Letter To The Editor
Note: As of the date of this posting on the AmericanPatrol.com site the article below had not been published in the publication to which it was addressed.
Re: Immigration at issue
Orange Co. Register - 12/16/01
Letter to the Editor
The Orange County Register
Anti-immigration vs. anti-illegal immigration
December 17, 2001
Steven Greenhut makes good sense when he calls for assimilation
rather than multiculturalism and competition for government spoils
among balkanized ethnic groups (Commentary,
Dec. 16, p. 5) . But his imprecise language leads to misunderstanding
and confusion. He is strenuously evenhanded in his criticism
of both the professional immigrant activists and those whom he
describes as anti-immigrant activists, and he finds it deplorable
that encounters between the two groups are often little more
than shouting matches.
However, I find it equally deplorable when the mainstream media
ignore the distinction between anti-immigration and anti-illegal
immigration. Greenhut refers to the "virulently anti-immigration
group" at the recent Anaheim demonstration against Mexican
ID cards for illegal aliens, but I challenge him to identify
a single remark made by any of the speakers at the podium during
that demonstration that could reasonably be construed as anti-immigrant.
Such careless use of labels makes it easy to brand people who
simply want our immigration laws enforced as racist, and that
is precisely the sort of confusion that the professional immigrant
activists want to spread. Knowingly or not, Mr. Greenhut seems
to be serving their agenda. According to him, the real debate
is between multiculturalism and assimilation. I submit that an
equally important debate is between those who want to enforce
our immigration laws and those who want to ignore them. Problem
is, that's a debate that nobody -- least of all our politicians
and our mainstream media -- wants to cover honestly.
True S.
Los Alamitos, CA
