Just a Bit More On Immigration.

I listened to an immigrant from Laos who immigrated here in 1978 on the radio this morning. Her anger at the illegal immigrants and what she saw as disrespect for America after all she went through to come here, including learning English and going through the legal avenues and not expecting any handouts, was a compelling argument.

I totally understand everyone's anger, but then there is the personal. In the late 80's I had a 2 yr old and a newborn. We had just moved to a new city and I had no friends or relatives in town. I was exhausted. I had been reading some of Dr. James Dobson's child rearing books and he had encouraged young mothers to budget in cleaning or babysitting help. He said it was more important than having a newer car ect. He was right.

We had a small 3 bedroom house that I kept straight, I just wanted help with the deep cleaning. I put an ad in the local paper for a housekeeper once a week for $35. It was all I could afford. I actually had white and black women call me and ask if that was a typo. Not one Hispanic woman asked that. Anyway, that is how I found Pat. She worked for me for 11 years. When I moved to a new house, she came with me. When I had two more children she was there. I helped her get her citizenship and I helped her to convince her daughters to go to college and helped with the applications. I went to her daughter's confirmations. She was a God send. When we moved 7 yrs ago and I had to say goodbye to her we both cried like babies.

I remarked to her that she seemed to enjoy cleaning (something I could not fathom) She said to me, "When I was growing up in Mexico I had to be in the fields to pick beans before the sun rose and we picked all day until our fingers bled and the pain in our backs felt like fire. Now I clean beautiful houses in air conditioning. I love this job."

Pat took WIC until she overheard me discussing WIC with a young mother I was helping through my crisis pregnancy work. She hadn't understood that it was for the very poor. She immediately stopped getting food stamps. She didn't' want to be viewed that way.

Yesterday I stopped to ask some Mexican yard workers I knew around the neighborhood what they thought about all this immigration bill. They didn't know anything about it other than there were some marches. They didn't even know what the marches were for and they didn't care. They just wanted to work, get paid, and go home to their families.

Many complain about things being translated into Spanish everywhere, but it wasn't the Hispanics who demanded that. It was the liberals, of course, who feel they speak for the "little people."

It is our government's fault that we haven't done what needed to be done with these immigrants. The borders, the proper teaching of respect for our country, who and what welfare is for ect.

Our anger is directed at the wrong people. Mexicans only want a better life. I can guarantee you that most that were protesting were only out there a the bidding of some political group. We know that Democrats were handing out flyers about voting Democrat with the Mexican and American flag together.

Finally, the one thing I cannot understand is why can't we focus on sealing the border FIRST. I read the minutemen in Arizona have almost eliminated illegal crossings at the borders they monitor. Which is proof that we CAN do this. Why aren't we working more on this???