Monday, May 01, 2006
At least some people in this country know how to celebrate May Day ... Bob from Politics in the Zeros flags this interview with Nativo López, president of the Mexican American Political Association. Here're some excerpts:
Some people say the compromise bill in the Senate is the best that we can expect and at least a positive step, as opposed to the Sensenbrenner bill. Do you agree?
The Senate version has Sensenbrenner-type measures embodied in it, and therefore, we find this completely unacceptable and tantamount to compromising the social interests of all immigrants and all workers. I’m not convinced that this is the best that we can get or hope for.
You get from life what you are ready to fight for. This is the message we have constantly conveyed to our base, and they have internalized this. They are ready and willing to fight for the whole enchilada. Why not? They have nothing to lose.
What would be the effect of the three tiers in the Hegel-Martinez proposal?
The three-tier legalization program offered by Hegel-Martinez in the Senate is a codified caste system--a sort of bantu apartheid system that is tacitly un-American and unacceptable. It would result in the complete division of families, and that’s why our families find it so repugnant and unacceptable.
However, our greatest fear is that the Democratic Party will be unwilling to make a complete fight to oppose this version--in its haste to make a deal and impede the growth of this new civil rights movement.
Second, there are already national “Hispanic” and other advocacy organizations moving in the direction of softening their position on the question. This is a danger that we must prevent.
