Supporters of illegal immigrants want to frame the debate as a brown (read: hardworking "undocumented workers") and white (read: racist xenophobes) paradigm.
A different color will be added to the mix at a press conference later today. The participants will include Dr. Claud Anderson, homeless advocate Ted Hayes and the Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson. BTW, Peterson’s participation underscores that even a broken clock is right twice a day. But I digress.
These African American voices have come together to say to those who misrepresent the legacy of the struggle to secure the legal rights of American citizens to demand made-up rights for illegal aliens: You don't speak for me. Hayes told the Orange County Register:
Illegals are using civil rights as the key to cross the border. As black people, we have the moral ground to be the sentinels of freedom. These civil rights belong to our ancestors.
We want to promote civil rights for them (Mexican and Latin Americans) in their own homeland.
Many African Americans agree that President Bush’s amnesty plan (and here) is “a disaster for all Americans that will hit black citizens the hardest… Mass illegal immigration has been the single greatest impediment to black advancement in this country over the past 25 years. Blacks in particular, have lost economic opportunities, seen their kids’ schools flooded with non-English speaking students, and felt the socioeconomic damage of illegal immigration more acutely than any other group.”
If you think that’s hyperbole, consider this from the San Francisco Chronicle:
The current migration of Mexicans and Central Americans to the United States is one of the largest diasporas in modern history, experts say.
Roughly 10 percent of Mexico's population of about 107 million is now living in the United States, estimates show. About 15 percent of Mexico's labor force is working in the United States. One in every 7 Mexican workers migrates to the United States.
