Rick Dean
Registered
Immigrants in Maryland feel a bit more welcome
Proposal: President Bush's "guest worker" plan is the hot topic.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Jason Song
Sun Staff
Originally published January 9, 2004
As he rang up compact discs at his job at a Prince George's County music store, Yony Martinez felt an unfamiliar feeling yesterday: hope.
"I feel like the government wants me here. I haven't felt that before," said the 27-year-old Mexico native, a day after President Bush announced a sweeping program that will allow undocumented immigrants such as Martinez to apply for three-year
work visas.
Martinez, who came to the United States about six years ago, said his life now revolves around working, sending money home to his family in Veracruz and worrying about his illegal st
atus
.
He hopes to stop worrying.
"We come here for the money but it
's a hard life, and you have to be careful," Martinez said. "Maybe that will change."
Thousands of immigrants nationwide felt similar emotions yesterday, the day after President Bush proposed immigration reforms that could give the nation's 8 million to 12 million illegal immigrants a chance to obtain work visas - and temporary legal status.
The high hopes were shared from Latino households on the Eastern Shore to those in the Fells Point section of Baltimore.
But they were perhaps most deeply felt in the small community of East Riverdale in Prince George's County, where about 40 percent of the roughly 5,000 immigrants are from Mexico, the highest such concentration
in Maryland, according to a recent Brookings Institution survey.
Experts agree that Bush's proposal could have the largest impact on the estimated 5 million Mexicans living and working in the
United Sta
tes illegally.
Mexicans have little access to legal protections granted to Central Americans, who have been able
to seek temporary protected status because of natural disasters in their native countries.
Audrey Singer, a visiting Brookings fellow who conducted the survey, said of the Mexicans in East Riverdale: "I'm sure they're very happy there."
But she said some might be concerned that they could be deported if they participate in what is essentially a guest worker program.
Mexican flavor
East Riverdale, a neighborhood of about 15,000 that straddles the upper reaches of the Anacostia River north of Washington, has undergone a startling transformation. "I looked up one day and everyone was Mexican," said neighborhood resident
Olivia Fuentes. (If they want to live in Mexico, go back to Mexico, but don't attempt to transform the U.S. into the very place they left behind.)
A McDonald's sits next to a taco stan
d. Juan Gabriel
9;s newest album gets the same display at a CD store as Britney Spears' latest. And travel agencies promote $323 round-trip flights to Mexico City.
Mos
t residents interviewed yesterday said they were drawn by the area's Mexican influence. The state has about 19,000 Mexican residents, according to the 2000 Census.
"When you live somewhere else, where there are a lot of whites or a lot of blacks, you have to be careful. But here, you can be comfortable," Martinez said. (Thanks Bush! Let's just open the door and let the other 100 million in, shall we?)
Martinez said he often walks next door to send money home, across the street for groceries such as Mexican soft cheese and dried peppers, and to the next shopping center if he wants a plate o
f tacos.
"It's almost like home," he said. "People know each other."
(Again, if you want to have the feel of home, nothing compares to actually being there, com
prende?)
Residents
have been talking all week about Bush's proposal, which could face strong opposition from conservatives in Congress.
"It's the most important thing in our lives right now," said Mariana Graciela Leon as she
shopped at the La Poblanita store, filling her bag with Mexican sweets and dried guajillo peppers that she says she can't find at Giant.
At a nearby convenience store, a group of men played Keno and chatted about what they would do if they returned to their native countries, as permitted by the proposal.
"I have been here for 14 years and feel that this is home. But I want to visit Mexico one more time," said Florentino Herrera, 58, who comes from a small town in the south of Mexico.
Herrera picked up his Keno card and s
hrugged, readjusting his Mexican flag baseball hat. "Maybe I can win $25. Then maybe I can use that money to win some more. Then maybe I will have enough to go home."
Ya
smine Sanchez also yearns to visit
his native country.
"I haven't been home to see my family in three years," Sanchez said as he loaded chairs at a Mexican restaurant. "I wonder how big my brothers are."
Bush proposed Wednesday that illegal immigrants already working in the United Sta
tes could apply for temporary visas after paying a sizable fine.
He also proposed increasing the number of green cards, which allow immigrants permanent resident status. The United States currently issues about 140,000 a year.
Not done lobbying
Foreign countries, especially Mexico, have been pushing for broad immigration reform for years. Most immigrant advocacy groups are optimistic about Bush's plan, although they all pledged to continue lobbying for more reforms.
"Bringing back migration to the top of the bilateral agenda is very important," said Mireya Magana, press attache to the Mexican Embassy in Washington D.C. "It is a topi
c that has been a fundamental issue for Me
xican foreign policy."
"We're very pleased that the president has recognized the importance of immigrants to our nation, their strong family values, their contributions to our economy," said Katherine Culliton, an attorney for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund in Washington.
But some
Republican leaders have been critical of Bush's proposal, and several immigrant advocates say the proposal does not go far enough.
"For us it's akin to a massive guest-worker program that benefits employers and not the workers themselves," said Lisa Navarrete, a vice president of the National Council of La Raza, a Hispanic civil-rights organization in Washington.
Some immigrants are also concerned that the govern
ment will deport immigrants after the visas - which last three years and can be renewed - expire.
"It's best to stay away from [U.S.] Immigration at all costs," s
aid Luis Quito, a 22-year-old Ecuadorian who lives
in Fells Point.
Others are worried that American workers will lose jobs if Bush's proposal is approved. On the Eastern Shore, for example, Latin American immigrants fill a large percentage of the 14,000 poultry industry jobs.
Virgil Shockley, a Worcester County commissioner who is a poultry farmer, said the plan might worsen joblessness in a county that al
ready experiences double-digit unemployment during the winter, when seasonal workers are laid off from their jobs in Ocean City.
"It might be a gesture toward the American dream, but I'm not sure it's well thought out," Shockley said.
'It feels good'
But in Riverdale, many residents are still glowing about Bush's proposal. Martinez had a broad grin as
he stocked the racks and straightened the shelves.
"We're people that have honorable lives and the government recognized that," he said. "It feels good.
"
Proposal: President Bush's "guest worker" plan is the hot topic.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Jason Song
Sun Staff
Originally published January 9, 2004
As he rang up compact discs at his job at a Prince George's County music store, Yony Martinez felt an unfamiliar feeling yesterday: hope.
"I feel like the government wants me here. I haven't felt that before," said the 27-year-old Mexico native, a day after President Bush announced a sweeping program that will allow undocumented immigrants such as Martinez to apply for three-year
work visas.
Martinez, who came to the United States about six years ago, said his life now revolves around working, sending money home to his family in Veracruz and worrying about his illegal st
atus
.
He hopes to stop worrying.
"We come here for the money but it
's a hard life, and you have to be careful," Martinez said. "Maybe that will change."
Thousands of immigrants nationwide felt similar emotions yesterday, the day after President Bush proposed immigration reforms that could give the nation's 8 million to 12 million illegal immigrants a chance to obtain work visas - and temporary legal status.
The high hopes were shared from Latino households on the Eastern Shore to those in the Fells Point section of Baltimore.
But they were perhaps most deeply felt in the small community of East Riverdale in Prince George's County, where about 40 percent of the roughly 5,000 immigrants are from Mexico, the highest such concentration
in Maryland, according to a recent Brookings Institution survey.
Experts agree that Bush's proposal could have the largest impact on the estimated 5 million Mexicans living and working in the
United Sta
tes illegally.
Mexicans have little access to legal protections granted to Central Americans, who have been able
to seek temporary protected status because of natural disasters in their native countries.
Audrey Singer, a visiting Brookings fellow who conducted the survey, said of the Mexicans in East Riverdale: "I'm sure they're very happy there."
But she said some might be concerned that they could be deported if they participate in what is essentially a guest worker program.
Mexican flavor
East Riverdale, a neighborhood of about 15,000 that straddles the upper reaches of the Anacostia River north of Washington, has undergone a startling transformation. "I looked up one day and everyone was Mexican," said neighborhood resident
Olivia Fuentes. (If they want to live in Mexico, go back to Mexico, but don't attempt to transform the U.S. into the very place they left behind.)
A McDonald's sits next to a taco stan
d. Juan Gabriel
9;s newest album gets the same display at a CD store as Britney Spears' latest. And travel agencies promote $323 round-trip flights to Mexico City.
Mos
t residents interviewed yesterday said they were drawn by the area's Mexican influence. The state has about 19,000 Mexican residents, according to the 2000 Census.
"When you live somewhere else, where there are a lot of whites or a lot of blacks, you have to be careful. But here, you can be comfortable," Martinez said. (Thanks Bush! Let's just open the door and let the other 100 million in, shall we?)
Martinez said he often walks next door to send money home, across the street for groceries such as Mexican soft cheese and dried peppers, and to the next shopping center if he wants a plate o
f tacos.
"It's almost like home," he said. "People know each other."
(Again, if you want to have the feel of home, nothing compares to actually being there, com
prende?)
Residents
have been talking all week about Bush's proposal, which could face strong opposition from conservatives in Congress.
"It's the most important thing in our lives right now," said Mariana Graciela Leon as she
shopped at the La Poblanita store, filling her bag with Mexican sweets and dried guajillo peppers that she says she can't find at Giant.
At a nearby convenience store, a group of men played Keno and chatted about what they would do if they returned to their native countries, as permitted by the proposal.
"I have been here for 14 years and feel that this is home. But I want to visit Mexico one more time," said Florentino Herrera, 58, who comes from a small town in the south of Mexico.
Herrera picked up his Keno card and s
hrugged, readjusting his Mexican flag baseball hat. "Maybe I can win $25. Then maybe I can use that money to win some more. Then maybe I will have enough to go home."
Ya
smine Sanchez also yearns to visit
his native country.
"I haven't been home to see my family in three years," Sanchez said as he loaded chairs at a Mexican restaurant. "I wonder how big my brothers are."
Bush proposed Wednesday that illegal immigrants already working in the United Sta
tes could apply for temporary visas after paying a sizable fine.
He also proposed increasing the number of green cards, which allow immigrants permanent resident status. The United States currently issues about 140,000 a year.
Not done lobbying
Foreign countries, especially Mexico, have been pushing for broad immigration reform for years. Most immigrant advocacy groups are optimistic about Bush's plan, although they all pledged to continue lobbying for more reforms.
"Bringing back migration to the top of the bilateral agenda is very important," said Mireya Magana, press attache to the Mexican Embassy in Washington D.C. "It is a topi
c that has been a fundamental issue for Me
xican foreign policy."
"We're very pleased that the president has recognized the importance of immigrants to our nation, their strong family values, their contributions to our economy," said Katherine Culliton, an attorney for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund in Washington.
But some
Republican leaders have been critical of Bush's proposal, and several immigrant advocates say the proposal does not go far enough.
"For us it's akin to a massive guest-worker program that benefits employers and not the workers themselves," said Lisa Navarrete, a vice president of the National Council of La Raza, a Hispanic civil-rights organization in Washington.
Some immigrants are also concerned that the govern
ment will deport immigrants after the visas - which last three years and can be renewed - expire.
"It's best to stay away from [U.S.] Immigration at all costs," s
aid Luis Quito, a 22-year-old Ecuadorian who lives
in Fells Point.
Others are worried that American workers will lose jobs if Bush's proposal is approved. On the Eastern Shore, for example, Latin American immigrants fill a large percentage of the 14,000 poultry industry jobs.
Virgil Shockley, a Worcester County commissioner who is a poultry farmer, said the plan might worsen joblessness in a county that al
ready experiences double-digit unemployment during the winter, when seasonal workers are laid off from their jobs in Ocean City.
"It might be a gesture toward the American dream, but I'm not sure it's well thought out," Shockley said.
'It feels good'
But in Riverdale, many residents are still glowing about Bush's proposal. Martinez had a broad grin as
he stocked the racks and straightened the shelves.
"We're people that have honorable lives and the government recognized that," he said. "It feels good.
"