Reply #226: Sorry for my late response [View All]

[ninkasi]

The couple I mentioned only flew the Union Jack when Princess Diana died. Normally, they fly the American flag for 4th of July, Veteran's Day, etc. This was only one day, and it was because of the loss of a British princess, and regardless of anybody else's ideas about the pros and cons of a monarchy, it was done to show respect to the wife.

So, in that instance, they only flew the British flag in response to a British loss. I think each of us comes into the immigration debate with our own personal experiences determining our feelings. Because my brother and I both married into Latino families, even though they were legal, we did have occasion to hear of other people's attempts to gain U.S. citizenship.

It's one thing to talk about "illegals", or "illegal immigrants", and quite another to use the same terms to describe your friend, and legal resident Humberto's battle to have his sister join the ones in the family legally living here. The sister might be named Rosa, and after meeting her at many family gatherings, it's very difficult to switch from thinking of her as Humberto's sister Rosa, as opposed to thinking of that illegal Latina.

When some of us have been immersed in Mexican, or Latino culture for almost 50 years, it's hard to change the way we feel about people we know and love. My own family came over here in the very early 1600s. No doubt some Mexican-American families were here, living in what is now Texas, when my family got here. This is not a simple issue, and the solution will not be simple, but some provision should be made to respect the people who are hired by companies who don't give a damn about them, but absolutely love paying below minimum wage to their workers.