Profile in courage: Waukegan City Council holds its ground
The Waukegan City Council held its ground Monday night and voted to continue the application process for federal authority to deport immigrants convicted of serious crimes–in defiance of protests, and a boycott, organized by Hispanic activists demanding “hands off” the felons in their own ranks.
As the News-Sun further reports,
Mayor Richard Hyde also voted, stating he was voting with aldermen for the first time in his tenure because of misinformation given to the Hispanic community.
Basically, he said this is a matter of speeding up the paperwork to deport criminals.
“I want these people off the streets,” Hyde said….
Second Ward Ald. John Balen also invoked history in explaining his vote in support of 287(g) [the process described above]. Too many immigrants were enticed here as cheap labor and were exploited. Balen also cited more recent history when more than a decade ago the federal government convicted the city of discrimination. “The problems we have today did not start a month ago,” Balen said. “They started a long time ago,” he said, referring the lawsuit. “That was the beginning. It turned every single-family home into a boarding house. This has been building up for 12 to 14 years. There is a lot of smoldering resentment in this community.”
Balen based his vote on the rule of law. “If we don’t obey the law, we really don’t have a country,” he said.
Americans confronted by a Mexican colonist as they stand in line for tickets for the city council meeting… How long only a war of words?
In a previous post, we detailed how a boycott of Waukegan businesses who refuse to display placards in protest of the measure had been organized. The boycott provides a graphic example of a trend that can only be expected to continue if nothing is done to stem the colonization of U.S. territory by alien peoples: as Mexican colonists grow more numerous and powerful, it is only logical that they will attempt to impose their will on the American population by force rather than by persuasion.
A boycott is an attempt to exert economic force in a non-violent manner. We expressed our fear that violent force might be next. In fact, the Mexicans have already taken the next step down the road to violence: as also reported in the News-Sun, a hair salon in Waukegan, owned by a Hispanic, was defaced with hateful graffiti because of the owner’s refusal to support the protesters:
A Hispanic business owner is upset over what he calls racist graffiti on his store front, related to new immigration enforcement being discussed by city leaders.
Marco Salcedo said his Grand Avenue hair salon was a target for graffiti Friday evening, because he is against 287 (g).
Since July 5 Salcedo has had an orange sign posted in the window of Di Marco Hair Salon, 1801 Grand Ave., that states he is against 287 (g). When he arrived to work Saturday morning, he says the sign was covered by another sign promoting 287 (g) and someone used black, water-based paints to write “Yes 287 (g)” on his window.
“I’m not happy with it,” Salcedo said. “This isn’t fair. It’s my business, I can put up whatever I want.”
In addition to paint that supported 287 (g), vandals also placed an orange sign that supported the measure. It was signed by a group calling itself “Legal American Waukegan Citizens.” That sign was placed over Salcedo’s existing orange sign.
To combat the sign, Salcedo placed three large poster board-sized signs in his window that proclaimed himself as a legal Hispanic business owner, with first amendment rights.
We will continue to report on Waukegan’s ongoing struggle to retain its sovereignty, its dignity, its rule of law, and its identity as an American city.
Greetings! I subscribe to the ALIPAC e-mail list. Here’s their report of what happened for your readers:
Posted on July 17th, 2007 at 1:02 pm by sjp