October 26, 2006
The Honorable F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr.
United States Congressman of the Fifth Wisconsin District
2449 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515-4905
Re: Your positions regarding illegal immigration
Greeting Mr. Sensenbrenner:
You have proposed to make an illegal immigration a felony! That is both reprehensible and stupid. But since, I know, you are not stupid, I conclude you are deliberately acting reprehensibly. It is clear to me, based upon your actions and the positions you have proposed, that you are very ignorant of the factors, history and the persons affected so greatly by your actions. I offer you the benefit of my education and experience as a better guide to the law than the angry ramblings of your constituents. If you are a truly honest, forthright and fair man who both honors and respects the law, then you will heed my advice.
Those of you who seek to deport and or imprison illegal aliens should take a lesson both from history and from Criminal Justice. Those are both matters of which I know something. Criminally speaking, immigration is a federal issue exclusively because it is a matter of interstate commerce which constitutionally is a federal matter. Furthermore, entering this country and failing to declare, is a misdemeanor similar to a speeding ticket. Yes it is illegal, like speeding, but you are stopped and issued a personal recognizance bond and released to appear in court at a later date. The same is true of immigration matters. Therefore, to say that all illegal aliens should be arrested and deported is exactly the same as stopping and imprisoning all speeders! Both these examples would be intolerable to the public and the justice system.
A historical perspective on this issue is as follows. Do you all remember the 55 MPH speed limit of the 70's and how it gave rise to a groundswell of civil disobedience? Truckers, men working hard to make a living, became heroes, fighting an unjust and unpopular law. TV shows, movies and songs were produced. Among Mexicanos and others who come to the USA on foot, sometimes, thousands of miles, like the truckers in the 70's, are simply trying to make a living. They oppose what they perceive as an unjust law.
Another historical perspective that very much parallels the inflammatory language used by anti-immigration proponents today would be the Japanese Americans who were imprisoned during the second World War. Also one should consider the prejudice and discrimination suffered by the Chinese who built the railroads in the newly acquired western state of America during the latter 19th century and of Irish and Italian Americans of the same period in the east.
The common thread among all this is the idea of isolationism and protectionism which has always been supported by racists and bigots. Today, the issue is heated by fears of terrorists walking across the border with Mexicans and others. But the real fire has always been racism and bigotry. Many Americans, some very subtle, others blunt, hate Mexicans and other Latinos and more importantly, what they represent today. A rapidly changing America.
I have worked and lived in and around the border of Texas all my life. As a professional peace officer for the past 20 years in Texas, I have first hand knowledge and experience with the "illegals" everyone fears so much. Despite what the naysayers suggest, they are hard working, honest, taxpaying and charitable people who respect and appreciate America. They are no drain of the economy nor a threat to American culture. The fact is that here in Texas and all across America, Mexicans and others are the laborers, builders, drivers and professionals everywhere. Without them, this nation and its economy, the largest and most influential in the world would simply collapse.
The bigger issue for the American economy is the welfare underclass that has grown ever larger since the Johnson administration and is the foundation for liberal Democrats and Socialists in America. American culture is under attack, not from Mexicans, but from Hollywood and the now aging hippies of the 60's and their "If it feels good, it must be okay" attitude.
Those of you who seek you ultimate retribution against the "Invaders" (by the way "invaders" is defined as a force under arms) should redirect your efforts toward demanding real welfare reform and real adherence to moral and ethical standards that this nation was founded upon.
I’ll make an additional comment of a personal nature. I am an American of Mexican heritage. When the news media described the protests this past spring they said it was illegal immigrants protesting. I suggest that many of those protesting were actually Americans.
The truth is for most Latinos in this country is that any and all measures to toughen immigration enforcement and immigration laws will undoubtedly infringe upon my civil rights. You see, I'm not an illegal immigrant, but I look like one. That's the fundamental problem that many persons don't realize. I know something of law enforcement and have experience at the border. Immigration enforcement is a tricky thing and establishing the "Reasonable Equivalent of the Border" for immigration purposes is difficult. Attempting to establish that same just anywhere is impossible. But those of you would who are ravenous for this round up of illegals, simply don't understand law enforcement. You see "Racial Profiling" is illegal. But how else would you "Round up" these illegals? Where would you find them? What do they look like?
The simple truth is that if I stand on a street corner waiting for ride, or if I'm busy mowing my lawn, or hard at work building a fence about my home, I might be arrested for being an illegal alien and face deportation even though I'm an American! That's what these Anti-immigration forces propose. That's what they really want. They want me, an American Latino, gone!
I assert that many Americans, especially those activists patrolling the border areas and even in the cities hundreds of miles from the border, are fully aware these actions will infringe upon my rights. That is their real intention. They don't care about my rights and want to diminish them. I also believe that is how you feel Mr. Sensenbrenner.
They fear the "invasion" and the loss of political and economic power. But the real issue for them is they simply hate us! Hispanics and Mexicans, in general, have endured not just years or even decades of discrimination and persecution, but centuries. Mexican is bad word in Texas where I live. I suspect it is also a bad word in Wisconsin and elsewhere in the USA.
In Texas, the Rangers, very well earned the dishonor of being called "Rinches" during the first three decades of the 20th century. They, along with other vigilantes, murdered thousands of Mexicans in south Texas and falsely imprisoned thousands of others so as to steal their land and cattle. The whole truth is that this had been going on since before 1836 and the Texas revolution. But in the early 20th century, during the Mexican revolution and the Prohibition era, the hateful vigilantes sought to satiate their blood thirst by using the cover that revolutionaries were raiding farms or that the rum runners started the shooting. The problem for them was that the modern age had come to south Texas and the murders were finally reported. Not much else was done, but records were finally kept.
Today, the motivation is the same, many Americans hate Mexicans and their culture. Today, the cover story is terrorism, cultural collapse and economic issues. None of which is true. The real truth is hatred.
That’s where you are Mr. Sensenbrenner. You face a legacy of hatred. Will you support that or will you change your ways? Where is your Christian morality now?
Sincerely,
Lauro Antonio Garza, MPO
Retired Police Detective, Entrepreneur,
Political Analyst, and Author
Please contact Lauro Garza directly at:
lauroantoniogarza@hotmail.com
larrygarzaadvocacy@hotmail.com
latinotalktexas@hotmail.com
or by telephone at: 281-236-8294 cellular.
