May 1st shut down of major cities

[The_Dark]

May 1 immigrant boycott aims to 'close' cities

"There will be 2 to 3 million people hitting the streets in Los Angeles alone. We're going to close down Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, Tucson, Phoenix, Fresno," said Jorge Rodriguez, a union official who helped organize earlier rallies credited with rattling Congress as it debates the issue.

They vow that America's major cities will grind to a halt and its economy will stagger as Latinos walk off their jobs and skip school

[The_Dark]

With this in mind.. and the fact that these people will be flying the Mexican Flag while they make demands of our government... What should we do?

[phee]

Learn to speak Spanish?

[The_Dark]

I think I'll just clean my guns and wait for the civil war to start.

[torn asunder]

riot guns w/rubber bullets, tear gas, and the immigration police, with hundreds of buses on hand to deport as many illegals as possible. of course, the legal u.s. citizens have every right to march, as long as they don't turn violent...

but that's my solution to this whole illegal immigrant issue - deport the lot, and let them go thru the proper channels to get back in. (*any* illegals, not just those in the hispanic community...)

[Kit Kat P]

I work for a temp agency here that does staffing for everything from offices to restaruants. Almost every temp agency and business is scrambling in this area. Business are calling in w/ over half their staff called out "sick" for the last week and all of the next few weeks.

[phee]

This really irks me...

[Daevion]

So its ok if Americans protest in Mexico city flying the red, white and blue while making demands on the mexican government? I agree with Torn asunder on this, I mean how fucking dare they come into our country illegally and start making demands......perhaps its time to declare marshall law in these cities to show that these people that our goverment isn't going to bullied by people that arn't even citizens. What about those law abiding immigrants that spent all kinds of effort, time, money to obtain citizenship?.....this is a complete slap in the face to those who went thru the proper channels.

....I think everyone who walks out on work, school should be fired or expelled.

[phee]

So its ok if Americans protest in Mexico city flying the red, white and blue while making demands on the mexican government? I agree with Torn asunder on this, I mean how fucking dare they come into our country illegally and start making demands......perhaps its time to declare marshall law in these cities to show that these people that our goverment isn't going to bullied by people that arn't even citizens. What about those law abiding immigrants that spent all kinds of effort, time, money to obtain citizenship?.....this is a complete slap in the face to those who went thru the proper channels.

....I think everyone who walks out on work, school should be fired or expelled.

Agreed

And I also think that people who hire illegal immagrants should be deported with them.... (and yes I am serious about that)

[Daevion]

Agreed

And I also think that people who hire illegal immagrants should be deported with them.... (and yes I am serious about that)

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Your right, they condoned and made it so that hiring illegal workers was standard operating procedure....saying to them "don't worry about the INS, we do this all the time".

All those companies that profited on illegals did nothing but make the problem worse, now the issue is coming to a head and those companies that made themselves dependant on illegal workers are panicked now that their profits are in jeopardy.

[Der Nister]

I couldn't agree more with everyone here. These people (illegals and those that hire them) are not only disrespectful to our country but our harding working families as well.

What they should do is gather them up, lock them up for as long as they can and then ship them back. As for the companies that hire them knowing they are illegal they should have the profit fined outta their asses. I am so sick of hearing about "their rights" -- they have no rights as of yet and they aren't doing anything to help this country.

And a side note to these people - while they're sitting at home in Mexico, try learning English. Last time I checked it's what we speak in the United States.

[Head Wreck]

i find this amusing.

so let me get this right. non US citizens who are from a non VWS country come here without evan a 90 day tourists visa and then demand rights as a US citizen.

nope.

ship em back and let them go through channels.

i'd love to come to the US to work but i dont think i have the "imigration points" to do so.

[Steven]

fire every single one of them, thats what i'd do.

[phee]

fire every single one of them, thats what i'd do.

And the frackers that exploit the cheap labor... ship them out to the countries there workers came from and let them use the proper channels to get their citizenship back...

[Miranda]

If you think about it, this is a good way to round them up. If illegals are that stupid, heheh, la migra (INS) will clear it up quite well. They are silly if they try to attempt this. My people just don't get it. Get legal, learn English and do it the right way. They need to do some work in their country instead of abandoning it and moving on, that's just wrong. Why the fuck don't they do this in Mexico? Latinos are famous for being passive, this happening will surprise even me. This is old fashioned Kentucky windage probably. Jorge better hope his papers are in order.

[Steven]

If you think about it, this is a good way to round them up. If illegals are that stupid, heheh,  la migra (INS)  will clear it up quite well. They are silly if they try to attempt this. My people just don't get it. Get legal, learn English and do it the right way. They need to do some work in their country instead of abandoning it and moving on, that's just wrong. Why the fuck don't they do this in Mexico? Latinos are famous for being passive, this happening will surprise even me. This is old fashioned Kentucky windage probably. Jorge better hope his papers are in order.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Odale Pues chica.

[Der Nister]

so let me get this right. non US citizens who are from a non VWS country come here without evan a 90 day tourists visa and then demand rights as a US citizen.

nope.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

You got it right.

I don't have issues with anyone wanting to live here as long as they're legal and paying taxes like the rest of us. My great grandparents on my dad's side of the family came here from Germany and went through Elis Island like others did. It's just the right thing to do.

[Msterbeau]

-- they have no rights as of yet and they aren't doing anything to help this country.

They do provide one thing that many people take advantage of. Cheap labor. If they all go, the price of the labor they provide WILL go up and so too the price of goods and services in which they are involved.

That said, I'm mostly in agreement with everyone here. I'm first generation American. My parents imiigrated legally into the country. Why should all these people get the benefits of living here when they came illegally. Why don't people try fixing what's broke in their own country before going elsewhere? I can understand leaving because of religious or political persecusion... I would certainly have empathy for people who got here illegally for those reasons. But just to make a better life and make money? Nope. They are taxing our hospitals and other agencies to the breaking point yet they make no contribution to pay for those services and that effects every one of us.

Come in legally or get out. If they want to stay, make em pay back taxes and fines.

[Miranda]

They do provide one thing that many people take advantage of.  Cheap labor.  If they all go, the price of the labor they provide WILL go up and so too the price of goods and services in which they are involved.

That said, I'm mostly in agreement with everyone here.  I'm first generation American.  My parents imiigrated legally into the country.  Why should all these people get the benefits of living here when they came illegally.  Why don't people try fixing what's broke in their own country before going elsewhere?  I can understand leaving because of religious or political persecusion... I would certainly have empathy for people who got here illegally for those reasons.  But just to make a better life and make money?  Nope.  They are taxing our hospitals and other agencies to the breaking point yet they make no contribution to pay for those services and that effects every one of us.

Come in legally or get out.  If they want to stay, make em pay back taxes and fines.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Like I was saying if people in Mexico are that outraged, take to the streets, like you do here. That's your home. You left it, it didn't leave you. It's about being complacent and getting balls in the wrong country. It's gonna have to get harsh , there are illegals everywhere and they are having babies as fast as they can, so it fucks things up even more when their child is born here. I read it was at 2,000,000 in children born to illegals in the last few years. Our healthcare is getting ravaged here by all illegals... from Mexico or otherwise. My parents were born here and their parent's were , my fathers grandfather is from Monterrey , Mexico. No idea how he got here, never met him.

[Reaper]

If you think about it, this is a good way to round them up. If illegals are that stupid, heheh,  la migra (INS)  will clear it up quite well. They are silly if they try to attempt this. My people just don't get it. Get legal, learn English and do it the right way. They need to do some work in their country instead of abandoning it and moving on, that's just wrong. Why the fuck don't they do this in Mexico? Latinos are famous for being passive, this happening will surprise even me. This is old fashioned Kentucky windage probably. Jorge better hope his papers are in order.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Because of things that intimidate people like this:

[Miranda]

Because of things that intimidate people like this:

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I either need to wake up more because that went over my head completely.I didn't say go bandito.. you can protest like a human being. I don't understand the weapons reference.

[Steven]

Like I was saying if people in Mexico are that outraged, take to the streets, like you do here. That's your home. You left it, it didn't leave you. It's about being complacent and getting balls in the wrong country. It's gonna have to get harsh , there are illegals everywhere and they are having babies as fast as they can, so it fucks things up even more when their child is born here. I read it was at 2,000,000 in children born to illegals in the last few years. Our healthcare is getting ravaged here by all illegals... from Mexico or otherwise. My parents were born here and their parent's were , my fathers grandfather is from Monterrey , Mexico. No idea how he got here, never met him.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I agree completely.

I'm 2nd generation Mexican American.

A taxpayer

and a US Army Veteran. I pay my dues as a citizen, a legal citizen.

My Grandparents ahve dual citzenship. They did it the hard way - the legal way - and they represent with pride - how things should be done.

Its not about menial jobs, or being a vigilate. Its about respect for self and the country your trying to assimilate with. I grew up in every Barrio in So Cal. And I remember the onslaught of illegal immagrents form Mexico everywhere, flying the Mexican flag, demanding their RIGHTS, yet making no effort whatsoever to assimilate. Use the system properly. LEARN THE FREAKIN LANGUAGE, and give the locals their due respect who's ahrd earned income goes to pay for your welfare and healthcare.

[Miranda]

Raid Rumors Spark Fear Among Immigrants

By LAURA WIDES-MUNOZ, Associated Press Writer 1 hour, 3 minutes ago

MIAMI - Rumors of immigration roundups have prompted thousands of illegal immigrants to stay home this week and are making some afraid to participate in a national immigration protest planned for Monday.

Though federal immigration officials said they were unfounded, rumors of random sweeps were rampant from coast to coast Friday, prompting thousands of immigrants to stay home from work, take their children out of school and avoid church.

The absences caused the rumors to build, as some thought their missing friends and co-workers had been arrested. Construction and agriculture were among the industries most affected.

Len Mills, executive vice president of the Associated General Contractors of South Florida, said he estimated at least 50 percent of workers on construction jobs in the region hadn't shown up for work. He said he believed even some legal workers were afraid.

"This is costing millions of dollars a day, and I don't know who is going to pay for it," he said.

Katie A. Edwards, executive director of Florida's Dade County Farm Bureau, said nearly a third of farmworkers didn't come to the fields earlier in the week.

Mari Ramos, a Peruvian nanny whose tourist visa ran out in 2003, listened when friends warned her not to take public transportation or risk arrest.

"That's when I became nervous. I stopped going to my night job," the 36-year-old Miami woman said.

"Everybody's edgy," said Chris Ruske, owner of a southern New Jersey nursery. "People are worried, and we're worried. There's an awful lot of rhetoric, and you wonder what's true. You wonder if the immigration Gestapo are coming to get you."

Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesman Dean Boyd said the agency has received hundreds of calls in recent days asking about immigration raids. He said such rumors were typical after a raid like the one last week in which more than 1,000 employees of pallet manufacturer IFCO were arrested at more than 40 company sites nationwide.

But he added, "any suggestions that our standard, day to day law enforcement actions are timed or being staged to retaliate are absolutely false."

ICE officials acknowledged they have stepped up arrests under their "Operation Phoenix," an existing program to find and deport fugitive illegal immigrants with criminal backgrounds.

Many wondered whether the rumors would deter people from national immigration protests planned for Monday.

"It is the ugliest of rumors because it has intimidated people who are already afraid. They are living in the shadows of society, wondering who is going to knock on the door," said the Rev. Allan Ramirez, pastor of the Brookville Dutch Reform Church in Long Island, N.Y.

In Tuscaloosa, Ala., organizers of an annual Hispanic festival scheduled for Sunday briefly considered canceling it.

The National Immigration Law Center called on organizations across the country to sign a petition urging ICE to assure the public that it will not engage in any immigration arrests during Monday's protests.

The agency said its policy is not to discuss potential operations. "ICE will continue to operate as it does every day of the year," Boyd said.

Elias Bermudez, an activist and talk show host for a Spanish-language radio station in Phoenix, said many believe they are being punished for participating in recent protests in favor of legalizing the status of many illegal immigrants.

"Some people in our community think we're getting payback," he said.

The rumors affected a wide variety of businesses. In New Jersey and New York, day-laborer gathering sites drew only a trickle of workers.

In southern New Mexico, construction industry leaders said an unknown number of immigrant workers did not show up to work over fears of being rounded up, setting back plans for the Las Cruces Home Builders Association's spring Showcase of Homes next month.

In the rural town of Homestead, Fla., more than a dozen parents lined up early to take their kids out of Redondo Elementary School Wednesday for fear of a raid, said activist Jonathan Fried, who heads the nonprofit "We Count!"

"It's caused tremendous fear in our community, like I've never seen before," Fried said.

On Friday, ICE announced the arrests of 106 illegal immigrant fugitives and 19 immigration status violators throughout the Midwest over the last 10 days. Of those, 46 had criminal records, according to the department. Earlier this week, ICE announced the arrest of 183 fugitives in Florida alone.

The American Immigration Lawyers Association said Friday it believes some of the concerns may have been fueled by confusion over a widespread fugitive roundup by the U.S. Marshals Service. That roundup lead to more than 9,000 arrests of people wanted for a number of crimes, and ICE assisted in the effort but it said most of those detained were U.S. citizens.

Boyd said the agency makes arrests on a daily basis. "However, we don't conduct random sweeps. All our arrests are the result of investigations, evidence and intelligence," he said.

Source: Associated Press

[Reaper]

I either need to wake up more because that went over my head completely.I didn't say go bandito.. you can protest like a human being. I don't  understand the weapons reference.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The point of my reference is that the mexican government overshadows everything they do. If you do anything that deems threatening to the government they lock you up. If they can do it to a simple american who brings in a pocket gun and imprison him immediately, then they surely can oppress the mexicans in what they do. I have seen it enough when I would cross over the border. The mexican military is all over the borders with machine guns riding around in groups around town. I wish I had a photo of the two jeeps I saw parading around the night time with guns in hand like it was war. And they were not smiling.

[Miranda]

The point of my reference is that the mexican government overshadows everything they do.  If you do anything that deems threatening to the government they lock you up.  If they can do it to a simple american who brings in a pocket gun and imprison him immediately, then they surely can oppress the mexicans in what they do.  I have seen it enough when I would cross over the border.  The mexican military is all over the borders with machine guns riding around in groups around town.  I wish I had a photo of the two jeeps I saw parading around the night time with guns in hand like it was war.  And they were not smiling.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I see what you mean.Too bad all they show of Mexico is the tourist traps. Not the children begging for change in tattered clothes on every corner.