Realities of the march

What happens when a government tries to rip apart families in a certain sector of its population and label them felons after years of profiting from the taxes paid by that same sector of the population?  This was answered on April 9, 2006, when an estimated 500,000 people marched in downtown Dallas to voice their disapproval over such a proposal. The political consequences of ignoring this will be detrimental to politicians who do. 

The reality is that illegal immigrants are a part of our society; their inclusion was granted to them when we as a culture allow the use of cheap labor. This economy demands it. The government and politician’s looked the other way as businesses illegally hired undocumented workers and our economy flourished because of them.

 This is the reality that the government and politicians want to ignore. If their solution is stricter laws and breaking up families by deporting those who have already established a home in the niche created by this economy, then they are not demonstrating a firm grasp of reality, nor are they showing compassion. A government unable to recognize reality will be unable to enforce policies and laws it sets forth. 

I marched the streets of downtown Dallas amidst a stream of white shirts, brown faces and red, white and blue banners. I am neither an immigrant nor am I the son of illegal immigrants. However, as a Hispanic American, I feel compelled to help defend the rights of those who, like my parents, left their homelands to provide for their families.

  Hunger, desperation and ambition fueled their flight. Our economy’s willingness to break the law and unquenchable thirst for cheap labor provided their welcoming.  Guatemalan musician Ricardo Arjona sings about immigrants in the song “Mojado”: “He is not from here [the U.S.] because his name does not appear in the records, nor does he from over there [his homeland] because he left.”

Among many things, our march was to get illegal immigrants’ names on the records.  They are real people who do real work and make real contributions to the economy through taxes.   They deserve to be treated with dignity. 

If practicality and consciousness of reality is not enough to compel those who proposed HR 4437 to consider a more reasonable approach, then maybe fear of power will. Many, like me, who participated in April 9th march are not immigrants and can vote.  I witnessed dozens of volunteers helping those eligible to vote to register.

Hispanics have not participated like we should; even those who are eligible to vote choose to remain silent. But when Mr. Sensenbrenner’s HR 4437 took a jab at many of our families, we felt compelled to break our silence. The media has labeled the ongoing marches as an “awakening of a political giant.” Hispanics were not asleep, we were too busy working.

Hispanics have seen the consequences of remaining silent, but we have now witnessed the power of standing up. When pushed to a corner, it is necessary to voice a powerful message that calls for urgent action against unfair laws. That is what politics is all about.  This is how change can happen in America.