APRUEBA EL SENADO DE CALIFORNIA OTORGAR LICENCIAS A INMIGRANTES / MILENIO
Ayer mismo fue enviada a la oficina del gobernador Schwarzenegger.El senado de California aprobó hoy una propuesta de ley para proporcionar licencias de conducir a miles de inmigrantes con trámites de migración pendientes. La iniciativa aprobada por 21 votos a favor y 14 en contra, fue enviada ayer domingo a la oficina del gobernador Arnold Schwarzenegger, informó la portavoz de la bancada latina en la legislatura, Xóchitl Arellano.
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VE MCCAIN LA RELACIÓN CON MÉXICO / J. JAIME HERNÁNDEZ / EL UNIVERSAL
La plataforma del Partido Republicano, que ungirá a John McCain como su candidato a la Presidencia, mostrará las dos caras de su relación con México, donde la lucha contra el narcoterrorismo y la defensa del Tratado de Libre Comercio figurarán como piezas clave de su relación con su vecino del sur, mientras el capítulo migratorio se convierte en uno de los más controvertidos y castigados. El borrador de la plataforma que será debatido por los poco más de 2 mil 400 delegados que asisten a la convención republicana pone el énfasis del futuro de las relaciones con México en promover el comercio y combatir por otro lado la amenaza de los cárteles de la droga.
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EXCLUYEN A MIGRANTES DE SU PLAN PARTIDARIO / REFORMA
El borrador de la Plataforma Política Republicana 2008 no incluye la posición de su virtual candidato a la Casa Blanca, John McCain, quien en 2004 respaldó la aprobación de una reforma migratoria legal, humana y ordenada.McCain apoya, igual que su rival demócrata, Barack Obama, la legalización de unos 12 millones de indocumentados que viven en Estados Unidos y ambos fueron promotores de un proyecto de ley que fue bloqueado por un puñado de conservadores en el Senado. Pero el borrador de la Plataforma Política de los republicanos sostiene que "el Estado de derecho sufre si las políticas del gobierno alientan o recompensan la actividad ilegal", por lo que rechaza toda iniciativa que represente una amnistía migratoria.
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FORTALECER RED CONSULAR, EN AGENDA DEL TRICOLOR / DIARIO DE MÈXICO
La bancada del PRI en la Cámara de Diputados presentó su agenda legislativa en materia migratoria para el periodo ordinario que inicia, en donde destaca el fortalecimiento presupuestal de la Red Consular, reformas para inversión de remesas y protección de migrantes mexicanos y centroamericanos. El Grupo de Trabajo en Materia Migratoria planteó la necesidad de que en la discusión del Presupuesto de Egresos de la Federación 2009 se incluyan recursos con un incremento de 350 por ciento a la Red de Protección Consular.
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DISMINUYE EL ENVÍO DE REMESAS A MÉXICO / FINANCIERO
El Banco de México (Banxico) informó que los envíos de remesas de mexicanos que viven fuera de su país bajaron un 6.93 por ciento en julio respecto al mismo mes del año pasado: La entidad bancaria preciso que el monto de los envíos en julio fue de 2015.04 millones de dólares.
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LABOR DAY / THE WASHINGTON POST
Respect, as much as economic need, is at the heart of America's attitude toward work. IN THE fall campaign, you may hear talk now and then about the dangers of "class warfare" when the debate turns to such things as the tax structure, health care and other matters having to do with who gets what in this roiling republic. Don't pay it too much attention. (….) America has hardly been free of exploitation and abuses of working people, but it has managed to maintain, and to some extent achieve, the ideal of a society in which free people can gain some degree of comfort and security through their labors. The people one passes every day -- swinging pickaxes, toting iron rods at construction sites, putting up drywall, making hotel beds -- generally take pride in what they do and in doing it well. But are they becoming invisible to many of us? Is their work regarded as menial, trivial, unworthy of consideration? Is the growing inequality of incomes, residential separation and the unsettled situation of millions of working people who are in this country in violation of its inadequate and outdated immigration laws eroding the sense of commonality that is vital to the country's future? These are things worth thinking about on this first Monday in September -- and on the first Tuesday in November.
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CONVENTIONS OFFER UNFILTERED PARTY VIEWS / MARIA ELENA SALINAS / ARIZONA DAILY STAR
I respectfully disagree with those who say that political conventions are not important. I sometimes wonder why some of my colleagues in the media are shooting themselves in the foot by questioning the validity of the conventions as they are covering them. It's like saying: "Here I am wasting my time and yours, and getting paid to do so. Don't watch our television shows, don't listen to our radio programs, don't read our newspaper articles that report on conventions." (…)In trying to attract a specific voter bloc, the parties need to show how diverse and inclusive they really are. For example, both parties say they are reaching out to Latinos. In the Democratic Convention, there were more than 600 Hispanic delegates a record number and several Latino speakers went to the podium, including Federico Peña, who served in two Cabinet positions under President Clinton, and several members of Congress. New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson had a prime-time role on the last day of the convention. As I was writing this column, Republicans had not yet released the number of Hispanic delegates who would be attending their convention, but they had lined up Latino speakers such as Sen. Mel Martinez, former U.S. Treasurer Rosario Marin and Miami Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart. As of now, Democrats have the upper hand when it comes to the Latino vote, with about 65 percent supporting Obama, according to the latest polls. Republicans will have in their convention an opportunity to get some of the Latino vote back in their column. In the most recent survey of Latino voters by the Pew Hispanic Center, 55 percent said that the Democratic Party "understands the concerns of their community," while only 5 percent say Republicans do. Prove them wrong, Republicans.
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NUEVOS CIUDADANOS SE APRESURAN A REGISTRARSE PARA EMITIR SUS VOTOS / FRANCISCO CASTRO / DIARIO HOY
Luego de residir 18 años en el país, Trinidad Hernández se convirtió ayer en nuevo ciudadano estadounidense junto con 18,000 inmigrantes más durante tres ceremonias llevadas a cabo en el Centro de Convenciones de Los Ángeles. "Me siento a todo dar. Agradecido por todas las oportunidades que podemos tener en este país como ciudadano", expresó el mexicano. Al tope de esas oportunidades para él está el derecho al voto, el cual esta ansioso de ejercer en las elecciones presidenciales de noviembre. "Estoy listo para votar. No estoy ciento por ciento seguro por quién, pero me gusta más Obama. Me gustan sus ideas", agregó.
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HISPANICS HIT HARD AS WORKERS LOSE HOURS / ALEJANDRO LAZO / THE WASHINGTON POST
More Full-Time Jobs Turn Part-Time. With the economy in the grip of a slowdown, American workers are increasingly losing full-time work to part-time employment, and the trend is particularly pronounced among Hispanics, contributing to the tough economic times hitting the nation's largest minority group. Gustavo Alvarez, a 33-year-old U.S. citizen who spent most of his life in Argentina, took a part-time job cleaning a six-story Rockville office building in April when he could not find full-time work after being laid off from a Silver Spring construction company. For Alvarez, that meant fewer hours at about half of the $20 per hour he used to pull in, as well as the loss of benefits and health insurance. He cut back on groceries and money sent home to his wife in Buenos Aires. He struggled to pay his rent and bills. Until three weeks ago, when he found a second part-time job cleaning another office building, his monthly income was about $700.
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CALIFORNIA'S DOLDRUMS SENDING SOME IMMIGRANT WORKERS HOME / ANNA GORMAN / LOS ANGELES TIMES
The economic slowdown has translated into less work for day laborers, and for some, little reason to stay. For more than two years, Otoniel Lopez Cortez arrived at the Westlake day labor center before 6:30 a.m. to wait for jobs painting houses. Some weeks he earned a few hundred dollars, enough to pay his rent and bills and send money home to Guatemala. But after four months with only one day of work, Lopez made the decision last month to return to his native country. "I don't want to go back, but there is no work," said Lopez, 18. "It's better to be with my family, even though we don't have much." With the ongoing economic downturn and the collapse of the construction industry, day laborers in California are feeling the effects. Now, some immigrant workers are choosing to go home rather than wait for a rebound. California's unemployment rate hit 7.3% last month, compared with 5.4% the previous July. The number of construction jobs dropped by 84,000 over the previous year, according to the state Employment Development Department.
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MEATPACKER IN BROOKLYN CHALLENGES A UNION VOTE / STEVEN GREENHOUSE / THE NEW YORK TIMES
Agriprocessors, the Brooklyn-based company that is the nation’s largest kosher meat producer, is well known for the labor troubles at its meatpacking plant in Iowa — federal agents detained 389 of its workers as illegal immigrants in May, and labor officials in Iowa have accused it of employing 57 under-age workers. But Agriprocessors is also having labor troubles closer to home, with the company asking the United States Supreme Court to overturn a vote to unionize at its distribution center along the Brooklyn waterfront. If successful, the company’s appeal could have repercussions at companies across the country: it is trying to persuade the Supreme Court to rule that illegal immigrants do not have the right to join labor unions. In September 2005, the company’s Brooklyn employees voted 15 to 5 to unionize, with one ballot challenged. The workers, most of them immigrants from Mexico, complained of low pay, not receiving time-and-a-half for overtime and not having health insurance or paid holidays.
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HOSPITAL CHIDED FOR REPORTING ILLEGAL APPLICANT / ANABELLE GARAY / THE WASHINGTON POST
Maria Martinez' attempt to land a cafeteria job at a suburban Dallas hospital got her arrested, jailed and deported. She did use a counterfeit social security on her application to Trinity Medical Center, but her relatives and supporters wonder whether the hospital overreacted by calling the police. During yet another year marked by several high profile immigration raids targeting both undocumented workers and the companies who hire them, the Martinez case raises questions about what employers can or should do if they discover an applicant is not authorized to work legally in the U.S. A spokeswoman for the medical center here contends the hospital was simply following policy and has a responsibility to report criminal activity, including possible identity theft. (….)U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesman Carl Rusnok agreed, saying employers and local police typically don't have the training needed to determine whether someone is in the country illegally. Carrollton's mayor has emphasized that one of his priorities is to rid the city of illegal immigrants. The neighboring suburb of Farmers Branch has unsuccessfully tried to prohibit landlords from renting houses and apartments to tenants who cannot prove they are in the U.S. legally. But hospital spokeswoman Susan Watson said the decision to report Martinez had nothing to do with the immigration debate in suburban Dallas. The hospital reported what it considered a crime, she said. (….)
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ACTIVISTA QUINTANILLA ES ARRESTADO EN IRVING / THALIA LONGORIA / AL DÍA
El activista hispano Carlos Quintanilla fue arrestado en Irving el jueves pasado. De acuerdo a la policía, Quintanilla tenía pendientes tres órdenes de arresto en el condado de Dallas cuando asistió a una plática sobre el futuro de los departamentos Vista del Lago. La ciudad clausuró los departamentos por infracciones al código municipal, y como presidente del grupo Acción América, Quintanilla estaba ayudando a los arrendatarios desplazados de los departamentos a demandar a los dueños por negligencia. "Hubo cientos de personas en el evento y yo fui el único arrestado", dijo Quintanilla, que fue liberado tras pagar una fianza de 900 dólares. "Tenía evidencias en mi coche de que las órdenes de arresto no eran válidas", agregó.
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FEDS JOIN VALLEY GANG SWEEP / JOHN ELLIS / SACRAMENTO BEE
Central Valley gang enforcers are using a new weapon: deportation orders. Officials say the tactic already is a success. Nearly three dozen gang members who were in the United States illegally have been sent back to their home countries since the program's first arrests in February. Local authorities have welcomed help from federal immigration agents because they are equipped with a powerful weapon: the ability to deport gang members who are in the country illegally. Federal agents also can ensure that lawbreakers get federal prison time.
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ARIZONA CALLED 'GROUND ZERO' IN IMMIGRATION FIGHT / ARTHUR H. ROTSTEIN / ARIZONA REPUBLIC
Arizona is "ground zero" for the Border Patrol in its quest to gain effective control of illegal immigration into the United States, and agents are making headway, the chief of the agency's busiest sector says. The progress is reflected in a 16 percent drop in apprehensions in the patrol's Tucson sector through Aug. 19 for the current fiscal year, compared with the same period a year ago, and by what officials believe is an even bigger decrease in entries, Chief Patrol Agent Robert Gilbert said last week. The fiscal year ends Sept. 30.(…) Gilbert credits several factors for sector successes, including increases in manpower, the fences and other physical barriers, efforts to prosecute some illegal immigrants and a program to fly some illegal immigrants caught in Arizona to the Mexican interior. The aerial repatriation program is intended to separate illegal immigrants from their smugglers.
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MAN TENDS TO THE GARDEN AND THE DREAMS PLANTED BY HIS FATHER / PETER H. KING / LOS ANGELES TIMES
It is a path as old as California itself. A fresh wave of immigrants comes to work the land, pick the fruit, till the fields, tend the gardens. The dirt beneath their fingernails, the lives of low pay and aching backs; these they accept as a down payment on the future of their children and their children's children. Their common prayer is that through this hard work they might gain a foothold, allowing their offspring to vault into the higher, softer corners of the California economy. Glenn Ota's father took this path, prayed this prayer. Jack Ota was still working close to the land when he died two years ago at the age of 85 -- one of the last of a generation of Japanese American gardeners who once were a fixture of the California suburbs, as ubiquitous as shake roofs. Since Jack Ota's death, his 50-year-old son, who works in the produce department of a grocery store, has been coming every Monday and Friday morning to a house in suburban Fresno where, working alongside his 82-year-old mother, he meticulously grooms the grounds of his father's last client.
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LES OFRECEN SOLUCIONES A LOS JÓVENES HISPANOS / THALIA I. LONGORIA / AL DÍA
La convención de los Testigos de Jehová en Fort Worth este fin de semana tuvo un significado especial para Miriam García. García, de 20 años, dijo que era importante que la asamblea "Guiados por el Espíritu de Dios" tomara en cuenta los problemas de la juventud hispana.
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ALUMNOS DE ESCUELA DE CIENCIA SACAN PROVECHO DEL ESPAÑOL / ALLISON WISK / AL DIA
Es común que los alumnos de la Escuela de Ciencias del Museo de Naturaleza y Ciencias (Nature and Science) entreguen a otros el don del conocimiento. "La semana pasada vino una madre de familia que nos dijo, 'ya me muero por que empiece la escuela para que mi hijo me enseñe cosas al volver a casa' ", dijo Christy McLaughlin, directora de la Escuela de Ciencias. "Muchas veces ocurre que padres o madres aprenden de sus hijos cosas que no sabían".
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¡ACTUALÍZATE CON LAS REMESAS! / AMÉRICA SALINAS/ LA OPINIÓN
Pon atención a los servicios de envíos para aprovechar al máximo lo que mandas. La combinación mágica que debe tener una buena compañía de remesa es la seguridad, rapidez, costo y comodidad. Una vez que sabes cómo verificar la seguridad de tus fondos, y que las transferencias electrónicas son mejores para un envío seguro y en tan sólo minutos, es tiempo de agregar dos detalles importantes: costo y comodidad. En 2007, la cifra de remesas de dinero a América Latina y el Caribe fue de más de 60,000 millones de dólares, lo que convirtió a la región en el mercado de remesas más grande del mundo. El mayor receptor fue México, con casi $24,000 millones, seguido por Brasil y Colombia. Pero debido en parte a la crisis económica en Estados unidos, las remesas han disminuido en los primeros meses del año y hoy más que nunca es necesario poner atención a los servicios de envíos de dinero para aprovechar al máximo lo que mandas a tu familia. Antes de contratar a una compañía, fíjate si cumple con cuatro aspectos básicos:
• Es lo suficientemente confiable como para que le puedas entregar tu dinero
• Envía el dinero rápidamente a su destino.
• Cobra comisiones justas.
• Sus servicios te evitan largas filas o manejar por toda la ciudad.
• Ojo con los cobros
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DESCARTAN REDADAS VS INDOCUMENTADOS EN NUEVA ORLEÁNS / DIARIO DE JUÁREZ (CHIHUAHUA)
La Oficina de Inmigración y Aduanas (ICE) de Estados Unidos descartó la realización de operativos contra inmigrantes indocumentados en Nueva Orleáns y los urgió a seguir las pautas de evacuación dictadas por autoridades ante el huracán Gustav. Bárbara González, vocero regional del ICE en Miami, dijo que han escuchado rumores de que algunos inmigrantes se han negado a abordar los camiones para evacuar zonas peligrosas por temor a ser arrestados y deportados. González subrayó que los inmigrantes hispanos no deben de tener miedo a seguir las pautas de evacuación de las autoridades. Según informes de prensa en Nueva Orleáns algunos indocumentados tienen temor a ir a los lugares oficiales designados por las autoridades para la evacuación debido a que ahí seguramente se encontrarán con oficiales estadunidenses.
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HERITAGE DEPARTMENT TAKES AIM AT RELIGIOUS RADICALS / COLIN FREEZE / THE GLOBE AND MAIL
Multiculturalism plan under scrutiny. The federal culture department wants to fight religious radicalization in Canada. Canadian Heritage officials, who are responsible for the promotion of citizenry, say the country has moved beyond the "mosaic" model of the 1970s and entered an era of "integrative multiculturalism" that requires, in part, a battle against youth extremism. In a presentation to a federal national security advisory board, Andrew Griffith, Canadian Heritage's director-general of multiculturalism and human rights, raised a series of issues including the question: "What is the appropriate role for Canadian Heritage and its Multicultural Program in countering radicalization?" "Are traditional government objectives [civic participation, anti-racism/cross-cultural understanding, inclusive institutions] enough to address radicalization, or are radicalization-specific initiatives required?" His PowerPoint presentation offers no concrete answers, but hints that shifting demographics mean the government must "adjust multiculturalism programming" in order to "advance core Canadian values." The "Canadian Multiculturalism Act is flexible," the presentation notes.
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