New York Rep. Joseph Crowley. (Photo: Official website.)

Almost two months after the deadline Sen. Charles Schumer had set for himself to introduce a comprehensive immigration reform bill on behalf of the Obama Administration, a congressman from New York called on the president to go forward with that initiative.

During a conference call Friday with immigration reform advocates, Democratic Rep. Joseph Crowley, who represents parts of Queens and The Bronx, “stressed the urgency for action on a comprehensive solution to our dysfunctional immigration system,” according to a press release from the New York Immigration Coalition.

“We need to maintain the momentum for comprehensive immigration reform, and I’m glad that we have advocates for reform who are willing to fight for what is best for our nation,” Crowley said, according to the statement.

While Schumer missed his own deadline for introducing a reform bill in the Senate, Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Illinois) has announced he will soon introduce his own initiative in the House. The bills differ greatly, since the senator’s focuses on a slew of enforcement measures and “a crackdown on illegal immigration,” while Gutierrez’s stresses legalization for undocumented immigrants, family unity and humane enforcement.

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Soon after taking office, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano promised to reevaluate several criticized immigration enforcement initiatives. One was the 287(g) program that deputizes local police to enforce federal immigration laws. Now, an advisory panel Napolitano created is recommending that the program be scaled back, and that agents authorized under 287 (g) be precluded from pursuing immigrants who are not the target of a criminal investigation.

The Southwest Border Task Force presented its first report in a conference call with reporters this week. Most media outlets focused on the recommendation that the U.S. hire more customs inspectors for its southern border. But McAllen, Texas newspaper The Monitor reported that the group said the 287(g) program “should be limited to identifying illegal immigrants in state prisons and county jails and exclude any efforts to track them down outside of criminal investigations.”

The task force made a total of 19 recommendations to the Homeland Security Advisory Council, which will forward them to Napolitano.

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A May Day march for immigration reform in Downtown Los Angeles this year - (Photo: j.r.mchale.)

In the face of delays by the Obama administration on an immigration bill,  pro-immigration advocates are ready to take to the streets again to demand comprehensive immigration reform.

Univision.com’s Jorge Cancino reports that groups in several states are organizing marches that will take place between Oct. 10 and 13 to coincide with Hispanic heritage celebrations. They want to pressure the White House and Congress to move forward on immigration reform, despite all signs suggesting that debate will be delayed at least until 2010.

“We will go out on the streets on Saturday Oct. 10 to pressure Barack Obama’s government and Congress to start, not passing reform, but at least introducing some type of package so that we can start a serious conversation about the immigration issue,” Juan José Gutiérrez, director of Movimiento Latino USA in Los Angeles, told Cancino.

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When the Obama administration recently announced its decision to scrap the Bush-era plan for an anti-missile shield based in Poland and the Czech Republic many Poles were not surprised. It simply confirmed what they had been expecting.

Polish President Lech Kaczynski meets with reporters in New York. Photo Karolina Szczepanska

Last fall then-President-elect Obama expressed doubts about the system, and members of the Polish community in the U.S. anticipated that he wouldn’t feel obligated to respect agreements signed in 2008 by the previous administration.

“The US has its own problems now and they do whatever is best for them,” said Grazyna Bulka, east coast director of a Chicago-based shipping company, Polamer Inc. Bulka feared the system would have infuriated Russia, and was relieved to

learn that it had been abandoned.

“Poles love America so much and the U.S. really doesn’t care about us much,” lamented Emilia Sroczynska, a small business owner from Brooklyn, who favors the anti-missile system. “They remember us only when they need us, but they abandon us as soon as they don’t. To me it’s just another disappointment.”

Whether they supported or opposed the Bush plan to place ten ground-based interceptors on Polish soil, many agreed that Obama’s decision to scrap the deal proved that the U.S. considers Poland a second-class ally.

But what truly embittered Poles was the timing of the announcement, widely interpreted either as ignorance or insensitivity to Poland’s history by the Obama administration. (more…)

Chicago Congressman Luis Gutierrez will introduce his own immigration reform bill. (Photo: Rep. Gutierrez website)

While President Obama’s immigration proposal seems months away from any serious consideration, a Latino congressman from the president’s hometown has announced he will draft an alternative bill by October 13 and introduce it in the House “soon thereafter.”

Congressman Luis V. Gutierrez (D.-Ill.) announced his decision last week, which he said came at the urging of immigrant advocates.

Obama has charged Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York with drafting the government’s bill. Schumer had said the proposal would have been ready by Labor Day but, according to La Opinión, the health care debate derailed those plans.

“Today, at (a) rally in Washington DC, advocacy groups from across the country called upon Congressman Luis V. Gutierrez (D-IL) to present a progressive, comprehensive immigration bill. Rep. Gutierrez agreed that he will outline the fundamental principles of such legislation by October 13 and introduce a comprehensive bill soon thereafter.”

[ Gutierrez press release ]

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Less than a year ago, at the dawn of the Obama era, there was a lot of talk about how the nation had just elected its first post-racial president. With his multi-racial and multi-religious background, and African immigrant roots, Barack Obama represented the hope of millions that the country was moving beyond its long, tragic history of divisive racial politics.

To be sure, Obama’s election as the first black president of the United States was an historic event of immense significance. But the idea of a post-racial presidency was a fantasy. Comments this week by former President Jimmy Carter reminded us that racial politics and prejudice are alive and well in America.

“I think an overwhelming portion of the intensely demonstrated animosity toward President Barack Obama is based on the fact that he is a black man, that he’s African American,” Carter told NBC’s Brian Williams.

The issue of immigration was directly implicated in Carter’s remarks. The now infamous shout of “You lie” by Representative Joe Wilson (R-South Carolina) during President Obama’s address to Congress last week came after the president asserted in his speech that undocumented immigrants would not be covered under the proposed health care overhaul.

“I think it’s based on racism,” Carter was quoted by the Washington Post as saying of Wilson’s outburst. The former president made the remark in response to a question at a public forum on Tuesday at the Carter Center in Atlanta.

The entire episode — Wilson’s shout, Carter’s critique, and all the various charges and counter charges, accusations and denials flying around Washington and in the media – suggest a very rocky future for immigration reform. (more…)