by
Ernesto Cienfuegos
La Voz de Aztlan

Los Angeles, Alta California - June 5, 2007 - (ACN) The so called "raging debate" in congress on the Border Security and Immigration Reform Act of 2007 (S. 1348) is irrelevant to the proponents of a liberated Aztlan. It does not matter what final form S. 1348 will take, the quest for real economic and social equality, justice, freedom and for the establishment of a true homeland, north of the border, will continue to exist. The degree of fervor in this quest for Aztlan will be proportional to the number of repressive measures that are included in the final immigration reform bill.

Professor Armando Navarro of the University of California at Riverside has addressed some of the potentially dangerous Senate Bill 1348 amendments which threaten the long term well-being of Mexicanos in Aztlan. Dr. Armando Navarro, author of the book, "The Mexicano Political Experience In Occupied Aztlan: Struggles And Change" declared yesterday that ". . . Mexicanos and Latinos must be prepared to once again go to the streets." Professor Navarro added, "Regardless what immigration reform is passed either in 2007 or in 2009 or in the future, the "immigration crisis" impacting the U.S. and the Western Hemisphere will not end without major economic change occurring within the "Neo-liberal" economic systems of the Western Hemisphere."

Professor Navarro points out that S. 1348 targets "brown" Mexico and not "white" Canada. It is a racist bill by a US Congress dominated by Anglos/Whites. It provides for a wall and enhances the "militarization" of the U.S./Mexico border only. Dr. Navarro says that in the proposed bill, "Mexico is treated as if it were an adversary of the U.S. It is not applicable to the U.S./Canadian 4,000 mile long border. Border enforcement provisions are paradoxical indicators of a New Cold War – this time directed at Mexico..."

Some aspects of Senate Bill 1348 threaten not just undocumented Mexicanos but also Mexican-Americans and those with legal resident status. Title II of the bill grants immigration enforcement authority to state and local police. This will worsen ethnic and racial profiling which will negatively impact all "brown" people regardless of their citizenship or immigration status. . In addition, the proposed implementation of an Electronic Employment Verification System (EEVS) will greatly increase the opportunity for certain employers to discriminate against Americans of Mexican descent. Job applicants with a Spanish surname or with "brown skin" would be required to present documents proving legal status but not Whites.

One of the most sinister proposed amendments to the bill would deny certain deserving legal residents their ability to become voting citizens. The controversial amendment #1184, was introduced by Senator John Cornyn (R-TX). Cornyn’s amendment would deny lawful permanent residents the opportunity to become U.S. citizens based on secret evidence. No doubt this provision will be greatly abused by xenophobes within the immigration bureaucracy.

Dr. Armando Navarro, a principal leader of the Aztlan movement, said, "Strategically, the tactical option of once again 'taking to the streets' with the same or greater fury and passion that drove our great mobilizations of 2006 must be concomitantly developed." The struggle to liberate Aztlan has been compared to the struggle of the Palestinians against Zionist Israel. It is no surprise that Dr. Armando Navarro was included in the book, "The Professors: the 101 Most Dangerous Academics" by the pro-Israel Jew, David Horowitz.

The Immigrant Rights Movement must enter a new phase. Along with strengthening the Immigrant Sanctuary effort, the movement must start embracing the tactics of non-cooperation and civil disobedience. These tactics have already proven effective in other parts of the world. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi utilized non-cooperation and civil disobedience to liberate India from the British occupation. La Raza de Aztlan must study and become experts in implementing the political theories of the great Mahatma Gandhi. We do not have to re-invent the wheel.

We must act now! If we do not, there will be dire consequences for us and for our future generations. Just look at what is now occurring in France against their immigrants. For quite some time now, the French white xenophobes have been campaigning against their immigrants from the former colonies. Just last month, the Jew Nicolas Sarkozy won the nations' presidency on the platform of ridding the country of Muslim "scum". Today, Sarkozy is keeping to his campaign promises. One of the first things Sarkozy did was to appoint the vehemently racist Brice Hortefeux to head the newly created Ministry of Immigration and National Identity. This week, Hortefeux reiterated President Nicolas Sarkozy’s goal of 25,000 immigrant expulsions by the end of 2007 and set a year-end goal of 125,000 arrests. The very same thing will happen here if we do not act now.