Your Thoughts: Day Without Immigrants-Boycott
 

Immigrants Walk Off Jobs in Boycott
AP - 1 hour, 58 minutes ago
LOS ANGELES - Hundreds of thousands of mostly Hispanic immigrants skipped work and took to the streets Monday, flexing their newfound political muscle in a nationwide boycott that, while far from unified, still succeeded in slowing or shutting many farms, factories, markets and restaurants. From Los Angeles to Chicago, New Orleans to Houston, the "Day Without Immigrants" attracted widespread participation despite divisions among activists over whether a boycott would send the right message to Washington lawmakers considering sweeping immigration reform.



http://news.yahoo.com/fc/US/Immigration

I admit that I haven't researched this and I need some help. Can someone please tell me what do you need to immigrate to the U.S. legally besides a passport or visa? Do you need to have a U.S. family member, employer or someone like that to vouch for you? Thanks for any and all repsonses.

Well it depends on where you're coming from. There is lots of paperwork involved b/c as with any country you need to keep track of who's in your country & who's coming in and out of it. It only makes sense. Now Once you have your passport or Visa (if it is required by the US government) there's is usually a time limit that you can stay. Exceeding that is one form of being here illegally. I.E you got in legally but exceeded your stay...that's illegal.

Some instances require a family member to "vouch" for you, say if you're trying to get a green card. Some instances allow you to stay on a work visa, or student visa or asylum visa. They've got something for everyone. You can even be here off of a student visa, work on an Optional Practical Training Visa & the company you work for can "vouch" for you.

But then you have those who have come tot he US by boat or by sneaking into the country by land as in the case of illegal Mexicans. So basically there's no record of you even being here.

No traffic on the 405...sorry.

I have been following this story closely. There is one thing that confuses me. The pending legislation is for immigration reform right? Those that have emigrated here LEGALLY should have no beef right? In fact, I have tremendous respect for people who have left their homeland to seek a better life; the more the better if they did it the RIGHT way.

My problem, and what I think the focus of the legislation is, would be the ILLEGAL immigrants that sneak into the country every year. These people demand the rights of citizenship (schooling, public housing, financial aid, jobs) without the documentation that they are entitled to those rights and the responsibility and allegiance to this country. Why didn't the boycott only ask the ILLEGALS to stay home so that we can clearly see who are the ones that this country can do without?

I would be interested to hear from folks who emigrated here legally and the challenges you faced.

I didn't know anything about this until I went to IHOP last night to study and it was closed.... :(

I need to read up on this subject after finals are over.

I have been married since Nov 2004 and we are still going through red tape and more red tape. Many people have this idea that you get married, and everything is automatic. IT'S NOT. It takes LOTS of time (hours filling out paperwork, weeks/months/years waiting for it to be processed), LOTS of money (Your first petition to determine if you are even eligible to apply costs $200, your second round of paperwork costs $2000, plus the $ for fingerprinting and medical exam AND the forms are EXTREMELY complicated, so many people have to have legal help to do those and that's major $$ also), and LOTS of patience. We're working on getting him a Social Security number right now so that he can get a driver's license.

I think that this is just another case of the US upholding their double standard. Maybe this issue is too close to me, but I'm amazed at how Cubans can touch US soil and be a citizen but Hatians get turned away. I was just reading some old historical things about Haiti and the Louisiana Purchase and this whole conspiracy thing to keep Haiti weak. But that's another topic. I really believe that whatever the policy is, it needs to be the same all across the board.

The US has strong ties to Cuba (whereas France has strong ties to Haiti). On top of that, I don't think they become citizens automatically, but are given political asylum. That's different. And the US government has provided political asylum to people from all over the world.

-Rudey

They are protesting and screaming "We are Americans". No they're Mexicans that send money back to Mexico if they're illegal. Substitute Mexican for whatever country you want.

They had a woman screaming "We're not criminals" but I guess she doesn't know what the meaning of illegal is and how people are ILLEGAL immigrants because they break the law.

But then they had a Mexican guy on tv who said his family had been here for 30 years and worked hard to come here and become citizens, sacrificed, and didn't think illegals are entitled to the rewards without going through all that.

So the local burrito joint was closed? Tomatoes weren't picked in the US? I'll go to Taco Bell and buy Mexican grown tomatoes...no worries. If this were Mexico, they could bring the economy to a halt but it's America and the economy thrives in areas illegals have no involvement in.

-Rudey

I agree with Rudey :) .........and that scares me. :(

There, there, HK1974. It's going to be OK. You get over it eventually.

OT, thanks for the explanations everyone. AlphaFrog's situation makes it clearer. I have known people who have come here legally and later became US citizens. We never discussed fees and such so I never knew what it cost.

Give me a break...the US HATES Castro and have tried over the years to remove him. To get in Castro's face the US has established a system which allows Cuban residents rights they REFUSE to give others who are in actual danger solely to piss Castro off. Haitian citizens who are in danger (not just politically but are starving and still suffering from the mudslides that hit the country after the hurricaines last year) continue to DIE - but the US sticks to its "policies" and continues to deport anyone who happens to make it here with no regard.

How quickly we've forgotten Elian and the drama with his mothers family that wanted to keep him here while his father fought to have him returned to Cuba. He wasn't in danger - he's in Cuba living his life.

Funny how the media now has people up in arms over immigrants "stealing our jobs" and "mis-using our tax dollars" and we've conveniently taken the heat off the president for the rising gas prices and daily rising death toll in Iraq.....

But again, the US has ties to Cuba historically and not to Haiti. That's why France is so involved in Haiti (or at least moreso than other countries). It's also why that altered form of French is spoken there.

Haitians are starving? So is a considerable portion of the world. Everywhere from India to Africa. It's all good and great to talk about helping people, but the United States isn't in the business of charity. It donates quite a bit but it doesn't open its doors for all the poor to just rush in. I mean hey why don't we just send boats to Haiti and bring the entire population over and settle them in Montana? Then we can make Haiti into a new club Med.

And you're right, Elian did get returned and wasn't made into a US citizen. He wasn't in danger, like you said, and was returned.

As for rising gas prices a president doesn't control them (blame the Arabs and Venezualans as well as investors who control the price of oil after it reaches the market). As for Iraq, that's a whole other issue but either way it's a separate issue. It's not like anyone said don't talk about Iraq. Iraq is in the news every day. It's a pretty big copout to just say "Hey don't enforce immigration laws, because we have the Iraq war going on".

On top of that immigration is mostly a congressional issue and not presidential. It's come into the spotlight because of the congressional races that are coming up.

Either way, the law is the law isn't it? And aren't these people breaking the law? That's what it all comes down to. And since this isn't a small law they're breaking it's pretty important to enforce it.

-Rudey

gasp! so do I..


My thing is this..for those of you working on doing it the correct way, more power to you and I wish you all the best. :)

To those who keep coming here illegally but want all the benefits I don't think so. I am sorry but if the American gov has the right to tax me to death and take my $$ in an assortment of taxes (and half azz do what they are supposed to do with them) just to live here then you should get to experience the same. I could care less about the jobs you do, but there is a price to be paid to say you are an American (whether natural born or naturalized). I think that you should have the right to have to have 1/2 your isht seized by the gov'ment like i do for back taxes. :mad:


End rant...