You know that old stupid adage about “if you have nothing to hide, then there isn’t any reason to fear” (usually following concern about some kind of new law enforcement anal probe plan at the airport or wherever)? Well, the same adage should apply to those who whine about immigration raids.
Immigration agents had barely left Postville when word hit Perry, about 200 miles to the southwest, that another raid was coming.
The rumor, which turned out to be false, spread like prairie fire through this central Iowa city’s Hispanic community, reflecting a new reality for many small towns that can’t be shaken.
In places like Perry, where Hispanics now make up at least a quarter of the population, residents are left wondering, “Are we next?”
“We are more vulnerable now,” asked Angelica Cardenas, 28, who works in Perry’s school system. “There is always fear of something like this, but with these raids, we know now it’s real.”
The government’s shift to high-profile immigration raids — 389 people were arrested at Postville’s Agriprocessors Inc. on May 12, and 595 were rounded up at Howard Industries Inc. of Laurel, Miss., on Monday — has instilled fear in towns across the country.
“These raids have really highlighted the difficulties towns face in this situation,” said Ana-Maria Garcia Wahl, an associate professor of sociology at Wake Forest University who studies immigration issues in the Midwest and South. “I’m not sure all of these towns have an ability to cope and provide the crisis intervention.”
In the name of Jeebus and all that is holy, when in the hell did it become necessary to call enforcing the law a “crisis”? Ay, cheen-gow.
On the flip side, The Raids have made industry more wary and determined to at least play the part of good citizens.
For their part, Tyson officials say they are confident their workers are in the country legally.
Applicants must go through a federally backed immigration verification system, Tyson spokesman Gary Mickelson said. The company’s starting wages range from $10 to $13.65 an hour, with benefits such as health insurance and paid vacations and holidays.
“We have zero tolerance for employing people who are not authorized to work in the U.S. and use all available tools provided by the U.S. government to verify the documents of the people we hire,” Mickelson said.
He said audits at Tyson facilities are conducted regularly, including some by an outside company.
Not bad, but didn’t those jobs used to pay about 20 an hour? Gee, wonder what happened there.
School Superintendent Randy J. McCaulley said the school system has an emergency plan in place for an immigration raid, just as it does for other possible calamities, such as a tornado, fire or intruder.
Parents have received a note seeking clarification of their emergency contact information and reassuring them that students will be kept safe in the event of raid.
Still, fear lingers among Perry’s Hispanic community.
“You can see that people are more scared in general,” said Rosa Gonzalez of the advocacy group Hispanics United for Perry. “Some of them, they don’t even tell you directly but people don’t go outside like they used to and things like that.”
Wendy Goodale, director of Perry’s Chamber of Commerce, said Hispanics have helped revive the community, giving local businesses a boost while many rural areas have struggled through tough economic times.
You know, I’ve struck upon an idea for Halloween. I’m just going to run up and down the street dressed in an INS costume and yell “la migra” all night. Loads of fun!
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