Obama risks alienating Latinos with lack of immigration reform

[alp227]

by Joshua Hoyt

I have known Barack Obama since 1986, when we were both community organizers. I am still organizing on the streets of Chicago, and what I see in the Latino community makes me fear that the president is oblivious to the pain wrought by our broken immigration system. It could have a profound effect on the 2010 and 2012 elections.

It didn't have to be this way. For a brief moment last year it appeared that Obama might realign the modern political map, cementing the Latino vote into the Democratic coalition by speaking plainly to the American people on the need for comprehensive immigration reform.

Instead, he squandered a political gift handed to him by the Republican Party's nativist wing -- and its anti-immigrant rhetoric -- during the 2008 campaign. Candidate Obama promised to make immigration reform a priority during his first year in office, and the Latino vote surged to 10 million, from 7.8 million in 2004, and swung eight percentage points toward the Democrats.

Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/04/AR2010030404037.html?nav=rss_politics

[Xipe Totec]

1. Not to mention the firing of all the teachers in Central Falls, R.I.,

A community that's over 65% Hispanic.

Way to go!

[Fruittree]

6. He didn't fire the teachers..

And if you listen to the words he spoke about the firings (which since I don't live there, I don't have a clear opinion on), he does not say it's wonderful as some here have claimed. He says that in dire situations where nothing else is working, drastic measures like this might be necessary. He also in the same speech reminds people of the difficult job teachers are doing.

[Xipe Totec]

7. He backed up the decision which means he owns it

And it is a direct consequence of policies he put in place.

As for listening to the words he spoke:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x7820533


Quibble if you want.

[Fruittree]

9. Actually

I listened to his words as he spoke them and I know what I heard as I said before. I don't consider that quibbling - maybe just a difference of opinion. I highly doubt every teacher in that school deserved to be fired but I do agree that drastic measures are needed to improve the state of education. From all I've read it sounds like there was a battle between the school board and the union and it's not at all clear where the teachers stood in this but I did hear Obama speak and he definitely did not say "Great thing they were fired". It was more of accepting that sometimes measures like these are going to be necessary to turn a particular school around. In the long run, it's the students and their educational future that matters.

[EFerrari]

11. Obama was flat out wrong. The last state audit of that school

showed improvement and praised the teaching staff. And even if that were not the case, firing all the teachers at a school is an insane way to turn it around.

This is union busting, pure and simple.

[Fruittree]

13. As I said

I highly doubt every teacher in that school deserved to be fired but I don't live there so I don't know exactly what's going on but if a school is failing to serve the children of the residents of an area then it's up to the school board and the parents to make a decision as to how to fix it since they're the ones affected. Was this a mistake? I don't know. Was Obama saying this is the way to go everywhere and should happen nationwide? No.
My understanding is the teachers and staff were given some options to try to turn things around - a slightly longer day, tutoring, lunch with the kids, staff meetings and a 2 week summer session. I'm not clear the teachers all refused this but it appears the union negotiater did which led to the firings. For all we know, they're still negotiating in the background and everyone will be re-hired. The point Obama made in his speech, that Arne Duncan made and that I agree with is that children are the priority. They only get one chance. If a child isn't learning in 2nd grade, it doesn't bode well for their success in high school and beyond. Sometimes drastic measures will need to be taken. Sometimes it may require starting over. The point is that it's not about unions, it's about the success of our future populations and frankly if my kids were going to a school with that type of failure rate, I wouldn't be too happy and would want something done.

[EFerrari]

16. No, the union rep was not responsible for this situation.

That you believe s/he might be only shows how effective media campaign has been to make the union look like a culprit.

And the point is, it is about unions. In this case, it is about putting out misinformation that then gets quoted by the president on television that has the effect of people like yourself siding with the privatizers of our schools over the teachers struggling in them to do more with less every year.

There is zero evidence that firing all these people will produce a better school for those kids.

And there is no evidence whatsoever that privatizing our schools, which is the goal of Obama's appointee, benefits anyone but the owners of the private schools.

[Fruittree]

18. I don't believe that anywhere I said

that I believe in privatizing schools or that I'm anti-union or that I don't believe teachers are doing a difficult job. I said that I highly doubt that all the teachers deserve to be fired. I don't believe Obama said he believes in privatizing schools either. Making that assumption is unfair. Plus, I purposefully avoid watching most mainstream media. What I did say is that schools particularly in poorer areas need to be fixed - the status quo doesn't appear to be working. All options need to be explored. Again, I'll say what I said before - I don't live there so I don't know the whole situation so for all I know what was done is a big mistake but I don't think closing our minds to change is benefitting anyone. Hopefully the situation will be worked out but the primary goal has to be what benefits those kids and that should include looking at all issues and not just what happens in the school because schools were never meant to solve issues caused by poverty. Do you know maybe why the changes that were suggested were not implemented? If it wasn't the union and school board failing to come to an agreement, what was it?

[EFerrari]

21. There's nothing unfair in any way in observing that Obama appointed Arnie Duncan.

Maybe you should search this site for madfloridian's threads on this topic. Or, you could try her journal. Also, Hannah Bell's.

And you don't fix schools in "poorer areas" by ignoring their progress and shutting them down.

[Fruittree]

22. I didn't say that -

Of course Obama appointed Arne Duncan but I don't think it was with a goal of privitizing all schools. My understanding is that it was more with a goal of trying new methods to aggressively fix a bad situation. In other words everything is on the table. Will they sometimes mess up and have to backtrack? Of course. And, as I've said repeatedly, I don't think firing teachers indiscriminately should necessarily become the method of choice.I tend to think there was more going on in RI than is being reported yet and I also tend to think it may all be worked out. What I meant was unfair is presuming things about other people's postions based on a difference of opinion.

[provis99]

2. Hoyt is equating illegal immigrants with Latinos

and implying Latinos only care about illegal immigration because illegal immigrants are Latinos. Shitty and racist article.

[beaujolais]

15. Hispanics, not Latinos

Illegal aliens are illegal aliens, and they are abusing our system. Employers should be made to pay dearly for their low cost slaves. Americans need these jobs at reasonable pay.

[madrchsod]

3. we will have to see how the figures play out this november

i`m betting the democrats losing votes to the republicans. joshua knows what`s going on in chicago....

[demosincebirth]

4. As a Latino, who else am I going to vote for, a repub? Don't think so.

[EFerrari]

12. Some people will simply not vote.

[Fruittree]

14. And get who as president as a result?

[EFerrari]

17. If Obama is no better than the Republicans on this issue

the voters who vote this issue will not lose anything, will they?

[Fruittree]

19. I don't think most people vote on a single issue..

And how did you come to the conclusion that Obama is no better than Republicans?

[EFerrari]

20. Maybe you should read my posts again. n/t

[Fruittree]

23. I guess we don't agree..

but that's fine. We probably agree on the overall picture just not how to get there. I tend to believe the best of people and that includes Obama so I'm not giving up hope that we're heading in the right direction and I'm not ready to start reading evil intentions into people's words and actions without knowing them. Maybe we can agree that we hope this works out for the teachers, staff and students in the long run?

[getthefacts]

24. I don't know

Most Hispanics still remembers that it was Reagan who was the last one able to pass legislation on this issue. We all know that reform did not work out as planned, nevertheless...

[ChicagoSuz219]

5. HCR will have been a cake walk...

...compared to the fights coming up on Immigration Reform.

I expect a bloodbath over this...

[Doctor_J]

8. What bloodbath? In order for blood to be shed, there has to be a fight

the prez has shown himself to be completely lacking in fight. He will probably roll over the way he has on everything else.

[ChicagoSuz219]

10. Sorry... that's not my experience. n/t