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Immigrant Life and the Streets of New York

While the politicians argue over the border and the yuppie environmentalists gnash their teeth over miles per gallon, the U.S. economy runs on the backs of immigrants — like it always has. In New York the Center for an Urban Future recently released a report that demonstrates the economy there and in other big cities is propelled not by Citicorp, but by thousands upon thousands of small immigrant entrepreneuers. These are the people who Tom Tancredo and his supporters want to run out of the country, the people hunted down by the posses in the southwest. Baiting immigrants is the lifeblood of every politican — liberal or conservative.

And yet these people have become the economic heartbeat of the nation. Neither they nor their children have health care. They are denied food. There is no unemployment insurance. They are picked up on the corner and dragged off to jail before being returned to their native lands. And, of course, if they are Muslims, they face the very real prospect of being labelled terrorists in which case they are denied even the most basic legal rights. The sweat shop all too often looks like a commodious modern workplace to many of them. They live in the wonderful Victorian world the conservatives have designed for them. And it's not just the conservatives. It's the liberals — the politicians in Washington, the upper classes in Manhattan, the smug yuppies of San Francisco and Northern California, swaggering yahoos of Texas, who haggle over whether immigrants, illegal or legal, should receive basic social services.

In New York earlier today in a wrenching funeral service at a mosque, hundreds of West Africans prayed in the streets for the nine children and one woman killed in last Thursday's fire in the South Bronx. Some of the children were buried in New Jersey. Others will be buried in Mali.

"We will see what we can do in terms of housing, in terms of employment, in terms of ensuring health care, in terms of ensuring that a community that is so much a part of New York City as every immigrant community is, is tended to and is understood and appreciated," Governor Spitzer said. Spitzer at least might turn out to be a politician with some populist leanings. At least, he is no Rudy Giuliani or Hillary Clinton.

"Immigrant entrepreneurs have emerged as key engines of growth for cities from New York to Los Angeles,'' says the Center for an Urban Future study. "…starting a greater share of new businesses than native-born residents, stimulating growth in sectors from food manufacturing to health care, creating loads of new jobs, and transforming once-sleepy neighborhoods into thriving commercial centers. And immigrant entrepreneurs are also becoming one of the most dependable parts of cities' economies: while elite sectors like finance (New York), entertainment (Los Angeles) and energy (Houston) fluctuate wildly through cycles of boom and bust, immigrants have been starting businesses and creating jobs during both good times and bad."

You can read the study here [pdf].

Comments

America is the land of the Evil empire and land of the selfish chosen few.while they worry about other lands and breast cancer that men contract,the very country they live in falls apart,and the humor in it all is that they help it along with liberal cause and shows of weakness.Yet they forget the poor people's they use as political pawns for money gains and political power as the rest of their people "Suffer".A melting pot of destruction and hatred that is being breeded in this land of the dead is growing closer to its final days and with must rejoice from those of us waiting to take this jem in the rough and recut it to the more pleasant luster you can give such jems.Yet with money and social programs they think they can buy there way out of destruction like western fools do.They think they are all knowing and all powerfull that this dream they live will never die,yet they do not see that it already has died a million deathes and that they have a land of diveded people eager to take power and restore it to the old ways.Yet they lend a hand to there internal enemies and help them grow more powerfull as they grow weaker and there people draw a more seperated line.What fools these Americans are and how weak can these people be,yet they are nothing of the grain there elders were.Such weakness deserves to die and others take there place in power.

Posted by: Navajo Scott on 03/12/07 at 9:10 PM

Mr. James Ridgeway,
I am sorry, but yours is a very narrow one-sided view of the illegal immigrant problem (Life On the Streets Of New York). I like to call it like I see it. Call them illegals not un-documented aliens. My wife is from Colombia. We had to wait a year and a half after getting married to get her into the USA. I don't have any sympathy for people sneaking across our borders. The illegals living around me here in central CA are having 5 or 6 children that are considered legal just because they were born here. The 14th Ammendment needs to be more strictly interpreted. If you want to come here, fill out the paperwork and wait. Learn english after you get here. The fact is, we don't have room in this country for all the people in the world who want to come here. What we need here is a strong 3rd party. The majority of citizens in this country are Christians. The majority needs a voice of truth. That voice is the Constitution Party. You can't trust the majority of Demos or Repubs to be anything more than professional politicians---greedy, power hungry liars.
IN GOD WE TRUST

Posted by: Barry Kelley on 03/13/07 at 12:13 AM

[A portion of this comment was deleted by the moderator.]

Now on to my point- Immigration is a great thing. However, I think we should enforce border security and reform the immigration policy. The argument that immigrants come here to do jobs Americans won't do is sooo old. First, there happen to be negative consequences by a huge influx of Mexicans coming over the border. Yeah, we need janitors and fruit pickers but with that also comes lots of drugs being smuggled in, gangs and a strain on health care systems and schools. I live in San Diego so I see it every day. I'm all for people coming here for opportunities but not enforcing border security is not the answer. I'm in suppoort of a controlled immigration policy. Lastly, it's unfortunate Mexico can't get it's act together. Perhaps it's people would not have to risk their lives crossing the border to fish turds out of a toilet for $5 an hour. Such immigrants would be entitled to better treatment if they came legally.

Posted by: Freedumb izent Free on 03/13/07 at 10:01 AM