May the suicide of Joaquin Luna not go in vain.
DREAM Act student, Joaquin Luna, recently took his life in Texas. At 18 years old, he had aspirations of becoming an engineer. He was one of ours. He took his life because he felt as an undocumented immigrant he had nowhere to go. He relied and was hoping for the passage of the DREAM Act in December 2010 that could have been passed with only a handful more Senate votes. I knew there would be dire consequences to the failure of the December 2010 DREAM Act vote, but it is getting tougher and tougher to swallow news like this when we hear of children who feel they have no other option. It's heart wrenching. Just think, if the DREAM Act would have passed last December, we would not have to witness this precious life go to waste, and I'm told Joaquin is not the first.
Learning of this story struck a nerve with me. Joaquin Luna committed suicide and wrote notes and letters regarding his status as an undocumented immigrant. Since when do we as a society punish children for the sins of their father and mother? I believe Americans are by and large compassionate. We are the ones who give the most during crisis situations, or when horrendous natural disasters in other parts of the world occur. How did we get to this place (here in our own soil) that we can't provide a way for kids who know nothing else but being an American? Many of these children were brought here when they were infants and toddlers.
Many of us were heartbroken in December 2010 when we saw several youth praying with white knuckled hands hoping for that DREAM Act miracle. These kids and our youth don't want a free handout. They want to contribute their special talents and hard work to our society.
Learning about Joaquin broke my heart. He felt he had nowhere to go and he didn't know what to do. As an immigration activist, I recalled to memory a special DREAM Act activist who received her engineering degree at Arizona State University. She was unable to apply for a job due to her undocumented status and one day she asked me for advice on what to do. All I knew how to do was to tell her what was in my heart, and I told her to hang in there and continue the fight for the DREAM Act. I gave her my word that I would be there for her anytime she needed, and I told her I was certain something was bound to break. I told her justice for the hardworking and good people will prevail. I believe that.
As I think about an official statement in the continued plea to fix the broken immigration system, more sorrow sweeps over me. My heart feels like it is frozen in between beats. Earlier this summer I met with Brenda Rosa-Garcia who was a former day school teacher of the Mesa Public School in Arizona. She told me stories where young elementary-aged school children (who are related to undocumented relatives) would tell her of their worries of getting arrested and deported by the infamous Sheriff Joe Arpaio. These children believed Arpaio would come in the night, take them away from their families and ship them off. The infamous Sheriff Joe Arpaio -- the man I have personally witnessed gloat and joke about the mysterious Mexican immigrant deaths in his prisons at an Arizona GOP meeting. .
We have seen hate crimes towards Latinos increase due to the untruths of anti-immigrant politicians that have spread like wild fire. In fact, bloodshed has already occurred in Arizona when a man killed another over the broken immigration system and issue. In fact before the killing occurred, the victim was called a wetback which is a derogatory term still being used by American politicians today. Brisenia Flores, a young and innocent little girl was killed while in fetal position in front of her mother by the minutemen and border vigilantes.
Now we are seeing undocumented youth who are turning 18 who feel they have reached a dead end, and where the United States and pledging allegiance to the flag is mostly what they know because they were brought here at a very young age. Where is the outlet at as pressure continues to build? How much more bloodshed do we need to see before the system is fixed? Everyone knows it is broken, but nobody on the Hill seems to have the courage to fix it.
Looking back at history we can find a common denominator of those who ruled under the iron fist: The lack of compassion. We see it in people like Sheriff Joe Arpaio, former Senator Russell Pearce, former Congressmen Tom Tancredo and JD Hayworth. We see it in Senator Ben Nelson, Rep. Lamar Smith, 2012 GOP Candidates Mitt Romney and Herman Cain. Democratic and Republican lobbyists lobby merely for H-1 Visas when we have DREAM Act graduates with engineering degrees under our very noses. It has been said corporate leaders are tired of the bureaucracy when it comes to bringing in talent from other parts of the world, yet these same special interest groups do nothing in support of the DREAM Act graduates who have earned their own engineering degrees in our own country.
Immigration advocates are not looking for handouts, nor amnesty. We are asking for a solution that can only benefit the United States. My people have tremendous faith and are hard workers.
Joaquin's mother in the below television interview cries out and tells other kids to remain in strong. Imagine that -- in the midst of mourning her own son's death, she worries for other children who may be contemplating the same thing and encourages them to have faith and hope. You can see the love and compassion that is filled with remorse on her face as she shed her tears.
To worry and care about others in the midst of experiencing your own personal hell is a trait that is hard to find in today's cynical world. And we want to kick that out of our society?
Without hope and faith, there is no love and future.
Follow DeeDee Garcia Blase on Twitter: www.twitter.com/thetequilaparty
Accept the responsibility for your own s#!t now.
http://cacreview.blogspot.com/2006/06/reclamation-of-indigenous-continent.html
It is sad that there are people who continue to view the world from such a child-like perspective. History is just that - history. All cultures have done terrible things at one point or another. Shall we go back and exact revenge on the descendants of all of those cultures? I thought we were not into holding the children responsible for the actions of parents - or in this case, distant descendants responsible for the actions of ancestors whom none of us ever knew because we are removed form them by multiple generations.
You say:
Sounds pretty beneign to me.
The Federation for American ImmigratioÂn Reform (FAIR) is a non-profit tax exempt educationaÂl organizatiÂon in the United States that advocates changes in U.S. immigratioÂn policy that would result in significanÂt reductions in immigratioÂn, both legal and illegal. It was founded on January 2, 1979 by John Tanton who is known as the founder of many anti-immigÂration and environmenÂtalist groups, and its first executive director was environmenÂtal lawyer Roger Conner. FAIR has its headquarteÂrs in WashingtonÂ, D.C., and has been called to testify in front of the United States Congress, on immigratioÂn bills, more than any other organizatiÂon in the country. The president of FAIR since 1988 is Dan Stein. The organizatiÂon claims to have more than 250,000 members and supportersÂ. FAIR describes itself as non-partisÂan. It is described as conservatiÂve in dozens of press reports and books.
I say:
Read here. Lol!~ The Nativist Lobby: Three Faces of IntolerancÂe
http://www.splcenter.org/get-informed/publications/the-nativist-lobby-three-faces-of-intolerance
I dont think you can blame the failure of the dream act. His parents set him up for failure by bringing him hear in the first place. From watching the video, it seams he wanted to design apartments. Im sure that the country his parents brought him from could benifit from a US educated engineer. In a few years he could apply for US Citizenship like all of the millions legal immigrants that stood in line and completed what they should to ge a citizen of the US.
Its not close to impossible, in fact 55% of legal immigrants were from Latin America in 2006.
http://news.newamericamedia.org/news/view_custom.html?custom_page_id=289
And I still belive that his homeland could benifit from an educated engineer.
Just for being here illegally for over 365 days, he would have to leave the US and comply with a 10 year bar from returning or applying for a visa to return. Once the 10 years are up, he may apply again, but if they find the 10 year bar, he is probably going to get refused reentry anyway. There is no way for him to self sponsor to stay, and any employer here in the US willing to sponsor him for a visa or a green card would also have that sponsorship application denied, because he was here illegally.
This is why the federal dream act is needed- for kids like him, there is no future here at all, and he would have to leave his friends, his home and his family to do things "legally" and possibly never be able to rejoin them. Does this not strike you as unfair to a child who committed no crime?
I once gave a drunk a ride home from a party. Nice guy, huh. He pulls out a gun driving past a cop. We get pulled over, and I get arrested because I am the responsable party of the vehical. This was a misdemeanor that I could have gotten more than 1 year in jail. I was found guily and lost my rights to vote and own a firearm. I did not do anything wrong but thats how things go sometimes.
We do it every hour of every day.
For example do bank robbers with children get a pass because putting them in jail would negatively affect their children?
But fine.
For example do shoplifters with children get a pass because putting them in jail would negatively affect their children?
Are you happy now?
Site: http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2011/01/20/report-la-county-welfare-benefirs-for-illegals-top-600m/
http://www.immigrationwelfarecost.info/studies/immigration-welfare-cost-studies.html
You can also check the stats in Texas, as to the money Illegal Aliens receive from welfare programs.
My questions are: Why does every country in the world have the right to secure their borders, except the USA? Would this commentator be so "vocal"in her support, if the young man who committed suicide was Russian? Somalian? Chinese? French? I think NOT!
The Nativist Lobby: Three Faces of IntolerancÂe
CIS was conceived by Tanton and began life as a program of FAIR. CIS presents itself as a scholarly think tank that produces serious immigration studies meant to serve "the broad national interest." But the reality is that CIS has never found any aspect of immigration that it liked, and it has frequently manipulated data to achieve the results it seeks.
http://www.splcenter.org/get-informed/publications/the-nativist-lobby-three-faces-of-intolerance
"This comment has been removed. Most comments are removed because of an attack or insult on another user or public figure. Please see the guidelines here if you're not sure why this comment was removed."
And you Misunderstand the amnesty marches- they do not want to vote or take social/ welfare services: they want to work legally and pay taxes. Simple!!! They want to be able to legally live peacefully, without threat of deportation and exploitation. They fled dangerous/ bigoted situations and/ or injustice to come here for a better life- to earn an income, build safe homes, and educate their children, and that's all they want. Keep your right to vote, your food stamps, your social security etc.
Understand it for what it is- this entire nativist nonsense and denying them rights that they will inevitably get, just as surely as slavery had to end, is born out of bigotry and racially bias/ stereotypes. They do not in any way harm us- and they are not taking away from you or your children's rights, so why are you so against them?
It couldn't have come as any great shock to them, since when they brought in Joaquin illegally as an infant, they also brought in his two older brothers and two older sisters.
Anyone who has ever raised a teenager or been one knows that there is probably alot more to this than his depression over an unlikely law passing Congress.
Using this to press for a law to benefit illegal foreign nationals show a blatant disregard for the sanctity of human life.
But not everyone can just give up and join the military like you did.
How about because he's dead. Ever think of that?
So I guess citizens don't deserve justice for being hardworking good people? Quit putting illegals over citizens and making their meager contributions to the economy the difference in keeping them here. The system is not broken, it just isn't enforced. As far as this being the only home they've ever known....people move all the time and adjust and adapt to their new environment. Their illegal parents did so when coming here. They can now go back and readjust themselves to living a life they just happen to live in their homes. How many places have you lived?