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People need to think this through. The "punish the employer" mantra is founded on right wing premises - that there is some dire problem that requires drastic measures (their usual way to stir up the public and get people to suspend critical judgment) and that social problems and issues are all police matters and that punishment is the only solution. The racists say "go after them Mexicans!" and then the response from too many Democrats is "go after the employers!" We can paint a picture of fat greedy Republicans enslaving housekeepers and use that to justify supporting the growing police state, but we will live to regret that in my opinion.
First of all, it is not the case that there are two discrete classes of immigrants - legal and illegal. Millions are in limbo, awaiting decision on their status. There is a wide range of situations and most immigrants are trying to comply with the law as best they can. Think about that. Why would they not? I had a racist a while back ranting to me about the immigrants, claiming that it was a matter of enforcing the law and that they were criminals, and then blathering about gangs and crime and such - "you don't know what they are like." Later in the discussion he mockingly said that he could always tell the illegals, because they were driving the speed limit when he raced past them on the highway. So we can tell the criminals because they are the ones obeying the law?
Many immigrants work for small farmers and other small businesses, and many of those owners are progressive and Democrats. They are the ones - the small fry - whom the feds are targeting. Of course. This is America, after all. Employers have no way to know who is and who is not "legal" - nor should it be the employers responsibility to act as de facto agents for law enforcement - without prying into people's backgrounds and personal lives. They cannot delve into the lives of some employees and not others without discriminating, and therefore breaking the law. That means that they would have to invade the privacy of ALL employees and become in essence cops, and become cops in the super-heated police state atmosphere that now dominates the public imagination and informs government actions and decisions. Be careful what you wish for.
There is no way to "solve" this supposed "problem" without racial profiling - how else can we "know" who is and who is not potentially "illegal?" Threatening small employers with fines and jail - which is happening - because they are failing to violate the rights and privacy of their employees or failing to racially profile people can never be a "solution." Otherwise, to weed out the "illegals" would require all of us to be seen as guilty until proved innocent and be presumed to "be illegal" until and unless we can prove to the authorities, and now their de facto agents, the employers, that we have permission to work - to breathe, to live, to go about our lives. That is the very essence of a police state. That is why the right wingers are stirring all of this hatred up. Not to solve any problem regarding immigration, but to get the public to accept a police state.
If employers are abusing employees - no matter who the employees are or where they are from - that is already criminal. Bringing immigrants in from the cold - with amnesty - is their best protection from the abuse at the hands of employers. Organizing unions is another check against that, and immigrants are revitalizing and driving the Labor movement today. They are doing a great service for all of us with that work. Increased police efforts will only drive people underground and make the problem worse. This desire for police action is like a drug. Taking the drug will create more craving, and the craving for it will grow and grow. And the problem is not "illegal immigrants" the problem is a white population driven have insane with racist hysteria and ready to support, embrace and cooperate with a police state.
Whom do we view as a suspect? Everyone? Certain people? Upon what basis? We now have Homeland Security encouraging employers to "turn over" their "suspects." Since employers cannot know that the Hispanic person was born here, and the white person may be the child of an undocumented Polish immigrant, race is not a reliable indicator is it? Not if we truly are trying to solve this problem, not if the problem is as the right wingers are framing it. Yet what, other than race, could possibly be the basis for suspecting someone? Homeland Security is also telling immigrants that if they are undocumented - which the employer probably does not know - that they should snitch on the employer in exchange for lenient treatment. Workers are being told to snitch on co-workers they "suspect" - upon what basis could they be suspecting people? Homeland Security agents are interrogating and intimidating grade school children at school bus stops - not white children of course - about their parents and neighbors.
How can the feds find these evil employers? How are they finding them? By staging paramilitary raids, just as they did under Bush, only much worse, rounding up the brown people and then also holding the employer criminally liable for any crimes committed by their employees. This is a recipe for police state Hell, and we are far down that path already - much too far.
The Republican cry - "round up the Mexicans!" - and the Democratic cry - "round up the employers!" - are the two solid legs upon which a monstrous police state can firmly stand and then strut across the country and eventually turn on all of us. We can either suspect people based on race, or we can be suspicious of everyone. When people become suspicious of everyone, and are encouraged to turn over family members, friends, co-workers, employees, neighbors and strangers, we have a police state and none of us will be safe from that.
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