by James Glaser
March 10, 2006

As with almost any debate in America, Jesse Jackson has jumped right in with both feet, and is making some outlandish statements. You can see him on any news program as he tries to get his picture taken at the front of marches and protests.

Let's Deport Immigration Myths
by Jesse Jackson

In the red-hot debate over immigration, myth too often takes the place of truth. It is time to step back, take a deep breath and reflect before we react.

The truth is often distorted in ways that feed our divisions. For example, many contrast this generation of immigrants with the Europeans who came at the beginning of the last century. That generation, we are told, came legally, whereas this generation is coming illegally. That generation learned the language, whereas this one is writing the national anthem in Spanish.

But as Michael Powell of the Washington Post reports, this is mostly nonsense.

Here is the truth, and you will see that it is Jesse Jackson who is distorting the truth when he tries to back the hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants pouring across our southern border every year.

Back in 1900, when the big migration of European immigrants came to this country, we had a population of 76 million. Today our official population is 295 million, but we have to add to that the 11 million illegals who have flooded in the past decade, for a total of 306 million.

What Jackson fails to mention is that at the beginning of the twentieth century there was so much land still available here, that a person could still homestead a hundred and sixty acres, and make a living off that land farming. Back in 1900 we needed people to jump start our industrial revolution. We needed unskilled labor to work the mines, cut the timber, and plow the fields.

That is no longer true. America has more than enough people, and if the corporations were not so greedy for profits, they could pay U.S. citizens to do those few unskilled jobs that those coming across or border are taking.

It doesn't matter if it is Jesse Jackson or George Bush saying it, the illegal immigrants of today are no longer taking the jobs Americans don't want. They are taking the jobs you want for your sons and daughters.

International Corporations are behind today's flood of illegal immigrants. The corporations want cheap unskilled labor to pad their bottom line, but those people are not satisfied with those jobs for long. Today the American Citizen is competing with people who have fake Social Security numbers and Green Cards bought at the Walmart parking lot. No longer are illegals looking for field work or cleaning that motel, now they are the carpenter, plumber, electrician, or auto body repair man. Soon they will be the accountant, computer programmer, or maybe your boss.

Most African American leaders are against having this flood of illegal labor. They can see that their people along with the rest of America are being hurt by this competition for jobs. Maybe young Americans see it the clearest. In many sections of the country those part time and summer jobs so important for college age students are no longer there or they pay so poorly as to be of little use.

Yes, these new people work hard and earn every penny they get, but what they are doing is taking us all down, and I have to wonder who is paying Jackson to take the stand he is. I can only imagine that those corporations who are enjoying huge profits with lower labor costs, are more than willing to fund any leader who will take their side.

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