Community Leaders Confront Anti-immigrant Pundit

Chicago community leaders gathered in front of Barnes & Noble last night to protest TV pundit Lou Dobbs and his dangerous manipulation of the facts. Those who rallied outside the bookstore carried signs reading, “Immigrants are laborers, not lepers.” The signs referred to Dobbs' habitual linking of immigration to a fictitious rise in leprocy.

After Dobbs' book talk, Presbyterian minister Jennifer Hill asked about the hundreds of men, women, and children that die every year attempting to cross the border. Dobbs yelled at Jennifer to “Seek redemption for not blaming the Mexican government for their deaths.” Seeing that Dobbs would not engage respectfully (earlier in the evening, a supporter screamed, “Hispanics are not like us, they’re not white,” with no response from Dobbs), half of the crowd left.

Meanwhile, on CNN, Dobbs exploded over ICIRR Director Joshua Hoyt’s suggestion that “the immigration debate has descended into the world of bullies, bigots, and demagogues." Judge for yourself- watch a clip of Dobbs supporters, or read the transcripts of Lou interviewing Congressman Gutierrez here.

Papers Confront Party Leader on Immigration

The mainstream media is now confronting Democratic Party Leader Rahm Emanuel (5th Congressional District- IL) about his "political cowardice" on immigration. A recent New York Times editorial, referring to Congressman Emanuel, states, "The natural allies of immigrants have been cowed into mumbling or silent avoidance." This at a time when, according to a recent Chicago Sun-Times column, "Republicans are having a field day taking a hard line and blaming illegal immigrants for everything wrong with this country."

Enough is enough. It's time for both party's leaders to stand up for what is right, make an honest effort to fix our broken laws, and denounce the scapegoating of immigrants for political gain. The American public, and the people whose hard work fuels our economy, deserve no less.

Ads Attack Emanuel for Failure to Support Immigrants

The progressive blogosphere lit up this week with news that Democratic Party Leader Rahm Emanuel (5th Congressional District- IL) supports the SAVE Act (HR4088), legislation that takes an enforcement-only approach to immigration reform- with no path for the undocumented to gain legal status.

To the left is a copy of the Spanish newspaper ad published in Hoy on November 15th, 2007, that asks the question, Why is Congressman Emanuel Betraying our Friends and Families? Read the full text in English, or download a copy in Korean. The ads were paid for by Blue America and approved by the Illinois Coalition.

Immigrant advocates and netroots activists were already shocked by Emanuel's remarks in last week's Chicago Tribune article, where he called immigration "the new third rail of politics." This came just months after the Congressman pledged to move a comprehensive reform bill forward last spring. Listen to the NPR story here.

The ad urges people to Call Congressman Emanuel now at (773) 267-5926 and tell him, "Stop being afraid to fight for immigrants, and start acting like a real leader." Send a fax or email to your Representative, saying NO to SAVE.

For more information about these ads, contact Catherine Salgado at csalgado@icirr.org. For more on the "rubber chicken campaign" that ICIRR launched during the Yearly Kos convention, click here.