Let Me In, Immigration Man!

The debate on immigration became a little more surreal last week with "border security" hearings in San Diego, CA and Laredo, TX. The hearings were organized by House Republicans as part of an effort to stall consideration of an immigration bill in the hopes of making it more anti-immigrant. No public testimony was allowed; instead, carefully-constructed panels of law enforcement officers described dire scenarios where Al-Queda terrorists learned to speak Spanish so they could sneak a dirty bomb into the country -- and, presumably, get a dishwashing job at the local Sirloin Stockade.

In Texas, People For the American Way organized a diverse coalition of business leaders, agricultural growers, religious groups, civil rights organizations and other activists to hold a press conference prior to the Laredo hearing. At the press conference, leaders called the hearings a "sham" and called on Congress to pass commonsense immigration reform this year. The press event received prominent coverage in the Dallas Morning News, the San Antonio Express-News, and the Rio Grande Guardian.

This was the first time such a diverse group has come together, and it bodes well for efforts to promote comprehensive immigration reform instead of the enforcement-only model being pushed by the Reactionary Right. And the good news is, the group wants to keep working together on a commonsense, mainstream messaging campaign for smart immigration reform.