On May 22, the San Francisco Labor Council voted
>unanimously to endorse the national statement by the
>National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights
>(NNIRR). [See copy of statement below.]
>
>The resolution to support this NNIRR statement was
>first introduced on May 8 by Frank Martin del Campo on
>behalf of the San Francisco chapter of the Labor
>Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA) and the
>Economic and Social Justice Caucus of the S.F. Labor
>Council. Because of the length of the text, the
>delegates voted to bring it up for a discussion and
>vote at the Council's meeting on May 22.
>
>At the meeting of the Council last night, the
>resolution was reintroduced by SEIU Local 790 delegate
>Maria Guillen, and was motivated -- in an extended
>educational presentation -- by OPEIU Local 3 delegate
>Alan Benjamin. Nine delegates rose to support this
>resolution, including Michael Theriault, head of the
>S.F. Building and Construction Trades Council.
>
>The adoption by the S.F. Labor Council of this NNIRR
>statement is significant in that it sends a signal to
>all members of Congress -- and, more generally, to the
>broader immigrant rights movement -- that the San
>Francisco labor movement is fully united in opposition
>to all the so-called "immigration reform" bills
>currently under consideration by the Congress.
>
>The San Francisco Labor Council resolution refuses to
>accept the unacceptable tradeoffs contained in the
>McCain-Kennedy "immigration reform" bill, or more
>recently in the Hegel-Martinez "compromise bill." It
>affirms unambiguously that immigrant families, workers
>and communities deserve legalization with rights, full
>labor protections, and family reunification -- not more
>guest worker-programs, border militarization, immigrant
>prisons and deportations.
>
>It affirms, echoing the words of AFL-CIO Vice President
>Linda Chavez-Thompson, that immigrant workers "should
>be recognized as full members of society -- permanent
>residents with full rights ... because to embrace the
>expansion of temporary guest-worker programs is to
>embrace the creation of an undemocratic, two-tiered
>society."
>
>By unanimously adopting this resolution in support of
>immigrant rights, the San Francisco Labor Council --
>uniting all its AFL-CIO and Change to Win affiliates --
>has demonstrated its continued leadership role in
>putting forward a progressive vision for all working
>people.
>
> ***
>
>[Statement by National Network on Immigrant and Refugee
>Rights (NNIRR) adopted May 22, 2006 by the delegates'
>meeting of the S.F. Labor Council.]
>
>National Statement to Support Human and Civil Rights
>for All Immigrants And to Oppose Compromise Immigration
>Reform Proposals
>
>Fair and Just Immigration Reform for All
>
>We stand together as immigrant, faith, social justice,
>labor, peace, human and civil rights organizations and
>other concerned communities to support human and civil
>rights for all immigrants and to oppose the immigration
>"reform" proposals presently in the U.S. Senate. We
>oppose H.R. 4437, the immigration bill passed in the
>House of Representatives in December, as well as all of
>the compromise bills presented in the Senate.
>
>We call upon members of Congress and the Administration
>to stop masquerading these proposals as immigration
>reform. We demand nothing less than immigration
>policies that are fair and just, and that respect the
>rights and dignity of all immigrants and other members
>of our society.
>
>The rush to reach a bipartisan accord on immigration
>legislation has led to a compromise that would create
>deep divisions within the immigrant community and leave
>millions of undocumented immigrants in the shadows of
>our country. We oppose the behind-the-scenes brokering
>currently playing out in the legislative process. These
>trade-offs and deals are based on election-year
>campaigning and demands by business lobbyists, rather
>than on the best interests and voices of immigrant
>communities. We say, "No deal!"
>
>In a re-ignited civil rights movement, millions of
>immigrants, their families, neighbors and co-workers,
>along with faith and labor leaders, peace and justice
>advocates, have marched and rallied in cities across
>the United States. The mobilizations have served as a
>wake-up call for the whole country to acknowledge the
>vital role of immigrants as co-workers, neighbors and
>members of our broad society. And, as details of the
>current legislative compromise have become known, the
>voices of immigrant communities are rejecting the
>proposals for a so-called legalization program, and are
>denouncing the further erosion of human and civil
>rights through the enforcement and criminalization
>provisions. The stakes are considerable, and affect all
>of us.
>
>This year is the 20th anniversary of the 1986
>legalization and employer sanctions law, and the 10th
>anniversary of the restrictive Illegal Immigration
>Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act. We cannot
>allow the current proposals to be enacted as this
>generation's flawed immigration reform legacy.
>
>What We Want: Fair and Just Immigration Reform
>
>Fair and just immigration reform means:
>
>* Genuine legalization and opportunities to adjust
>status for all undocumented immigrants, including youth
>and farmworkers
>
>* Preservation of due process, including restoration of
>access to the courts and meaningful judicial review for
>immigrants.
>
>* No indefinite detention or expansion of mandatory
>detention
>
>* No expansion of guest-worker programs
>
>* No more wasted resources allocated to further
>militarize our borders and that contribute to the
>crisis of human rights and lives in the border regions
>
>* An end to employer sanctions and electronic worker
>verification systems
>
>* The strengthening and enforcement of labor law
>protections for all workers, native and foreign born
>
>* No use of city, state or other government agencies in
>the enforcement of immigration law
>
>* No more criminalization of immigrants, or their
>service providers
>
>* Expansion of legal immigration opportunities, support
>for family reunification and immediate processing of
>the backlog of pending visa applications
>
>* Elimination of harsh obstacles to immigrating,
>including the HIV ban, "3 and 10 year bars," and high-
>income requirements for immigrant sponsors.
>
>The Current "Legalization" Proposal is Unacceptable
>
>The proposed 3-tiered temporary worker program offers
>little hope for broad, inclusive legalization of
>undocumented immigrants. What some are calling a "path
>to citizenship" in the last Senate bill is merely a
>massive temporary worker program without worker
>protections, and contains numerous hurdles that will
>drastically limit the number of undocumented immigrants
>who can actually legalize. Such a program would divide
>communities, including mixed-status families, erode
>wage and benefits standards, and place a greater burden
>on safety-net services.
>
>The Enforcement Proposals Undermine All of our Rights
>
>Significant provisions in the current Senate proposals
>would dramatically undermine a broad array of rights,
>increase the criminalization of all immigrants, result
>in mass deportations, and unfairly exclude millions
>from eligibility for any legalization opportunity. The
>expansion of expedited removal would eliminate the
>right to a court hearing, while the broadened
>definition of "aggravated felony" to include many minor
>offenses would result in mandatory detention and mass
>deportations. The proposals also seek to reinstate
>indefinite detention and increase detention facilities,
>including the use of closed military bases. Encouraging
>local police to enforce immigration law would not only
>add an additional burden that detracts from current
>responsibilities, but would discourage immigrant access
>to public safety institutions.
>
>Moreover, the increased resources to militarize the
>border, which has already cost over $30 billion in the
>past 12 years, has not deterred unauthorized border
>crossings and instead has caused a humanitarian crisis
>with the deaths of some 4,000 people in the desert.
>Current border enforcement policies, laws and
>practices, without provision for safe and legal entry,
>have resulted in the detention and criminalization of
>tens of thousands of people at a significant daily cost
>to taxpayers.
>
>The Proposals Fail to Protect Workers
>
>The current proposals would further erode already weak
>labor protections and rights for immigrants and other
>workers. Immigrant workers have historically been used
>as "cheap labor" by employers and industries unwilling
>to pay decent wages or to maintain reasonable working
>conditions. These proposals continue in that same
>shameful vein, and are designed to force and keep wages
>down to compete with cheap labor suppliers globally.
>
>Workers need more, not less, rights. A real
>legalization proposal needs to be coupled with the
>repeal of employer sanctions, the provision of the
>landmark 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act that
>has led to the criminalization of immigrant workers,
>and which would be deepened through an expansion of an
>employment verification system. This program has done
>nothing in the last twenty years but increase
>discrimination and abuse of immigrant workers.
>
>Employers have had greater leverage to threaten and
>intimidate immigrant workers, break organizing efforts,
>carry out unjust firings, and lower wages and work
>conditions for all working people. These abuses impact
>the entire American workforce, particularly the most
>vulnerable toiling in low-wage jobs such as
>farmworkers, day laborers and domestic workers.
>
>No Expansion of Guest Worker Programs
>
>A key concern is the significant expansion of guest
>worker programs found in almost all Senate proposals
>and supported by the Administration. We oppose these
>programs both when they are tied to legalization for
>undocumented immigrants already living and working
>here, and as a means for managing future flows of
>immigrants into the United States. The U.S. does not
>have a shortage of workers; what we have is a shortage
>of employers willing to pay a living wage and maintain
>decent working conditions.
>
>Guest worker programs have been condemned by labor and
>immigrant communities for their long record of
>violations of labor rights and standards, including
>blacklists and deportations of workers who protest. In
>1964, Ernesto Galarza, Cesar Chavez and other defenders
>of workplace rights won the abolition of the old
>Bracero guest worker program. The purpose of that
>program, they said, was the creation a vulnerable
>workforce in order to drive down wages and break union
>organizing efforts among immigrants and non-immigrants
>alike. The purpose of current proposals is the same.
>Temporary, contract workers are prevented the option of
>putting down roots and becoming full and equal members
>of our communities.
>
>Future migrants should not be forced to accept a
>second-class status, violating our country's most basic
>commitments to equality. They should be given permanent
>residence status, allowing them to work and travel
>freely, to exercise their labor rights, and to live as
>any other member of our society.
>
>No Compromise, No Deal on Fair and Just Immigration
>Reform
>
>In recent years, immigrant community members, including
>youth and students, farmworkers and others, have
>effectively organized and rallied in support of
>legislative proposals to strengthen their rights and
>opportunities to be equal members of this society.
>Despite the loud and determined voice of immigrant
>communities, advocates and supporters for fair and just
>immigration reform this year, we have yet to see an
>acceptable proposal from Congress. And with H.R. 4437
>already passed by the House, we are very aware that any
>proposal from the Senate would be subject to further
>compromise in a Senate-House reconciliation process,
>and would likely produce laws that would detrimentally
>affect current and future immigrants for years to come.
>
>Increased enforcement does not address the complex
>issue of global migration. Employer sanctions and
>beefed up border security have been in place for
>decades as deterrents to migration, and yet the number
>of undocumented continues to grow. The sources of
>migration rest in the problems of economic and
>political instability, poverty and war in migrant-
>sending countries.
>
>Despite the urgency of the immigration issue in this
>country, it is clearly not just a "domestic" issue and
>our policies need to consider support for economic
>stability, fair trade agreements and peace as vital to
>addressing the migration of people in search of work,
>survival, and safety.
>
>We will continue to raise our voices for genuine
>immigration reform that respects the rights and dignity
>of all immigrants, and is fair and just. Immigrant
>workers, students and families are making incredible
>sacrifices to raise their voices for themselves and
>future generations, in the face of recriminations and
>disciplinary actions from employers and schools. As
>immigrant communities continue to mobilize for their
>rights, on May 1 and beyond, we will support their
>right and choice to express themselves.
>
>We pledge to increase public education efforts and the
>building and mobilization of meaningful alliances, and
>we will encourage and support immigrant community
>leadership to advance real immigration reform. We call
>upon Congress and the Administration to heed the voices
>of immigrant communities demanding genuine immigration
>reforms: real legalization, equitable inclusion in our
>society, justice, and respect for human rights.
And you wonder why unions are only 8% of the private workforce. Commie bullshit like this is why.
He used to post under "steve" at indybay unitl he was squashed for being just another liitle coward troll who regurgitated right wing AM-nut radio sloagans and ran when the facts started flying.
Here: watch this:
Hey Steve?
Back up theat 8% number???
Oh, I bet you can't since it is a lie.
Just as we thought.
You can return to your Pus Limbaugh idocy now.
Dismissed.
All your bizarre sexual hangups and ludicrous glorification of Palestinians notwithstanding, this is not your cesspool, Indybay. "-" will get to speak his mind here uncensored by dumbasses like you. Nearly all his comments on this site remain up. We know that gets your goat. Your phraseology gives you away immediately, clown. Rage some more in that impotent manner for us.
What are you doing on this thread?
You have interests in American labor issues in respect to your sexual / social 'challenges'? All the way from Occupied Palestine?
I'm read something close to that 8% number in Camejo's new book, "California." The unions are indeed in decline, it's the inevitable consequence of a growing free market.
There was a time in this country, when the liberal left stood with unions for good wages. Those times are long gone and now the liberal elite stands with the US Chamber of Commerce to cripple wages and create mass poverty.
Maybe in the end the left elite thinks that once a third of the country is living in abject poverty through mass immigration, there will be a revolution. Because that's the only way I can see any rational in the liberal elite going after the American union worker.
