Issue 59: January 16, 2001
Working to overcome the greed and ethnic identity politics driving America’s reckless immigration policy.
+== TIME OUT PROJECT ==+
Immigration activists across the country, working to prevent the environmental and social disaster caused by rampant population growth, have reason to be encouraged by recent events:
First, in a politically significant January 8 piece in the San Diego Union Tribune, "Immigration Advocate’s Stunning Defeat", James O. Goldborough argues that Republican Senator Spencer Abraham’s reckless open-borders policies played a primary role in his election loss in Michigan: "Michigan analysts and immigration specialists alike link Abraham’s defeat to his immigration zeal."
http://www.uniontrib.com/news/uniontrib/mon/opinion/news_1ed8goldsborough.html )
Second, we at ProjectUSA began conducting in November our own direct mail opinion surveys in Iowa — and we’ve already gotten a great response in the early returns. Registered voters from Marshalltown, IA — a mid-sized town suffering under a deluge of cheap, foreign, illegal labor — answered this survey question:
"Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack (515) 281-5211 recently made national news by suggesting that, to take advantage of cheap labor, Iowa should put itself above America’s immigration laws and become another "Ellis Island." I think: (check all that apply) "
1) This is a good idea, the needs of corporations come first. ( 9% )
2) This would mainly benefit big business, but hurt average Iowans. ( 39% )
3) This would be reckless and shortsighted: exploiting cheap labor during economic upturns risks social disruptions during economic downturns. ( 70% )
Clearly, the phony "labor shortage" argument is not working in Iowa, this in spite of the pro-corporate Des Moines Register’s continuing attempts to frighten Iowans into silence by regularly linking immigration to skin color.
For example, yesterday’s Des Moines Register ran an article, "King day forum to focus on the value of immigrants" ( http://www.dmregister.com/news/stories/c4788998/13491313.html
01/13/2001 ) the lead sentence of which was:
"Iowans’ opposition to increased immigration contradicts Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream to build an America that values character over color, civil-rights leaders say."
Apparently, Iowans see through the inconsistency in such a statement (we wonder if the Des Moines Register does) and Governor Vilsack has recently had to back off his proposal and he is now trying to blame it on the recommendations of some underling commission.
Third, against all expectations, the latest attempt to reward law-breaking by granting yet another mass "amnesty" was defeated in Congress thanks largely to the efforts of immigration activists.
Fourth, the recent Census Bureau release that shows our country grew by an incredible 13% in just the last decade prompted a slew of news articles that connected that astounding growth to U.S. immigration policy.
This is exactly what ProjectUSA’s billboards attempt to do: connect the dots. Check out our board that was up for just 13 days in Brooklyn, NY this past October and was removed after local politicians denounced it as "racist." It said: "Immigration is doubling U.S. population in our lifetimes. — U.S. Census Bureau" and featured the pictures of two American children.
http://www.projectusa.org/
Our message is being heard.
+== CALL TO ACTION ==+
At ProjectUSA we intend to make 2001 the most effective year yet for the immigration reform movement. Join us in our New Year’s resolution by promising yourself to do one thing every week — make a call or write a letter — to help bring back a sensible US immigration policy.
We’ll help you out by continuing to give you a simple, quick, call to action every week.
This week, please go to http://www.newsdirectory.com/ and find your hometown newspaper.
Write them and remind them that the recent Census Bureau report that shows our country grew by 13% in just the last decade means that our country is now growing at a much faster rate than even China. Tell them that this means our population will more than double within the lifetime of an American child.
Ask if they realize that 90% of this growth is due to the current wave of mass immigration. Tell them you think this is extremely irresponsible of Congress to do this to us and Americans deserve to know about it.
+==EMAIL OF THE WEEK==+
I think you could find a lot of support on the grassroots level in Iowa. What (Governor) Vilsack wanted to do was so fraudulent- how can a single state have its own immigration policy that wouldn’t affect other states? Since the states neighboring Iowa can’t exclude people entering from Iowa, an Iowa-only policy is impossible!
I think a good case needs to be made to the American people that the assertion that their is a "labor shortage" is bogus. How could the country with the 3rd-largest population in the world have a significant labor shortage, especially one so technically advanced as the U.S.?
Keep up the good work in 2001,
Allan E. Wall
+== QUOTE OF THE WEEK ==+
"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter."
–Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
b. Jan. 15, 1929
Tags: Des Moines Register · Spencer Abraham · Tom VilsackNo Comments
