Arellano: Return to U.S. Unlikely
By Antonio Olivo Tribune staff reporter
1:22 PM CDT, August 20, 2007
SAN DIEGO — Deported immigration activist Elvira Arellano said today that she will continue her fight for immigration reform, but she acknowledged she has little chance of returning to the United States."The only thing I can do is stay in Mexico," she told the Tribune in a telephone interview from Tijuana, Mexico, where she ended up after federal authorities handed her over to Mexican officials Sunday night.Earlier, immigration officials confirmed that Arellano had been deported after her arrest on a downtown Los Angeles street Sunday afternoon after leaving her yearlong refuge in a Chicago church.
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In today's interview, Arellano recounted how she tried to plead her case with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials one more time after her arrest, pointing out that private bills had been introduced by U.S. Reps. Bobby Rush and Luis Gutierrez, both Chicago Democrats, aimed at keeping her in the United States.The officials refused to discuss the matter, she said. She quoted them as saying, "No, no, no.""They were angry with me for everything I have done," she said.She was processed at the immigration staging facility in Santa Ana, Calif., with officials taking her photograph and fingerprints, and then transporting her 100 miles to the border crossing at San Ysidro, Calif. There, she walked through a metal turnstile and was greeted by Mexican officials in Tijuana, according to a statement issued by immigration officials.Rev. Walter Coleman, pastor of Adalberto United Methodist Church in Chicago, who accompanied Arellano to Los Angeles, said this morning that Arellano was staying with a relative in Tijuana."She is in good spirits," he said. "She is ready to continue the struggle against the separation of families from the other side of the border."Federal officials said Arellano's 8-year-old son, Saul, was left, at Arellano's request, with Coleman and other traveling companions.Immigration officers arrested Arellano, 32, shortly after 2 p.m. Sunday Los Angeles time as she and her supporters were leaving a downtown church. She had sought sanctuary at the church after slipping unnoticed out of the Chicago church where she had avoided deportation since August 2006.Glenn Triveline, a Chicago field office director for immigration, said today that authorities did not arrest Arellano in Chicago because they were concerned about the safety of officers."We had reason to believe that there was going to be a lot of people in there, in the church, there to protect her," he said.Los Angeles was different from Chicago, he said, because she was outside."It was just that she was outside in an area where we could facilitate the arrest," he said.In Chicago this morning, more than 50 Arellano supporters demonstrated outside immigration offices at 536 S. Clark St., carrying signs reading "Stop the Raids" and "Stop Enforcing Racist Laws."Via speakerphone, Chicago activist Emma Lozano, who was with Arellano in Los Angeles, spoke to the demonstrators."Her spirits are high," Lozano told the crowd, adding that federal officials sought "to silence her and clip her wings."Planning continued for a major demonstration Sept. 12 on the Mall in Washington to highlight the plight of illegal immigrants, Lozano said. Calling it "A Day Without Immigrants," Lozano said the protest would revolve around a national boycott in which immigrants would be called on to stay away from their jobs and classrooms and refrain from making any purchases.After demonstrating outside the Chicago immigration offices, the protesters moved on to the Kluczynski Federal Building, 230 S. Dearborn St., where five of them went up to the local office of Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) to urge him to introduce a private bill to provide a humanitarian visa for Arellano.Tribune reporter Monique Garcia and Tribune photographer Abel Uribe contributed to this report.
23 comments:
I'm glad this has come up. If people are coming to America Illegally they should without a doubte be sent packing just as Arellano. As for the Boycott, if they want to stop working let them, and if they are here illegaly send them on their way. It's nice to have them working hard for us but not if they are unjustly here! They can go through the process of becoming a citizen just as many have before them.
In my opinion she shouldn't have been sent back. In all respects we need more people like her to come over! If you watched the story on this she currently had a job in the airport... honestly who else wants to get payed less than minimum wage and wash toilets? no one does. And don't get mad at mexicans just because everyone says they take the jobs of everyday americans. Because i guarentee no american will want to scrub toilets or dig holes for their whole life. If you think about it the United States was originally built on immigration. Did anyone ever think of that? Even after this if you still say mexicans take peoples jobs fromt he U.S. well then grab a toilet brush, get payed two dollars an hour, and enjoy it, more power to you.
What I don't get is why the illegal immigrants are demanding rights. We have rights as citizens, but they are not citizens, so why do they get more rights? If you ask me, try to find the illegal immigrants all harboring in the US and give the chance for citizenship. If they refuse, send them back to thier homeland. If they accept teach them English, because that seems to be a problem today. You cannot go anywhere without hearing a foreign language. And they expect us to learn thier language! If we come to your country we learn to your language. If you come to our country, learn ours.
And one last thing, because this is getting long, if thier children are born in the US tell the parents that they have to take a citizenship class, unless they want to be deported with thier children.
America is the land of the free yes, but think about this. If my family was in the hole and I wanted to do something to make my life better would it be ok for me to rob a bank? If you say no, why? Is it because it's against the law? Well coming to our country without proper documentation is illegal also, even if it is for a just cause, such as wanting a better life for your child. So now ask yourself this, is robbing a bank worse than being in a country illegally? I think not, being in this country illegally is stealing from the government. In conclusion a federal offense is a federal offense, end of story.
I agree with papa smerf and soaring eagle, but I'd like to correct soaring eagle. America doesn't have an official language. And I think diversity is something that makes this country beautiful. Immigrants should come to America but come as citizens because America has the right and obligation to deport any aliens. With out a boarder the U.S. wouldn't by definition be a country so those coming in illegally should realize that and face the consequenses as they come. But that's just my opinion.
If she truly wants to be a citzen, she should take the classes,take the test, learn the language! What ever it takes, but hiding in a church?? Wouldnt americans have to do the same thing to go become citizens of another country...
I agree with soaring eagle that immigrants should be allowed the chance to become legal citizens. I think Americans are just doing a lot of excess talking because really they understand what these Mexicans are coming to the US for. In general people make a lot of noise when they feel threatened and I think eventually this issue will be resolved in a positive manner and the United States will be a better, stronger country for it.
To Papa Smerf(learn how to spell and maybe your arguements won't sound so ridiculous)take a moment to walk in here shoes, to many believe that she should be sent packing, I think they should have let her stay, she has a child for goodenss sake! How would you feel if you and your mom or dad or whoever is your guardian was arrested by the police, and sent to another country, I bet you'd feel differently then. And your remark saying, "It's nice to have them working hard for us but not if they are unjustly here!" is a little racist to say the least. I'm pretty sure that maybe 25-35% of those "workers" aren't here legally and if we deport them all, who's going to do the work?!?! You!! I think not!! I mean we're all Americans right, so you can pretty much garantee that whatever race you are you are a mut, a mixture of different races, and I'll bet money that not all you're ancestors came here legally! If you believe that than you are as foolish as spelling smurf with an e instead of an u.
Gracias!
My comment is a reply to papa smerf's.
Papa Smerf said...
...It's nice to have them working hard for us...
First of all, I don't care who you are, but don't ever consider yourself higher than another person! Do you forget what "all men are created equally" means? A vast majority of illegal immigrants have gone through more hardships than you can EVER imagine! These immigrants went through all these hardships to find a better life for their family. So don't talk about, or treat, them as if they were slaves!
Secondly, poncho villa is right. Immigration is why America is so great and diversed today. Our country is so different because of our freedom to LIFE, LIBERTY, and THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS. So, shouldn't we be encouraging people to PURSUE their HAPPINESS by acquiring LIBERTY to start and live a new, better LIFE? I also say soaring eagle does not take into account the fact that if they were in the illegal immigrants shoes, they would do the EXACT SAME THING! Don't say that you WOULD learn English and become a citizen right away. Why you say? Thanks for asking. I'll tell you why.
English is one of the hardest languages to learn. If you believe learning their language is hard, you don't have a clue as to how hard the English language is to learn. Lastly, the United States' citizenship exam is extremely difficult! Most citizens of the United States of America could not pass the citizenship exam. It is extremely hard and most of the questions have nothing relevant to being a U.S. citizen.
My say would be to lower the difficulty of the citizenship exam and give people the chance to start a new, better life for both them and their family.
I feel that she was correctly deported, don't get me wrong I love people who come to America from other countries, as long as they do it legally. I love hearing the differnt languages they speak, and it makes me glad that America doesn't have an official language. Good for her standing up for something she believes in but she should have done it legally. She broke the law. End of story.
I have just a few things to say about this... poncho villa... your arguement is terrible. We aren't saying take all the mexicans in the country away (and by the way, they don't just clean toilets and dig holes). But honestly, soaring eagle is completely right. If they truely want to be a citizen, they will take the time and become one legally. If they refuse, they apperantly don't want to be a citizen that badly and deserve to go back where they came from. It is so much easier to just become a citizen like the hundreds of people that do, then travel all over the country running from the cops all your life. Our country can care less if they come over, but you must become a legal citizen. It's like saying a customer can stay in a hotel for free. No. You want to stay here? You pay. You want to stay in our country? Become a citizen.
Papa smerf needs to learn how to word what he wants to say much differently. "It's nice to have them working hard for us..." I don't think he meant it how it sounds, but it sure did come out real "I'm better than you" like.
As for immigration, I think they should be allowed to become part of our nation. America isn't like other nations. We didn't start out since we can remember. We became the United States when as we received more and more immigrants from other nations. Immigrants who were looking for a better life for themselves or their family. Why can't we accept more now? They have the same purpose, just a different approach of getting here. Why boot them back to harsh conditions. We say we're the land of the freedom and how great our country is, why not just let them in? Are we a rhetoric add? Do we say freedom on the front, but when you turn it over, it lists all the bad things that aren't big and pretty?
To agree with anonymous...
To even begin to try the process of becoming a U.S. citizen is a trial in and of itself. I went on a mission trip to El Paso, TX. The day after we went to Mexico we played a scenario that imitated the process of citizenship. I bet 5 out of 75 completed the process. Immigrants give all they have to try to understand a new culture and in the end most of them are turned away. The help they can get is biased.
The Bible itself says along with the Constitution that life is life whether the person is "American," Irish, Latino, or any other race. Human rights, granted by our Creator, are not biased. Who are we to set borders? Who are we to turn down human rights to people with human dignity? The origin of a person should NOT determine the rights they shall be granted, especially, under the Constitution of the United States of America, the Land of the FREE.
I'd like to say that it's funny how many people will say that illegal immigrants are taking all our jobs and many times I've heard, "Hey, lets kill all those illegal Mexicans destroying our country!" But if you look at our economy, you find that there is in fact a SHORTAGE of foreign workers, which is exactly why in recent times, employers have decided to even hire 14 and 15 year olds. I also find it odd that many Americans take for granted that "it's nice to have these people working for us" when in fact it is THESE ILLEGAL people that make up and are the foundation of our economy.
Whoever justified is thank you he brought up that point! i hadn't thought of that before, i am in total support of justified
Poncho Villa has a good point that our country was built on immigration but, the immigrants that made this country what is today came over LEGALY!!! They didn't sneak over the border. I have nothing against mexicans, in fact most have an incredible work ethic and a genuine desire to make a better life for themselves in our country. Need proof, would you come to a different country to "wash toilets"? didn't think so. But I believe that if thats what they truly want they should go through the proccess that was set up for that purpose. Now, do I think that they should immediately be deported?, no, they should be given an oppurtunity to gain citizenship and if they still refuse than they need to be deported.
Kayla Powell and anonymous. Calm down. She was illegal, she should be sent back. I don't care if she was here for 1 day, 1 year, or 1 decade; she was here illegally so she should be sent back. Our justice system in this country has set a precidant, if you break the law you will be punished! By not sending illegals back (no matter how long they've been here) we are saying that our legal system is weak and not efficient. I dont care if she had 1 son or 10 sons she shuld be sent back (yes it is sad but it is the law).
I have no problem with people coming to America in serach of life liberty and the pursuit of hapiness but they must do it leagally!
p.s. Kayla, speak english! this is AMERICA after all.
Ifr some people do their history for awhile the irish for sneaking over illegally also and so were the germans until the government realized this... So this is not just americans that are doing this. This is history repeating itself
I agree with scooby-doo. Those immigrants did come over here but did it legally like they said. If somebody has a problem with immigration having to be legal, well, just think it through. If you got away with coming over illegally, then it gives you confidence to do more illegal stuff and it just snowballs from there. Then one day somebody finds out what you have done, then you are in really big trouble.
So to answer the question, the government did the right thing. If she wanted to live here she would have done what everybody else has done. Become a LEGAL CITIZEN!!! Granted it is hard but if she wanted it that bad, then she wouldn't have minded the process. And to poncho villa, have you seen anyone scrubbing toilets and digging holes their whole life??? Just asking.
I agree with beef sandwich and turkey sandwich. How can the U.S boast itself to be a nation of freedom and opportunity while barring illegal immigrants from a better life? Mexico is one of the most impoverished countries of the world, so why can’t the U.S assist a neighbor in need? Especially given the fact that the U.S. is so eager to entangle with other nations affairs, then why does it turn a blind eye to Mexico? America itself is but a nation of immigrants, so then why is it so terrible to add a few more? And for all those opposed who say that illegal immigrants and foreigners are taking all the jobs, let’s put this into perspective. If you are afraid that a Mexican that can't speak English and probably only had up to a 6th grade education can surpass you at your job… then you're an idiot who’s been dropped too often as a child.
For all you who took my message too literally (Some anonymous person) I did not mean US in a demeaning way. However, the statement I made still holds true. If you think about it, we all work for each other. We make peoples lives easier by doing things others don’t necessarily want to do. So, for those of us who have jobs (as I do) I work for you, them and everyone else and they do the same. We all are consumers, and we are all working together which makes this country great. So don’t get your undees in a twist. Oh and yes, they probably have overcome many more hardships then me, but some of them could easily have been avoided if and only if they would have worked through Americas system legally. With that said and out of the way, (sorry poncho villa) the minimum wage is over five dollars. Remember we are not China and pay workers next to nothing. Obviously you don't work or pay for anything. No offence I would love that but seriously....
For anyone who thinks she was wrongfully deported, think about this. When she came to America illegally, she stole someone's social security number. Using this number she got a job and started getting payed. Well when tax season comes around and the original social security number holder doesn't put the amount of money Arellano recieved from her job, the IRS becomes interested and says "It seems you recieved this much more money, so because you didn't tell us, you owe us -- this amount of money.". How do you think this person feels? They didn't know that someone had stolen their identity and now they owe the government thousands of dollars. Now ask yourself, what if this happened to you?? How would you feel?? How would you react??
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