion similar to a reality television show star who sits in front of a camera and talks about what was going through his mind in between clips of a particular situation.

His most prominent role comes during the climax when the board was trying to decide on a tax rate. At the centerpiece of the funding issue was the $3.1 million price tag to put video cameras in police cars. Deane has asked for the cameras to allow officers to fight the inevitable lawsuits based on charges of racial profiling.

“The whole program’s getting unbelievably expensive,” said Nohe.

Part of the problem was that the resolution had changed several times since its inception.

Originally, it called for police to check the immigration status of every person stopped for a violation. It was later changed to allow police to check the immigration status if the officer has probable cause to believe that the suspect is an illegal immigrant. That variation is the one that prompted the chief to ask for cameras in the police cars.

In order to pay for the cameras, the real estate tax rate would have had to be set at 98.7 cents per $100 of assessed value. After the 98.7 rate failed on a 4-4 vote, Principi asked for a 97-cent rate on a motion to eliminate the cameras and require all immigration checks to be done post-arrest.

That failed 7-1.

Viewers find out here that during a behind-the-scenes meeting between Stewart and Principi, the Republican chairman asked the Democrat to go back on his resolution.

“There’s not a hell’s worth of chance that I would oppose it,” the Woodbridge supervisor said he responded, later adding that since their break, he had the five votes needed to get a similar version of his motion passed with fewer cameras and all immigration checks moved to post-arrest.

It passed unanimously, leading Principi, who once said the illegal immigration resolution was “essentially failing,” to tell the filmmakers on camera, “I’m going to declare victory and go home.”

The post-arrest scenario, which is what was finally adopted, means that after a person has been charged with a crime, police will investigate their immigration status. Since every person charged will be checked, there is less concern about racial-profiling complaints.

An invitation from the desk of Alice Foltz - Community Outreach Committee, Wellspring Church
As part of an ongoing ‘Immigration Dialogue’ in Fairfax County :

How does Fairfax County respond to overcrowded housing?

What happens to the immigrants and other low-income families who are forced out?
These questions and others related to housing and demographics in Fairfax Co. will be the lead-off topics at the Immigration dialogue this Thursday, March 27,  7-9 p.m. at Sully Government Center, 4900 Stonecroft Dr.,Chantilly.

David Ellis, community relations director for the County administrator, and members of the Housing Strike Force,  will be on hand to describe their work and answer questions about housing and eviction procedures in Fairfax Co.

Also on the program will be Tim Freilich, an attorney for the Legal Aid Justice Center, will present a summary of immigrant-related legislation at the recently-adjourned General Assembly.

Join us as we continue to work on bringing facts to the discussion of immigration policy,  to strengthen our community.

Chairman Stewart repeatedly claims that the resolution is intended to capture criminals who have committed crimes on top of violating federal immigration law.  No problem with that right?  Deport the criminals.  But what about police inquiring into the status of someone playing music too loud?  Surely that couldn’t happen, but yet according to the DC Examiner it has.  Claims that there would be no Gestapo knocking on your door asking for your papers are now suspect.

Virginia can now follow in Arizona’s footsteps by asking immigrants to return after they have been told to leave.  Now this is almost too funny.  First, we tell them to go, and now need them to return.  According to this Washington Post article, entitled - ‘2 States Consider Guest-Worker Programs‘, Colorado and Arizona legislators are now under labor shortages and are investigating ways to ‘obtain their own foreign labor.’ 

Republican state Rep. Bill Konopnicki, a restaurant owner and an author of the bill, said the labor shortage in Arizona had been mounting for several years. It grew worse after passage of a new state law that punishes businesses for knowingly hiring illegal immigrants. That law has pressured many immigrants to leave.

 You know this reminds me of a song by The Clash: Should I Stay or Should I go?

Should I stay or should I go now?
Should I stay or should I go now?
If I go there will be trouble
An’ if I stay it will be double
So come on and let me know!

This indecision’s bugging me
If you don’t want me, set me free
Exactly who’m I’m supposed to be
Don’t you know which clothes even fit me?
Come on and let me know
Should I stay or should I go?

Is it just me or is this insanity?  We’re going to ask them to leave so we can ask them to return.  Here’s a radical idea - Let’s ask them to stay!  If they’ve been here a decade, pay taxes and aren’t criminals - put them on a path to legalization.

Some people have a difficult time accepting that the federal government might have some ’paperwork problems.’  Why is this so hard to believe?  Is it because the federal government has done such a wonderful job in taking care of things like finding Bin Laden.  Because it’s now seven years later and they still haven’t found him.  Or is it because the federal government did such a good job of taking care of our citizens after Hurricane Katrina, does that instill some confidence in their abilities.  No?  Well, then how about the Department of Housing and Urban Development, surely the affordable housing that’s available, and our strong fraud-proof mortgage system is evidence that they are doing their jobs.  No? But surely the Department of Transportation has done a lot to decrease your commute times and the FAA makes sure that your flights arrive and depart on-time.  Then there’s the IRS which Huckabee suggested replacing with a fair-tax system but the same attorneys that wrote the tax code probably had a part in writing our immigration code which is equally as convoluted.  Do I need to continue?

Read more »

From Sunday’s Washington Post, - ‘Speaking Spanglish‘

Ruben Diaz, aka Ol’ Skool Ru, and Carlos Martinez, aka Ghetto Fama, record “Mi Vida,” a song about the plight of Latino immigrants in America.  These are US citizens living in Prince William and thought it important that their position be presented. 

These are some of the lyrics that I understand.

Its a long trip to the states
when we get here we …
make sure you go out and vote
we need a change in this world
they’re trying to kick us out

I might vote for Obama
‘Cause he looks like my homie
But he keep talkin’ ’bout English only
No drama, I speak Spanglish
¿Por que? That’s who I be.

we’re gonna make it through this racist life

One thing that does strike me is how the kids are fighting to attain the American dream and we’re making them carry around their birth certificates and passports. How many of us have them in the glove box? Another sad aspect is the level of animosity that is being directed at these people.  Reading through the comments section is tough, people can be mean.

The notion that the ‘illegal invasion’ is starting in Northern Virginia is absurd especially when coupled with the assertion that ‘they are not here to work.’  Interestingly, a study has been conducted by UVa’s Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service entitled -‘Hispanic Immigrants and Citizens in Virginia.’ in which ‘the hypotheses of a strong labor migration’ is confirmed.

According to the study, Hispanics represent six percent of the population in the state of Virginia, compared to 15% in the United States.  However, what’s interesting is the concentration of Hispanics in Northern Virginia.  According to the report, Hispanics in Manassas Park comprise 30% of the population, Manassas City - 27%, Prince William - 9%, Arlington - 16%, Fairfax City - 13%, Alexandria 13%, and Fairfax County - 13%. Outside of Northern Virginia, three other spots in Virginia appear to have greater than 10% concentration of Hispanics, those areas being: Harrsisonburg, Winchester and Galax City which is in the south western part of the state.

The study analyzes United States Census Bureau data to ‘describe growth trends, characteristics and life in Virginia for resident Hispanics.’ 

Several points can be drawn from this study.

First, the majority of Hispanics present in Virginia are U.S. citizens. Forty percent are immigrants, including both authorized and unauthorized.

Second, when compared to the population overall, Hispanic immigrants are less educated, poorer, more likely to lack health insurance, and live in larger households. Their lower socio-economic status, however, does not necessarily make them heavy recipients of welfare and subsidies. Other than WIC, job training, and rent and school lunch subsidies, Hispanic immigrants receive very little or none of most other welfare programs. They tend to pool and share resources (such as housing and vehicles) with family and non-family members to reduce costs and risks. Hispanic immigrants are young and make up a significant portion of low-skilled, yet fast-growing, occupational sectors.

Third, adult Hispanic citizens do better than the overall population in terms of educational attainment and household income. They are well represented in all occupational sectors, and over-represented in Virginia’s military.
Fourth, cultural and socio-economic assimilation takes place over generations among Hispanic citizens and immigrants, with citizens doing especially well. While 60 percent of Hispanic citizens have at least one parent foreign-born, they speak English well. And while nearly 30 percent of adult citizens are first-generation (having both parents foreign-born), they share many characteristics with the overall population – they speak, educate, work and transport like typical Virginians. English proficiency among Hispanic immigrants improves as their years in the U.S. increase.

Finally, cultural values and traditions continue to influence Hispanics’ way of life. Households headed by Hispanic citizens, for example, tend to be bigger and are more likely to have co-residing relatives and non-relatives than Virginia’s households overall. The extent, however, is not as great as that for immigrants.
Virginia’s Hispanic population is complex, varied, and deeply engaged in significant sectors of the Virginia economy. Its presence in the overall population is likely to increase in the future years. According to the Virginia Employment Commission’s projections, Virginia’s Hispanic population will double between 2006 and 2030 as a result of both natural increase (births minus deaths) and migration to the Commonwealth. A thorough understanding of this population’s composition and characteristics provides a factual framework for policy deliberations.

This video was distributed by Supervisor Stirrup’s office prior to the July 2007 resolution, presumably to garnish support for the ‘Immigration Resolution’.  It appears to be a very popular piece of propoganda in the anti-immigrant debate but to use it for justifying in an ‘anti-illegal’ debate by individuals claiming to be ‘pro-immigrant’ is a concern.

It appears that the underlying factor motivating many people especially with respect to the Federation for American Immigration Reform(FAIR) is a concern about ‘population growth control’.  This video never identifies the speaker or the organization of which he represents but his name is Roy Beck, Executive Director of NumbersUSA.

 In terms of disputing the claims made in the video, the following was stated -

The gumball thing was cute but his charts are total b.s. His “red” dangerous population growth attributable to immigrants includes the descendents of immigrants who arrived post-1970. Descendents aren’t immigrants. By 2050, the great grandchildren of 1970s immigrants are included in the red portion. Are the great grandchildren of immigrants immigrants themselves? No. Are they part of the “immigration problem?” I myself am the great grandchild of an immigrant who came from Ireland 90 years ago. Am I part of the “immigration problem?” If he selected 1790 for his arbitrary start date rather than 1970, I’m sure about 98% of the American population would be in the red area.

Also, in the very beginning, he talks about how our infrastructure has had to double because immigration has doubled the population growth #. Immigration may have doubled our growth (maybe, i’m not sure), but it didn’t double the entire population (which = the demand for services). The demand for roads is growing astronomically not because there are tons of new immigrants on the roads, but all of us drive much more now and over greater distances now than we did 30 years ago.

Also, as he mentioned, about 200 million Americans are missing from his chart, in a green area you’ll have to imagine below where he cuts it off. It makes his eye-popping order of magnitude a bit exaggerated.

I’m not saying that the guy is entirely wrong in what his point is. But it’s not the most convincing argument, and if you aren’t distracted by the pretty colors and cute gumballs you’ll see that it’s not at all objective and presented in a manner of exaggeration to get a reaction.

Again, one of the problems w/the red line is that it includes people who are not ‘immigrants’.  The people who are not ‘immigrants’ are descendants of immigrants.  The red line represents future population increase in the U.S. attributable to current immigration presumably both legal & illegal.  My question is why is it that he is not considered a descendant of an immigrant?  For example, if we were to go back to 1700 and start the red line there, then just about everyone in the U.S. would be descendants of post-1700 immigrants.

In my opinion this video poses many difficulties and should not be taken at face value.