| IMMIGRANTS LEAVE THEIR MARK |
| Written by Maria Elena Salinas |
| Tuesday, May 09 2006 |
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| On the morning after the "Day Without Immigrants," several businesses across the country were looking to make up the losses they took as a result of the national economic boycott. Restaurants that had no customers. Factories whose production came to a halt. Farmers whose crops were not picked.
Hundreds of thousands of immigrants stayed home from work, more than a million immigrants marched on the streets of dozens of cities, some didn't send their kids to school, and an undetermined number didn't spend any money for the day. The intention was to show just how much the economy of this country depends on immigrants.
It's quite possible that if all immigrants in the United States, legal or not, had joined the boycott, the country would have suffered a major economic setback. But it didn't happen. Not because the boycott was a failure, but simply because people chose different ways to express their support for the immigrant cause: marching, attending rallies or merely offering moral support.
What is the immigrant cause? Rights. Not special privileges, not giveaways, not handouts — just basic human rights. The right to work and feed their families. The right to educate their kids. The right to not live in fear of being separated from their U.S.-born children. The right to be part of American society and contribute to its development and well-being.
Organizers of protests and marches across the country are hoping to influence Congress while it considers ways to overhaul our immigration laws. Although some of them would like to see the government offer amnesty to all undocumented workers, others go for a more realistic approach with legislation that would open the door to legalization even with the strictest of requirements.
Whether that was accomplished or not is difficult to gauge. For now, the ball is in the Senate's court. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist said the day after the boycott that the events of May 1 did not "affect what goes on the floor of the Senate." Of course, no one would expect the Republican senator to say he had been swayed by hundreds of thousands of protesters that included undocumented immigrants themselves. However, he did reiterate that there needs to be some kind of plan to bring an estimated 12 million people "out of the shadows."
There is a sector of our society that will never be persuaded to see the immigrant issue any other way than viewing undocumented immigrants as criminals and refusing to recognize their contributions to the U.S. economy and our society. They are people who are not capable of seeing the human side of immigration. They can be found all across the country and in the hallways of our government buildings. Some of them join the Minuteman Project; others go on cable television networks and conservative radio talk shows to denounce an "immigrant invasion."
Those who oppose illegal immigration go to great lengths to differentiate legal immigrants from those who are here illegally. However, in practical terms that does not work. Many of those who marched on the streets of cities across the country on May 1 were legal residents and U.S. citizens — people concerned for friends or family members, and those who have gone through the grueling legalization process and sympathize with those who are still in legal limbo.
On May 1, we saw immigrants from all over the world come out in support of immigrant rights. We saw U.S.-born children of undocumented parents, young people eager to have access to higher education. And yes, there were also professional protesters, anarchists and anti-war activists who will inevitably join an anti-establishment protest any time they can.
It might take some time to see the real effects of the "Day Without Immigrants," but one thing is for sure: The immigration debate is no longer on the back burner; it is at the forefront of American politics, and immigrants, legal or not, can no longer be ignored. Like many signs carried by protesters said: "Today we march: tomorrow we vote."
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(Maria Elena Salinas is the author of "I AM MY FATHER'S DAUGHTER: LIVING A LIFE WITHOUT SECRETS." Reach her at www.mariaesalinas.com) |
