No to racist ICE

No to racist ICE (immigration and customs enforcement)

What kind of roundup is happening up there? Democracy Now! Reported that in the past month 750 immigrants living in the U.S. have been detained in sweeps – in what the government is calling “operation return to sender.” How are Americans allowing this type of treatment to happen to people living in the USA? Hundreds of Californians are being subjected to random searches, detentions, deportations, and raids on their workplaces. This has already gotten too ugly, why can’t we stand up in solidarity with our coworkers, neighbors and fellow humans and say that this is completely unacceptable? Bush wants to do the Iraq trip here at home? How can we allow people to be subjected to such treatment in our country? People our culture and economy depend on are being targeted. How can Bush expect to pass his guest worker plan by doing roundups of honest, hard-working people? By deporting mothers, arresting a 7 year old boy and holding him in jail for hours for looking Mexican, having armed soldiers asking people who look latino for their papers? This is incredibly racist and cruel treatment on the part of the U.S. government.

No one is illegal. No Mexican military are doing raids on gringos living in Mexico. No one deserves to be beat down for working hard to make a good life for themselves and their families. I have met so many Mexicans and Guatemalans that have lived and worked and paid taxes in the U.S. to save some money to return to Mexico to build their little corner store or small business. People want to work for a decent wage and NAFTA and other economic policies have created the largest income disparity between any two bordering nations in the world. Things cost about the same here, but you can earn around 5 dollars a day in burger king. People work hard to get by and just want to go north to save some money. They intend to make a better life so they can go back and be more independent, or to own a restaurant, a corner store or to help out their family. Some people end up falling in love, becoming part of a community, purchasing property or other assets and one way or another end up making a happy life for themselves in the north. Then sometimes they go to the store and get deported to Mexico with no money, separated from their families. They get pulled over more often, refused drivers licenses and school for their children. They see other people like them being targeted too.

This is incredibly unjust and racist government policy. It makes me ashamed to be a U.S. citizen being treated with such open arms, generosity and kindness in Mexico. Campesinos always ask me about the border and why it is so easy for me to travel here and cross and so hard for them. What can I say but racist immigration policy created by ass holes?