UNION CITY! 06/08/2010

TODAY'S LABOR NEWS Capitol Tour Staff Begin Historic Push To Unionize Sheraton Workers To Picket Wednesday Lilo Gonzalez To Headline "I'll Be There Awards" Today's Labor History ON THE LINE Wednesday, June 9 4:30P: NoVA Hotel Workers Rally Against Union-Busting Wednesday, June 9 7P: NLC Book Signing - "A Shameful Business: The Case For Human Rights In The American Workplace" Tuesday, June 8, 2010 CAPITOL TOUR STAFF BEGIN HISTORIC PUSH TO UNIONIZE: For the first time in the 134 years since Congress' Capitol Guide Service was created, Congressional tour guides and visitor assistants "began efforts last week to form a union, citing concerns over the management practices at the Capitol Visitor Center," reports Roll Call. "Eighteen CVC employees sent letters Thursday to about 30 Members of Congress and Architect of the Capitol Stephen Ayers, explaining their plans to form a union under the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees." AFSCME Council 26's Executive Director Carl Goldman told Union City that concerns voiced by the workers include "having insufficient access to water, lack of protective clothing during winter, and not being given time on the job to do research, effectively forcing the workers to keep up on Congressional issues and history in their own time." Since the Capitol Visitor Center opened in 2008, the Architect of the Capitol now employs almost 60 guides and over 70 visitor assistants who lead groups of tourists through the Capitol. Click here for the full story. - photo courtesy Antonio Zamora SHERATON WORKERS TO PICKET WEDNESDAY: Northern Virginia hotel workers – who have been organizing for over a year – will rally outside the Sheraton Crystal City Hotel in Arlington this Wednesday at 4:30P. "After a year of struggle including intimidation, supply shortages, protests, and the firing of a union supporter, the hotel's owner, HEI, has still not accepted the demand for a fair, democratic process for unionizing," says DC Jobs with Justice Lead Organizer Mackenzie Baris. "We're going to keep fighting until our workers get treated with dignity and respect," adds UNITE HERE Organizer Mike Hachey. Email mhachey@unitehere.org for more information. - photo: at the Sheraton workers' rally in July 2009; photo by Adam Wright LILO GONZALEZ TO HEADLINE "I'LL BE THERE AWARDS": Singer-songwriter Lilo Gonzalez (r) and DC hip-hop artist Head-Roc will provide the entertainment at DC Jobs with Justice's "I'll Be There Awards" this Thursday. "Lilo has been composing and singing for over 20 years," says DC JwJ Organizer Ruth Castel-Branco. "Among his many credits, Lilo won second place for the Latin category of the 1991 Billboard Song Contest with his song 'Forjando un Solo Pueblo' and received the Wammie Award for 'Best Latin Vocalist' for many years." There's still time to sign up as a "Workers' Rights Defender" ($100), Mass Mobilizer ($250), Movement Builder ($500) or Solidarity Superstar ($750). Sponsors will be recognized in the Awards program; the deadline for sponsorships is today at 5P. For more information, or to become a sponsor, email rcastel@dclabor.org or call 202-974-8281. - photo courtesy Takoma Voice TODAY'S LABOR HISTORY: A battle between the Militia and striking miners at Dunnville, Colo. ended with six union members dead and 15 taken prisoner. Seventy-nine of the strikers were deported to Kansas two days later (1904); Some 35,000 members of the Machinists union begin what is to become a 43-day strike – the largest in airline history – against five carriers. The mechanics and other ground service workers wanted to share in the airlines' substantial profits (1966); The earliest recorded strike by Chinese immigrants to the U.S. occurred when stonemasons brought to San Francisco to build the three-story Parrott granite building - made from Chinese prefabricated blocks - struck for higher pay (1852); New York City drawbridge tenders, in a dispute with the state over pension issues, leave a dozen bridges open, snarling traffic in what the Daily News described as "the biggest traffic snafu in the city's history" (1971); More info & ammo for unionists is available online from Union Communication Services. - photo: the Brooklyn Bridge comes to a stand-still in 1980 as striking transit workers shut down much of New York City, causing traffic chaos similar to that in 1971; photo courtesy Wired New York Follow DC Labor on Twitter! Material published in UNION CITY may be freely reproduced by any recipient; please credit the Council as the source. Published by the Metropolitan Washington Council, an AFL-CIO "Union City" Central Labor Council whose 200 affiliated union locals represent 150,000 area union members. JOSLYN N. WILLIAMS, PRESIDENT. Story suggestions, event announcements, campaign reports, Letters to the Editor and other material are welcome, subject to editing for clarity and space, and should be directed to: Editor: Chris Garlock Assistant Editor: Adam Wright streetheat@dclabor.org Voice: 202-974-8153 Fax: 202-974-8152 Forward UNION CITY! to all your friends and colleagues or click here to spread the word! If you received this message from a friend, you can sign up for UNION CITY!. This message was sent to ymerino@liuna.org. Visit your Subscription Management Page to modify your email communication preferences or update your personal profile. To stop ALL email from UNION CITY!, click to Unsubscribe yourself from our lists (or reply via email with "remove or unsubscribe" in the subject line). Privacy Policy

--
Ngullen Rivera
Chief of Staff
Laborers Local 78
30 Cliff Street, 6th Floor
New York, NY 10038
(C) 917.731.8392
(F) 212.406.1800

[NY Immigration Reform Update]

56 Arrested in 3rd and Largest Round of Civil Disobedience for Immigration Reform

Thanks to all who joined the 3rd Civil Disobedience Action in front of 26 Federal Plaza in Manhattan. Yesterday, 56 labor, community, faith and elected leaders were arrested in an act of civil disobedience to call on President Obama and Congress to enact just, humane and comprehensive immigration reform, stop the deportations, and stop SB1070. We thank the courageous participants and supporters who came out yesterday!

Below is yesterday’s press release, press coverage highlights, and the list of 56 CD participants. More details coming very soon re: next steps.

Frances
The New York Immigration Coalition

News Release

56 ARRESTED IN THIRD AND LARGEST ROUND OF CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE

FOR IMMIGRATION REFORM IN NEW YORK

109 arrests during three weeks of civil disobedience actions

June 1, 2010, New York City. Fifty-six New Yorkers were arrested in front of 26 Federal Plaza in lower Manhattan today, the third in a series of civil disobedience actions in New York aimed at highlighting the growing human tragedy and unsustainable moral crisis caused by a broken U.S. immigration system badly in need of reform.

The participants, which included local clergy, labor, elected, and community leaders, linked arms and stepped into the middle of Broadway, bringing traffic in front of the federal building to a standstill as they sang the traditional protest hymn, “We Shall Overcome.” Today’s arrests raised the total number of New Yorkers arrested for civil disobedience over the past three weeks to 109. Three elected officials were arrested today: City Council Members Daniel Dromm, Julissa Ferreras, and Brad Lander.

The tone of today’s event was decidedly more critical of the Obama administration than in the past, as participants denounced President Obama’s announcement last week that he will send 1,200 National Guard troops to the U.S.-Mexico border and call for $500 million for increased enforcement measures. Speakers urged the President and Congress to move away from these tried-and-failed enforcement tactics and instead take legislative action to make just and humane immigration reform a reality this year. Speakers called on the Obama administration to place a moratorium on deportations and intervene to stop Arizona’s SB1070 law.

With 109 arrests, New York is playing a lead role in a growing national movement of nonviolent civil disobedience for immigration reform. Recent civil disobedience actions also have taken place in Chicago, Washington, Los Angeles, Tucson, Detroit, San Francisco, and Seattle. Participants said their actions carry on the great tradition of peaceful non-violent resistance in the face of grave injustice, as practiced by Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr.

The series of civil disobedience actions began on May 17^th, when 16 New Yorkers were arrested. The following week, 37 were arrested in a similar action. Several elected officials were arrested in those actions: City Council Members Ydanis Rodriguez, Jumaane D. Williams, and Melissa Mark-Viverito, and State Assembly Member Adriano Espaillat.

The message of today’s event was carried on the protesters signs: “Immigration Reform NOW!” “Stop Tearing Families Apart!” “Obama: We Voted for Change, Not This!” Attendees noted the incredible diversity of the participants, and that the coming-together of people from all walks of life for civil disobedience is something that has not been seen since the protests around the killing by police of Amadou Diallo ten years ago.

The recent civil disobedience actions mark an escalation in tactics by reform advocates nationwide. They follow a March 21^st rally in the nation’s capital that drew over 200,000, and May 1^st rallies that turned out hundreds of thousands across the nation. Despite these massive showings, leaders in Washington still have failed to produce reform legislation, prolonging the moral and humanitarian crisis facing our nation over its broken immigration system.

* * * * *

Participants released the following joint statement concerning today’s civil disobedience action:

“Being conscientiously of opinion that our current immigration laws betray our core principles of democracy, inclusiveness and justice; that they allow for Arizona’s immoral and unconstitutional SB1070; and that their continued enforcement through detention and deportation separates families and destroys communities; we are compelled to escalate our call for Comprehensive Immigration Reform in the face of inaction from our nation’s elected representatives.

“Today we stand in solidarity with the millions who contribute to our communities and economy while being denied full access to them. Our act of civil disobedience is performed with the belief that our laws can—and should—be better, and that our nation’s leaders cannot stand on the sidelines as our society’s core values are betrayed by a broken and immoral immigration system.

“We invite the enforcement of the law upon ourselves in the hope that our arrest today will be the catalyst for principled leadership from the President and Congress and for meaningful Comprehensive Immigration Reform that will put an end to the arrests and other mistreatments faced by our friends, families, congregations, and communities.”

—Unity Statement Signed by Those Arrested

1. City Council Member Daniel Dromm
2. City Council Member Julissa Ferreras
3. City Council Member Brad Lander
4. Roberto Ramirez, President, Puerto Rican Bar Association, Former Member of NYS Assembly
5. Guillermo Linares, Former Commissioner, Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs, and Former City Council Member
6. Edison Severino, Business Manager, LIUNA Local 78
7. Minerva Solla, Vice President, SEIU 1199
8. Victor Rivera, Vice President, SEIU 1199
9. Michael Myerson, Director of Communications, SEIU 1199
10. Florence Johnson, SEIU 1199
11. Johnnie Patterson, SEIU 32BJ
12. Andrew Friedman, SEIU 32BJ
13. Alvin Carter, SEIU 32BJ
14. Melissa Amernick, SEIU 32BJ
15. Anne Lessy, SEIU 32BJ
16. Gabriel Thompson, SEIU 32BJ
17. Allison Hirsh, SEIU 32BJ
18. Steven Choi, Executive Director, MinKwon Center for Community Action
19. Jennifer Kim, Vice President, MinKwon Center for Community Action
20. Liz Chong Eun Rhee, Worker Associate, MinKwon Center for Community Action
21. Jenna Ness, Development Associate, MinKwon Center for Community Action
22. James Hong, Civic Participation Outreach Coordinator, MinKwon Center for Community Action
23. Grace Meng, Steering Committee Member, Korean Americans for Political Advancement
24. Kris Pak, Queens Community House & Korean Americans for Political Advancement
25. Bakary Tandia, African Services Committee and Steering Committee Member, NYS Immigration Reform Campaign
26. Jonathan Tasini, Economic Future Group
27. Yasmine Farhang, Raha Iranian Women’s Collective
28. Larry Moskowitz, Coordinator, Left Labor Project
29. Daniel Huang, Chinese Progressive Association
30. Juan Villar, High School Principal, Gregorio Luperon High School
31. Rev. Susan Karlsen, Unitarian Universalist Minister, Unitarian Church of Staten Island
32. Joe Thomasberger, Unitarian Universalist Congregation at Montclair, NJ New Sanctuary Committee
33. Mariana R. Gaston, Member of Council of Supervisors and Administrators, AFL-CIO
34. Emmanuel Caicedo, Organizer, Working Families
35. Rachel Soltis, New Sanctuary Coalition of New York City
36. Yul-san Liem, Nodutdol for Korean Community Development
37. Desiree Pilgrim-Hunter, Community Leader, Northwest Bronx Community & Clergy Coalition
38. Dennis Chin, Center for Community Change
39. Felton Davis, Catholic Worker
40. Eli Kent, Director of Organizing, LIUNA Local 78
41. Tania Salinas, LIUNA Local 78
42. Abraham Hernandez, LIUNA Local 78
43. Krzysztof Walek, LIUNA Local 78
44. Sebastion Sokolowski, LIUNA Local 78
45. Fabio Morales, LIUNA Local 78
46. Jorge Roldan, LIUNA Local 78
47. Manuel Ortiz, LIUNA Local 78
48. Bob Greenberg, Member, United Federation of Teachers
49. Hector Ruiz, United Federation of Teachers
50. Nicholas Cruz, United Federation of Teachers
51. David Kazanski, United Federation of Teachers
52. Jose Vargas, United Federation of Teachers
53. Margaret Burrelli, United Federation of Teachers
54. Jonathan Moore
55. Umberto Citrone
56. Juan Antigua

The New York actions were spearheaded by Churches United to Save and Heal (CUSH) in partnership with the New York Immigration Coalition, SEIU 1199, SEIU 32BJ, New Sanctuary Coalition of NYC, The Black Institute, New York Communities for Change, New York State Immigration Reform Campaign, Families for Freedom, New Agenda for Broad Immigration Reform, Art for Change, Hudson Valley Community Coalition, LIUNA Local 79, LIUNA Local 78, MinKwon Center for Community Action, New York Faith and Justice, New York State Interfaith Network for Immigration Reform, United Federation of Teachers and many supporting organizations.

# # #

Frances Liu

New York State Director, Reform Immigration for America Campaign
Immigration Advocacy Field Coordinator, The New York Immigration Coalition

137-139 W. 25th Street, 12th Floor

New York, NY 10001

Tel: 212-627-2227 x246

Fax: 212-627-9314

Email: FLiu@thenyic.org

Obama to send more National Guard troops to U.S.-Mexico border

By Michael D. Shear
Washington Post staff writer
Tuesday, May 25, 2010; 4:10 PM

President Obama will deploy an additional 1,200 National Guard troops to the southern border and request $500 million in extra money for border security, according to an administration official. The decision comes as the White House is seeking Republican support for broad immigration reform this year.

The official said the new resources would provide "immediate enhancement" to the border even as the Obama administration continues to "work with Congress to fix our broken immigration system through comprehensive reform, which would provide lasting and dedicated resources by which to secure our borders and make our communities safer."

The 1,200 troops will join about 340 already working in the border region, the official said. They would provide support to law enforcement efforts against drug trafficking by increasing monitoring of border crossings and performing intelligence analysis.

The move by the president is a direct appeal to Republicans in Congress, who have argued that the federal government must get serious about securing the border before they will support broader changes to the system.

Arizona's two Republican senators -- John McCain and Jon Kyl -- asked Obama to send guard troops to the border in a letter last week. McCain announced Tuesday that he plans to introduce an amendment that would fund 6,000 troops on the southwest border.

"The violence has crossed the border and escalated to a point where many Arizonans do not feel safe within their own homes or on their own property," McCain and Kyl wrote last week. "It would be irresponsible not to do everything we can to stop the escalating violence along the border with Mexico."


Republican senators said Tuesday that they were underwhelmed by Obama's proposal. The president told GOP lawmakers during a visit to Capitol Hill on Tuesday that he was committing greater resources to border security than his predecessor, President George W. Bush, "but I don't think that's the point," said Sen. Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine). "The point is, how much do we need to get the job done?"

Upping the ante, Senate Republicans offered an amendment this afternoon to an emergency war spending bill to provide an additional $2 billion in border funding -- four times the size of Obama's proposal. The funds are aimed at improving security and stopping the flow of illegal immigration. "We need to regain the public's confidence and trust. It needs to be credible," said Sen. John Cornyn (R-Tex.).

Many conservatives favor construction of a massive border fence, something that Obama opposes. In an ad for his primary campaign, McCain said the government should finish "the danged fence," something he had called ineffective during his 2008 campaign for the presidency.

The idea of sending troops to the border is not unprecedented. In May 2006, in an address televised live from the Oval Office, then-president Bush called for the short-term deployment of up to 6,000 National Guard troops, though he said they would not be involved in direct law enforcement activities.

Called "Operation Jump Start," the troops were sent to the border for two years but have largely been pulled back.

Then, as now, the troop deployment was fueled by concerns about the security of people living along the border and by political pressure aimed at setting the stage for a comprehensive overhaul of immigration policy.

That effort failed in 2007, but during his presidential campaign, Obama said he would continue to push for an eventual "path to citizenship" for the estimated 11 million illegal immigrants in the country.

Handyman dies protecting Centreville family he worked for from armed home invaders

By Tom Jackman

Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Jose Rosales was a devout Christian. He sent every spare penny he made as a landscaper and handyman back to his family in Guatemala, and he was so strong and industrious that he did the work of three men. He had the complete trust of the Brar family who hired him.

THIS STORY

In turn, Rosales appreciated the steady work the Brars gave him in their construction and real estate businesses and around their 10-acre Centreville property and 9,000-square foot mansion, especially in tough economic times.

So on Monday morning, when two armed men broke into the family's four-car garage, Rosales stood between them and the Brars. "Get away from my brother and my mom," he said.

Then, the stocky Rosales decided to fight back. He jumped one of the invaders and wrested his gun away, sources familiar with the case said Tuesday. But the other man turned his gun on the family's mother. He threatened to kill the matriarch if Rosales didn't give the gun back. Rosales did, the sources said.

And then the gunmen shot and killed Rosales.

"Without Jose, I firmly believe I would not be alive right now," said Robbie Brar, a member of the stunned family, who spoke publicly for the first time Tuesday. "In a situation where most people probably run away, not only did he not run away, but he stood strong to protect people that are not related to him. He's a guardian angel."

The two intruders fled as soon they killed Rosales. Nothing was taken from the home, the sources said. Police said they did not know whether the family was targeted or the crime was random.

Fairfax County police said that the Brars did not know the intruders and that they do not know why the gunmen went to the Tudor-style mansion on Compton Road about 10:30 a.m. Monday. The police have no suspects. But they are looking for an older model white Toyota pickup. A witness reported seeing a man jump into the truck's bed on Compton Road near Bay Valley Lane about 10:50 a.m., and then seeing the man pull a tarp over himself as the truck sped east toward Union Mill Road, police said.

Jose Ramiro Rosales Cardona, 39, was the father of two sons, now in college in Guatemala, his friends said. When he wasn't working, he was studying to become a minister or spending time with a church group in Manassas discussing the Bible, playing the guitar and singing Christian songs, his friends said.

Fairfax police declined to discuss Rosales's actions Tuesday. But two sources familiar with the investigation used the same words: "He is a hero."

Rosales had been in the United States for at least eight years, his friends said, and most recently rented a room in a Manassas Park home. He came to the United States to work and support his family. Brar said Rosales hoped one day to return to Guatemala, build and own a home, and resume farming, as his family once did.

"He was an excellent person," said his housemate of two years, Jose Molina. "Never any problems. Always spending time at the church."

Rosales was part of a small church, Mision Evangelica San Juan, that met in the home of its pastor, Jaime Zuniga. He was there four times a week, Zuniga's brother Luis Zuniga said, and everyone at the church knew him as "Brother Jose."

"Every day that he has time," Luis Zuniga said, "he's here to talk about God. . . . Anybody who talks with him, the first thing he says is, 'Jesus Christ loves you.' "

On the day that Rosales died, Zuniga said, he was supposed to lead the Bible study. Instead, an overflowing group of Rosales's friends filled the house Monday after learning of his death.

Zuniga said Rosales was an accomplished guitarist and would join Zuniga on piano and another guitarist to form a trio. Rosales hoped to record a CD of his guitar playing sometime, Zuniga said.

The group had been looking at properties in Manassas to buy for a permanent church. Now the group will try to send the money to Rosales's family, Zuniga said.

Brar, 28, said his family has a number of construction and real estate ventures in Northern Virginia, in addition to a check cashing and mortgage store in Manassas.

The family regularly hires laborers to do landscaping and maintenance. About a year and a half ago, Brar said, he met Rosales and soon came to "trust him with anything."

The Brars would hire Rosales to paint, build, clean or mow lawns. "He pretty much could do anything," Brar said. "He painted like a professional. He did landscaping like a professional."

Sitting in the truck with him at jobs, Brar learned of Rosales's two children in college, his sick mother in Guatemala, his background as a farmer. When it came to religion, Brar said, "he was very tolerant of others' beliefs. He was a very intelligent guy." Brar said Rosales had some medical education, as well as police and military training before leaving Guatemala for work in America.

Rosales's focus was on becoming a pastor, Brar said. "I never saw him angry," Brar said. "He always spoke with respect to every single person he came across."

Brar said that when it came to money, "pretty much everything but his food and rent money he sent to his ill mother and children."

Brar did not want to discuss the specifics of the attempted home invasion. But, he said, "I believe Jose was sent into my life a year and a half ago by some higher power." Brar, his parents and younger brother were home at the time of the attack.

Brar said he plans to help Rosales's family "like he helped my family. Now I'm the brother and the son. Money comes and goes. We're going to help his family out however we can."

LiUNA!

General President's Office

Yanira E. Merino

Immigration Coordinator

905 16th Street N.W.

Washington, DC 20006

202- 942-2284

202-737-8320 (Fax)

ymerino@liuna.org

www.liuna.org www.LiunaBuildsAmerica.org

For Immediate Release

Anti-Immigrant Group Recommends Economic Self-Destruction for Arizona

May 18, 2010

Washington D.C. - In data released "exclusively to FoxNews.com," the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) - architects of the new Arizona law SB1070 - claim that unauthorized immigrants in Arizona are costing the state's taxpayers $2.7 billion per year for education, medical care, and incarceration. The release of this "fiscal analysis" takes advantage of the absence of any legitimate economic analysis by the state on what SB1070 will cost. However, judging from FAIR's track record when it comes to these kinds of state estimates, it is likely that their numbers are virtually meaningless. In its most recent state studies on unauthorized immigration in Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, for instance, FAIR has dramatically exaggerated the fiscal "costs" imposed by unauthorized immigrants by including schooling and medical care for their native-born, U.S.-citizen children in its estimate, and conveniently forgetting to account for the economic role that unauthorized workers play as consumers who help support local economies.

FAIR's latest data fails to account for the property, sales, and income taxes paid by unauthorized immigrants. Nor does the data account for the consumer purchasing power of unauthorized immigrants - what they spend on goods, services, and housing - which actually creates jobs and generates additional tax revenue. They seem to forget that deporting workers also means deporting consumers and taxpayers.

However, in all fairness, they do acknowledge that the costs of implementing SB1070 will add to the economic strain on the state. In the absence of any state-generated fiscal data on the cost of the law's implementation, some Arizonans have pointed to a fact sheet produced by Yuma County Sheriff Ralph E. Ogden in response to similar legislation proposed in 2006. The Yuma county snapshot of enforcement costs is a sobering reminder of the overwhelming financial costs - up to $100 million for just one Arizona county - that will ensue if the state attempts to enforce its new law. Ultimately, this law will cost Arizona hundreds of millions of dollars to implement. Yet those costs are only part of the story and don't even account for lost revenue from losing a part of the workforce, not to mention a growing boycott and expensive lawsuits from which the state will have to defend itself.

For further information see:

• Implementation Costs of SB1070 to One Arizona County (IPC Press Release, April 23, 2010)

• How Much Will Arizona's Immigration Bill SB1070 Cost? (IPC Press Release (April 21, 2010)
• Arizona is Not the First State to Take Immigration Matters into their Own Hands (IPC Fact Check, May 6, 2010)

###

For more information contact Wendy Sefsaf at wsefsaf@immcouncil.org or 202-507-7524.

The Immigration Policy Center (IPC) is the research and policy arm of the American Immigration Council. IPC's mission is to shape a rational national conversation on immigration and immigrant integration. Through its research and analysis, IPC provides policymakers, the media, and the general public with accurate information about the role of immigrants and immigration policy on U.S. society. IPC reports and materials are widely disseminated and relied upon by press and policy makers. IPC staff regularly serves as experts to leaders on Capitol Hill, opinion-makers and the media. IPC, formed in 2003 is a non-partisan organization that neither supports nor opposes any political party or candidate for office.

A division of the American Immigration Council.

Visit our website at www.immigrationpolicy.org.

May 19, 2010

The 800 Pound Gorilla That Sits in the Middle of Arizona

By Mark H. Ayers

The current firestorm that has erupted as a result of the enactment of the “Show Me Your Papers” law in Arizona has further enflamed the already contentious debate about illegal immigration.

Proponents of the Arizona law flatly state that it was needed because of the federal government’s failure to act on comprehensive immigration reform that would address issues related to border security.

Critics, on the other hand, say the Arizona law is nothing more than a pathway to provide state and local police carte blanc authority to racially profile and harass Hispanics.

Either way, because of this firestorm, there are discussions now underway in Washington, DC relating to the introduction of a comprehensive immigration reform bill.

On April 30, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and several of his fellow Senate Democrats introduced a framework for an overhaul of immigration laws in light of the Arizona law. The Senate Democrats’ approach would impose tougher sanctions on employers who hire illegal immigrants, create new identification cards for immigrant workers, reform temporary worker programs, and provide a sensible pathway for responsible immigrants to become full-fledged U.S. citizens.

For his part, President Barack Obama voiced his support for the plan, saying it is "a very important step in the process of fixing our nation's broken immigration system."

In truth, the entire debate around the issue of immigration never seems to effectively address the real problem - our collective national addiction to cheap labor and low wages. In America today, it’s all about next quarter’s profits and the bottom line. While exploitative businesses and their apologists hide behind empty slogans like “free markets,” we know the only freedom they are fighting for is the freedom to exploit workers, steal wages and cut corners.

It's no secret certain industries, such as construction, rely heavily on illegal labor. In recent years, prior to the economic downturn, according to the Pew Hispanic Center, undocumented workers accounted for as much as 25% of the entire U.S. construction workforce. And in the residential construction sector, that number has been even higher.

In many states, attempts have been made to require employers to check prospective employees on their legal status through the production of a driver’s license, state ID card, or other positive means of identification. But this is hardly a fool-proof method of dealing with the problem, as evidenced by the results of an undercover operation spearheaded by Jobs for Georgians and the North Georgia Building Trades Council, and as reported by the Atlanta Journal Constitution:

“Jose Alvarez first asked about a bricklaying job with M&D Masonry at the Atlanta airport in March, and the foreman assured him that being an illegal immigrant wouldn’t be a problem.

‘Do you have a picture ID?’ said Bob Beaty, hiring foreman for the Americus, GA-based masonry company working on the new $1.4 billion international terminal.

‘But it’s not legal,’ Alvarez told him.

‘I know, I know, none of our guys are, but if you have a picture ID, you can get on here,’ Beaty said. ‘Everybody turns in a Social Security number and we take taxes out for that number. I know none of those numbers are right.’

This, ladies and gentlemen, is the crux of our national immigration problem.

And when states move to address these issues, they are inevitably thwarted by those whose business models are now predicated upon an addiction to cheap, easily exploitable labor.

This was the case in 2006, for example, when the state of Colorado attempted to crack down on employers who hire illegal workers. Governor Bill Owens was initially supportive of the bill, but when business leaders told him the price of a house might go up by 5 percent because some homebuilders could lose their exploitable labor, he backed away.

You can be sure, with talk about immigration reform heating up, that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Association of Home Builders, and the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) are all gearing up to engage lawmakers, because their “race to the bottom” business model relies upon the continued exploitation of workers who do not have the same right to join a union or recourse under the law as U.S. workers.

Let us examine what this “race to the bottom” approach (predicated upon the exploitation of undocumented workers) has done to the U.S. construction industry, and to U.S. construction workers. For starters, real wages for construction workers were lower in 2006 than they were in 1973! Adjusted for inflation, construction workers in 1973 earned the equivalent of $22.13 an hour in today's dollars. However, actual average hourly pay for construction workers in 2006 was only $18.29 – 17 percent below the 1973 rate, adjusted for inflation.

Additionally, even when contractors are making money, workers are not seeing the gains. According to the federal government's economic census, contractors' profits grew between 1977 and 2002. However, workers did not get their fair share of the gain; instead the proportion of construction receipts spent for payroll and benefits actually declined by almost 14 percent during the same period!

With those types of statistics in mind, it is simply idiotic for us, as a nation, to pass law after law – like the one in Arizona – and arrest someone with brown skin who can't produce an ID; or confiscate their cars; or deport people and break up families; when we don’t have the sense or the courage to address the real issue - companies maximizing profits at the expense of workers, using a business model that relies on the lowering of standards and wages industry-wide by exploiting a workforce without the legal standing to demand justice.

Instead of demagoguery and divisiveness, we need comprehensive immigration reform that stops this exploitation. America’s Building Trades Unions and this great country were built by immigrants seeking a better life for themselves and their families. Whether it’s a temporary worker program that denies full rights and wages to those working in this country or the “Show Me Your Papers” law, anytime we treat immigrants like second-class citizens, we undermine our core values as Americans, and undermine the American Dream for all of us.

America's building trades unions will never stop in their quest to expose organizations like the Home Builders and the ABC for what they truly are – defenders and practitioners of an abhorrent business model that is contrary to our American beliefs.

New Study: 88,000 U.S. Citizen Children Lost Parent to Deportation

March 31, 2010



The United States government deported the lawful immigrant parents of
nearly 88,000 citizen children between 1997 and 2007, most for
relatively minor crimes, according to a new report released today by the
University of California, Davis, and University of California, Berkeley,
law schools. The deportations often resulted in psychological harm,
behavioral changes and problems in school for the children left behind.



The report, "In the Child's Best Interest?" is based on analysis of data
provided by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, interviews with
affected families and comparisons of U.S. and international human rights
standards. The study was a joint project of the Immigration Law Clinic
at the UC Davis School of Law, and the International Human Rights Law
Clinic and the Chief Justice Earl Warren Institute on Race, Ethnicity
and Diversity at the UC Berkeley School of Law. It is available on the
Web at

http://www.law.ucdavis.edu/news/images/childsbestinterest.pdf.



Drastic revisions to U.S. immigration laws in 1996 led to large numbers
of deported lawful permanent residents (green card holders), who now
make up nearly 10 percent of immigrants deported from the U.S.,
according to the report. More than 68 percent of the deported green card
holders were deported for minor crimes, including driving under the
influence, simple assault and nonviolent drug offenses, it found.



"It is often the children in these families who suffer the most," said
Raha Jorjani, a clinical professor of law at UC Davis and supervising
attorney for the UC Davis Immigration Law Clinic. "This nation should
take into consideration the impact on families of uprooting individuals
with such strong ties to the U.S."



Current immigration laws severely restrict the ability of judges to
consider the impact of deportation on children, the report notes. The
authors recommend restoring judicial discretion in all cases involving
the deportation of lawful permanent residents with U.S. citizen
children.

"As Congress considers immigration reform, it's time to focus on how the
current system tears apart families and threatens the health and
education of tens of thousands of children," said Aarti Kohli, director
of immigration policy at Berkeley Law's Warren Institute. "This report
makes a strong case for restoring judicial discretion so immigration
judges can weigh the best interests of children when deciding whether to
deport a parent."



The report examined deportation records between April 1997 and August
2007. The nearly 88,000 legal residents who were deported during this
decade had lived in the U.S. an average of 10 years, and more than half
had at least one child living at home, the study found. About half of
the children were under age 5 when their parent was deported.



In 1996, Congress also significantly broadened the category of crimes
considered an "aggravated felony," the report notes. Although this
category initially included only the most serious offenses, it now
includes nonviolent theft and drug offenses, forgery and other minor
offenses, many of which may not be felonies under criminal law. Lawful
permanent residents convicted of an aggravated felony are now subject to
mandatory deportation and other severe immigration consequences.



"Parents who are deported on the basis of criminal convictions are being
punished twice for the same mistakes," Jorjani said. "Even after
successfully completing their criminal sentences, they are subject to
penalties within the immigration system - and risk losing their
families."

Families interviewed for the study reported negative health impacts,
such as increased depression, sleeplessness and anxiety. Children also
reported plummeting grades, increased behavioral problems and the urge
to drop out of school to help support the family.



The study compares U.S. immigration policy to international standards
that more adequately address potential family separations in deportation
hearings.



"The rights to health and education are firmly entrenched in
international human rights law, and nearly every major human rights
treaty recognizes the need for special protection of children," said
Laurel Fletcher, director of the International Human Rights Law Clinic
at the UC Berkeley School of Law. "The U.S. should consider revising its
policy to mirror European human rights standards, which permit judges to
balance a nation's security interest with the best interests of the
child when considering deporting a parent."



"In the Child's Best Interest?" makes a number of recommendations to
U.S. policymakers, including:



* restoring judicial discretion in cases involving the deportation of
lawful permanent residents who have U.S. citizen children;
* establishing clear judicial guidelines in these family deportation
cases;
* reverting to the pre-1996 definition of "aggravated felony";

collecting data on U.S. citizen children of deported lawful immigrant
parents to gain fuller understanding of impact of deportation laws.

Co-authors of the study include J.D. candidates and research analysts at
UC Davis School of Law and UC Berkeley School of Law.
Additional information:

* In the Child's Best
Interest?

Media contact(s):

* Pamela Wu, UC Davis School of Law, (916) 717-7956,
pcwu@ucdavis.edu
* Susan Gluss, UC Berkeley School of Law, (510) 642-6936,
sgluss@law.berkeley.edu
* Claudia Morain, UC Davis News Service, (530) 752-9841,
cmmorain@ucdavis.edu

http://www.news.ucdavis.edu/search/news_detail.lasso?id=9447



Edgar Aranda-Yanoc
Director of RP/Community Educator
Immigrant Advocacy Program of the Legal Aid Justice Center
6400 Arlington Blvd., Suite 600
Falls Church VA 22042
703-778-3450
703-778-3454 (fax)
www.justice4all.org