SAVE Act at Brave New Films

FILE NOT FOUND, or, Why You Should Be Worried, Too; part 3

2008-11-21T18:45:41Z

Last time I wrote about the SAVE Act, here, I just pointed out the devastation that the legislation would cause to the immigrant community and those citizens who have become inextricably tied into it. There's more to it, though. The SAVE Act is something you should be worried about, even if you don't give a damn about those of us it would primarily affect. See the video for a succinct and tuneful breakdown of that. I'll be a little more detailed.

The video's claim:

The bill would require 6 million employers to verify the work status of over 130 million workers using a database called E-Verify, known to have an unacceptably high error rate (4.1%). It contains roughly 17.8 million errors, according to the Social Security Administration--high enough to put 2.8 million American citizens' jobs at risk.

What I have to say about it:

SAVE Act Saves Nothing

2008-10-20T21:29:33Z

There was this radio documentary I heard - it must have been on NPR, anyway, it was about this woman who had single-handedly destroyed the economy in her small town in Minnesota. How’d she do that? Long story short, this small town suddenly became the center of a large community of Mexican immigrants. Try as she might to include them in town activities, they weren’t interested. (I mean she did seem a little pushy) She held and ethnic fair, but was disappointed when two years in a row, no one showed up. They stayed in “their” part of town. They kept to themselves. So what did she do? She fought and fought and eventually got something similar to the “no match” law instituted in her town. I listened in horror as this selfish woman who was angry because none of the Mexican immigrants would be her friend, ruined her town. Suddenly stores were closing on the side of town where the immigrants had lived, there just wasn’t enough business and there weren’t enough workers. The town collapsed.

Congress is on a fast track to passing a seriously flawed, bill that could deny millions of U.S. citizens of their right to work. The "Secure America through Verification and Enforcement" (SAVE Act). It’s another really poor attempt at immigration reform. Another way to identify and deport undocumented workers. Another drain on tax dollars thrown at detention programs.

Immigration Enforcement Bill to be Introduced Today

2008-03-05T12:00:11Z

I came across an article from the LA Times which announced that Senate Republicans are planning to introduce a bill that contains punitive enforcement measures without any path to legalization for immigrants in this country.

The bill would require immigrants who cross the border to serve jail time, prevent them from opening bank accounts, and force them to speak English when dealing with federal agencies.

I have two problems with the above provisions of this bill, especially the English language requirement. I have relatives who are legal immigrants who still do not speak English because they are adults. Not that I am excusing them from learning another language, but you can’t force everyone to fit into one model. They still require assistance to communicate with others; since they are now citizens, they have the right to feel welcomed when they necessitate counsel from federal agencies; if this measure were to be passed and enforced, this would discriminate against them.

Also, how can it be possible to prevent banks from offering immigrants to open bank accounts? I can potentially see that the bill would penalize banks from doing so. I really don’t understand why this is even necessary. Most immigrants have a hard time opening a bank account without proper documentation. I will attest to that. I am a college student who needs a bank account to save my money. There are very few banks out there who would not consider me to open a bank account. At the very least, banks offer some immigrants an opportunity to open a bank account, provided that they have some form of valid identification (valid and unexpired foreign passport or a matricula consular for citizens of Mexico) and an ITIN (Individual Taxpayer Identification Number).

The LA Times reports on these other numerous enforcement measures:

* Block federal funding to cities that bar their police from asking about immigration status.

* Give the Department of Homeland Security the authority to use information from the Social Security Administration to target illegal immigrants.

* Require construction of 700 miles of fencing along the southern border, not including vehicle barriers.

* Impose sanctions on countries that refuse to repatriate their citizens.

* Deport any immigrant, legal or illegal, for one drunk-driving conviction.

* Enable local and state police to enforce federal immigration laws.

Given that there is substantial support for a path to legalization, this bill is doomed to fail. To open reflection, given the measures of this bill, do you think that a compromise can be reached? Which measures would you support along with a path to legalization, such as what the SAVE Act offers?