New Yorkers to Push Immigration Reform at National Party Conventions
August 25, 2008
New York, NY � As the nation's immigration debate drags on unresolved, the immigrants in its midst say they are being threatened, discriminated against and sometimes killed. A group of New Yorkers is sharing their stories at this year's major political conventions. This week, they're in Denver at the Democratic National Convention, asking that immigration reform be given priority in the party platform.??
The group spent the past week videotaping in six immigration "hot spots," including Long Island. Pat Young, director of the Central American Refugee Center, says the immigration debate turned bitter, and even dangerous, after national leaders failed to act on immigration reform.??"Graffiti went up on Latino-owned businesses, telling Latinos to give up their businesses, to abandon the area, or face death.
So, we think it's important for the folks in Denver and in Minneapolis to hear how immigrants and native-born Americans are affected by their failure of leadership."??While immigration tensions in New York have largely been limited to threats, Young says a Mexican immigrant was beaten to death in neighboring Pennsylvania. The videos by Young and others will be shown at both party conventions, and also are posted on Web sites such as Facebook and Blogspot under the phrase "Finding-America."??
The idea of creating a video road trip to both national conventions came from theNew York Immigration Coalition, where Milan Bhatt says both McCain and Obama have a better record on immigration issues in the U.S. Senate, than either has shown so far on the campaign trail.??"What we're not hearing is the need to reunify families, and to protect labor standards. We're not hearing the holistic, visionary recipe that we've heard both candidates articulate in the past. And so, in that sense, there is room for both candidates to do a better job."??In addition to Long Island, the video team traveled to New York City; Trenton, New Jersey; Hazelton, Pennsylvania; New Haven, Connecticut; and Postville, Iowa, to capture the statements on immigration reform.
Michael Clifford/Craig Eicher, Public News Service - NY
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