The DREAM Act is dead. It may be resurrected after the 2008 elections, but it is clear that Congress is unwilling to do anything to provide relief for ANY undocumented immigrants in this congressional session. Today’s Daily News opines that the vote was “cruel.” Cruel maybe, but expected. When activists turned away from mass action to focus on lobbying and letter writing, they conceded to Democratic leader’s concerns that pro-immigration demonstrations was putting the party in an awkward position. The demos had forced leading Democrats, including presidential candidates, to come out for a “path to citizenship” for undocumented immigrants. That played well in immigrant communities, but was a risky posture as the 2008 elections approached. Latinos in particular are already leaning Democratic. Why risk a controversial position that might alienate other voters?

I am not suggesting that any approach, including mass demonstrations, would have led to positive reform this year. But at least the mass action pushed elected officials to speak out for immigrants. The write and talk strategy let them provide “support” with little public scrutiny. In essence, write and talk was about putting the election of Democrats first with the hope that once elected, they will support reform. We’ll see.

My latest podcast discusses recent ICE raids.  You can subscribe to my CUNY podcasts at www1.cuny.edu/cns/mods/live/podfeed/citizenship.feed

Here’s the blurb from Mark Boutros, producer and Sheila McCenna reporter. 

In response to a wave of armed raids on the part of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, fifteen Hispanic people — including seven U.S. citizens — in the New York City area filed a federal lawsuit accusing immigration officials of violating their civil rights. Allan Wernick discusses the tactics being used by ICE and whether complaints from the Nassau County Police Department over their techniques will have an impact.

This report that deporations are up doesn’t surprise me.  With the failiure of immigration reform, the Bush Administration is pushing hard on enforcement  - an apparent effort to pander to Lou Dobbs followers.  Of course the numbers are still relatively small in comparison to the total number of undocumented workers.  But for Bush, at least he appears to be “doing something” about undocumented immigration.  The deportations and other enforcement efforts won’t get undocumented immigrants to leave the United States, but they sure are scared.  At the CUNY Citizenship and Immigration Project that I direct, callers are increasingly asking what to do if ICE (the federal immigration enforcement agency) comes calling.  As predicted the Bush tactics are driving folks further underground.  Employers are complaining and small towns near where raids have occurred are deserted, but Bush has yet to back off.