Alliance of White Anti-Racists Everywhere – Los Angeles
Immigrant Groups
Anti-Immigration Group Calls Immigrants ‘Third-World Gold Diggers’
01 year ago
This post by Erin Rosa at Campus Progress describes the agenda of anti-immigrant groups that are attempting to disparage civil rights organizations.
Embattled by numerous reports of its ties to white nationalists, The Center For Immigration Studies (CIS), a Washington D.C.-based think thank that strongly opposes immigration reform, lashed out today against advocacy groups like the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) and the National Council of La Raza for participating in “smear” attacks and “manipulating the press” on the immigration issue.
But in the end, it was CIS executive director Mark Krikorian who justified his own smears, defending his groups’ labeling of immigrants as “third-world gold diggers” by calling such rhetoric “colorful language that was too colorful.”
The CIS event, held this morning in Washington, was organized to premiere CIS’s newest report, “Immigration and the SPLC,” a quasi-investigative look at the watchdog group’s research and financial records.
It’s no secret why CIS had dedicated a 27-page report to disparage the SPLC and other entities like the NCLR, a Latino advocacy organization. Both of the targeted organizations have been steadfastly producing research that ties the Center and other anti-immigration groups to white nationalism and racist rhetoric.
But rather than actually responding to anything said about CIS, the report focuses on times when SPLC allegedly took quotes from other anti-immigration groups out of context. The report also blames the media for being too “cooperative” when citing SPLC, and questions the objectivity of the watchdog group for working with pro-immigration groups like the NCLR.
In an effort to get to the bottom of some of these claims, I asked Krikorian a question, about an instance, cited by SPLC, where one of CIS’s reports (no longer on the Web site) referred to immigrants as “third-world gold diggers.”
To read the article in its entirety, click here.
Anti-Immigration Group Calls Immigrants ‘Third-World Gold Diggers’
01 year ago
This post by Erin Rosa at Campus Progress describes the agenda of anti-immigrant groups that are attempting to disparage civil rights organizations.
Embattled by numerous reports of its ties to white nationalists, The Center For Immigration Studies (CIS), a Washington D.C.-based think thank that strongly opposes immigration reform, lashed out today against advocacy groups like the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) and the National Council of La Raza for participating in “smear” attacks and “manipulating the press” on the immigration issue.
But in the end, it was CIS executive director Mark Krikorian who justified his own smears, defending his groups’ labeling of immigrants as “third-world gold diggers” by calling such rhetoric “colorful language that was too colorful.”
The CIS event, held this morning in Washington, was organized to premiere CIS’s newest report, “Immigration and the SPLC,” a quasi-investigative look at the watchdog group’s research and financial records.
It’s no secret why CIS had dedicated a 27-page report to disparage the SPLC and other entities like the NCLR, a Latino advocacy organization. Both of the targeted organizations have been steadfastly producing research that ties the Center and other anti-immigration groups to white nationalism and racist rhetoric.
But rather than actually responding to anything said about CIS, the report focuses on times when SPLC allegedly took quotes from other anti-immigration groups out of context. The report also blames the media for being too “cooperative” when citing SPLC, and questions the objectivity of the watchdog group for working with pro-immigration groups like the NCLR.
In an effort to get to the bottom of some of these claims, I asked Krikorian a question, about an instance, cited by SPLC, where one of CIS’s reports (no longer on the Web site) referred to immigrants as “third-world gold diggers.”
To read the article in its entirety, click here.
Tanton Network Uses E-verify to Terrorize Immigrant Communities
01 year ago
by Jill Garvey
in Center for Immigration Studies, E-Verify, Economy, Federation For American Immigration Reform, Immigrant Communities, Immigrant Groups, Immigration, Immigration System, John Tanton, Krikorian, Law Enforcement, Numbersusa, Politics, Racial Profiling, Racist Organizations, Unemployment
The John Tanton Network is more interested in terrorizing immigrant communities than helping employers.
Nothing else can explain its recent response to a comprehensive report on the failure of E-verify. Rather than accept the program’s failures and promote more effective ways to fix the immigration system, the network of anti-immigrant groups led by John Tanton is attacking the report and trying to discredit hard facts. The anti-immigrant trifecta of the Tanton Network – FAIR, Center for Immigration Studies and NumbersUSA – came out swinging against the report which effectively debunks their data on E-verify.
Mark Krikorian of Center for Immigration Studies said, “Nevertheless, it’s certainly true that E-Verify isn’t tight enough yet, but in a glass-half-full sense, this isn’t really bad news,” and “…we know perfectly well what the problems are, and they don’t have much to with with the E-Verify system itself.”
We do indeed know perfectly well what the problems are. The problems are anti-immigrant groups with ties to racist organizations injecting themselves into a mainstream debate and distorting data.
Here is the truth: E-verify encourages discrimination in hiring. The harder it is for employers to properly utilize the system (and it sounds nearly impossible), the more potential employees they will pass over. Don’t be surprised to one day hear reports of employers who admit to resorting to racial profiling because it was easier than E-verify. Anti-immigrant leaders like Krikorian know this. They know that applying for a job while brown is hell and E-verify just makes it worse.
Putting aside undocumented immigrants for a moment, this has serious implications for all workers of color. Think unemployment among communities of color is bad now? Just wait.
Just as the anti-immigrant movement has tried to turn landlords, local law enforcement, and ordinary citizens into the federal immigration police, so too would it like to turn employers into immigration snitches.
We can’t afford it. America is in economic trouble, and lawmakers and employers can’t afford to spend their time tracking down and reporting every single potentially undocumented immigrant. It’s a waste of precious resources and will hurt American businesses.
When anti-immigrant groups make their motives clear, when they renounce all associations with white nationalist organizations, then we can talk about E-verify. Until then, their opinions on the matter simply aren’t valid.
Anti-immigrant Groups and Environmentalists at Odds
02 years ago
Masked is the word that comes to mind when I think of anti-immigrant organizations that claim to be concerned about the environment. As we move into a new month, year, decade and closer to the 30th anniversary of Earth Day, we must be mindful of environmental issues and especially of who are considered legitimate environmental experts. Conscious and informed environmentalism is imperative to solve dire environmental problems.
However, politically extreme organizations that purport to prioritize environmental preservation/conservation are using this alarming issue to promote their anti-immigrant agendas. They are employing several aggressive tactics, some of which are outright attacks on mainstream environmental organizations for not taking an anti-immigrant stance. Other examples include TV and radio advertisements which falsely connect immigrants to environmental degradation. Fear-mongering and bullying are the anti-immigrant movement’s favored tactics.
Jerry Kammer, a senior research fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies in his memorandum entitled, “Strategic Negligence: how the Sierra Club’s Distortions on Border and Immigration are Undermining its Environmental Legacy”, attacks the Sierra Club by saying it has “retreated timidly from the national debate over immigration policy…” Kammer also attacks Carl Pope, the executive director of the Sierra Club, for saying that if the organization favored reduced immigration they would be perceived as assisting people whose motivations are racist. What Kammer referred to as a “smear campaign” was in fact a great example of how an environmental organization was able to detect and expose anti-immigrant extremists who were trying to hijack an environmental organization.
Unfortunately, it is not just the Center for Immigration Studies, and the attacks on mainstream environmental organizations are not as overt as Kammer’s memorandum. Negative Population Growth, an anti-immigrant group financed by the Federation for American Immigration Reform, ran an advertisement in E-Magazine in October 2009. Californians for Population Stabilization (CAPS) released a multi-media, multi-market ad campaign at the end of October of 2009. CAPS’s ads harshly attacked immigrants, and specifically targeted California communities that are sensitive to environmental problems. Roy Beck executive director of Numbers USA wrote about the ability of a fence to allow a desert to sprout back to life. Progressives for Immigration Reform, another anti-immigrant organization, advertised themselves as an environmental organization on environmental blogs.
These organizations are all working in tandem as a network referred to as the John Tanton Network, a network of organizations that are all connected with one another (see this map for more details). A movement is in motion to advance the notion that environmental organizations and those supporting environmental issues should take a strong anti-immigrant stance. There is no room for hatred, racism, discrimination and division in the environmental movement. What can we do about this? For starters, we can be discerning. Who are the authors and organizations behind what we read? What have they done for the causes they purport to support? One of the most important steps in combating racism is ensuring that individuals and organizations that care about the environment are not fooled by those masking themselves as something they are not.
Anti-Immigrant Forces Hold Rally in Maryland
02 years ago
The Sanctuary posted a great article by CASA de Maryland about an anti-immigrant rally with very low attendance. If only all anti-immigrant events were as unpopular.
Last week, a conglomeration of anti-immigrant groups, led by “Help Save Maryland” and FAIR (recognized a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center), organized a rally against my organization, CASA de Maryland.
The heavily promoted rally, which was announced in CAPITAL LETTERS on the website of Help Save Maryland, was supposed to draw the anti-immigrant forces from around the state. Their website implored:
JOIN HELP SAVE MARYLAND, PEOPLE FOR CHANGE IN PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY, FEDERATION FOR AMERICAN IMMIGRATION REFORM (FAIR) AND OTHER CITIZEN GROUPS!
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 5, 12-1 PM, AT CASA OF MARYLAND’S LAWLESS DAY LABORER CENTER, 734 UNIVERSITY BLVD E (NEAR PINEY BRANCH RD), SILVER SPRING 20903.
LIVE COVERAGE OF OUR EVENT BY WFMD 930AM FREDERICK RADIO!
Don’t let the threat of a few raindrops and snowflakes scare you off.
The Rally Against CASA of Maryland and Illegal Immigration in ON!
HSM Members are driving in from Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Baltimore City, Harford, Howard, Montgomery, Prince George’s, and Washington Counties.
Now, before I go on, it’s important to note that many political-types in Washington actually believe that the anti-immigrant forces are vast and numerous— not just noisy. Because of this, conventional wisdom on how immigration is hard to change. Well, for anyone in DC who missed how badly anti-immigrant candidates lost in 2008, please turn your attention to Maryland.
Continue post at The Sanctuary.