Responsible Democracy

So, it's time for me to stop preaching and actually take some concrete action around advocacy. The following is a sample letter I am sending to my representatives following a simple 3 paragraph form. When we were in DC, we learned that the more personalized, the more effective these letters usually are. But, it is so short, it really doesn't take much time to write.

Monday, March 12, 2007

The Honorable Maria Cantwell
511 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington DC 20510

Dear Senator Maria Cantwell,

I would like to first and foremost thank you for your past support of legislation for comprehensive immigration reform. Having worked with immigrant communities as an English teacher in western Washington, I have witnessed firsthand the dedication of countless immigrants to pursue their educational goals and positively integrate themselves into their local communities. Immigrants in this country truly embody the pursuit of what I consider to be “the American dream.”

Currently, I am a Master’s candidate at the School for International Training in Brattleboro, VT. However, I consider Washington state my home and plan to move back there to work after completing the coursework portion of my degree. Unfortunately, I recently learned of some specific legislative bars within immigration policy that may prevent me from being able to live in my home, near my family, as long as I would like to. My fiancé is an immigrant from Mexico. We met two and a half years ago in Washington and fell in love. I would never trade the relationship for anything in the world. However, because he entered the country illegally, he is now barred from applying for legal status, even when we get married. If he cannot reside legally with me and my family, as well as his immediate family, who also reside in Washington state, we may be forced to move elsewhere or risk his deportation. This will be devastating for us, as we are both very close to our families. Additionally, it will bring financial hardship to me, since I had to take out thousands and thousands of dollars in loans in order to attend graduate school.

Although, I realize that his entrance was unlawful and that it will have to be addressed in future legislation, I ask that you continue to support legislation that will provide a reasonable and humane path towards legalization for the millions of undocumented immigrants residing here, recognizing that enforcement only or even enforcement first policies will negatively impact thousands of constituents like me who have found their lives inextricably intertwined and integrated with those of this nation’s immigrants. Please feel free to contact me to follow up about this issue: Janelle.Martinez@mail.sit.edu or 360-789-0351. Thank you very much.

Sincerely,



Janelle Martinez

Current Address:
1 Kipling Road PO Box 1313
Brattleboro, VT 05301


Of course, I have much more to say, but it's a start. I REALLY encourage you to write a letter as well. Here is an easy format to follow:

- Explain who you are and why you're writing.
- Expound upon the details based on fact, not emotion. How does the issue specifically affect you? Cite the correct title or number if advocating for a specific bill.
- Request the action you would like to be taken.

My favorite story is that one representative that a student here talked to said that one time he had to change his vote to align with his constituents. When asked how many letters it took for him to change his vote, he said: 6! Imagine! Of course, there's no way to guarantee that they'll listen when we write but they definitely won't listen if we don't do anything.

If you want to help with my situation (and that of many others) please, please consider writing to your representatives about immigration and how it affects you or me or anyone else...

To look up your representatives, go to:
www.house.gov
www.senate.gov

You can email them or send them hard copies of letters.

Here are some other resources:
FAIR- Federation for American Immigration Reform (enforcement only) www.fairus.org
AILA- American Immigration Lawyers Association (comprehensive reform) www.aila.org
Seattle Archdiocese- (for a faith-based perspective) www. seattlearch.org
NCLR- National Council of La Raza (focuses on immigrant rights) www.nclr.org

And you can always do a general search for more...

The following is a summary I put together of some of the positions/issues related to immigration:

SPECIFICS ON IMMIGRATION IN THE US:

Brief History of Immigration: Refer to National Immigration Forum http://www.immigrationforum.org/

Enforcement Only- This position is taken by those who generally want to leave the immigration laws in place as they are. They advocate for more funding and staffing to go to enforcement agencies in charge of identifying and deporting illegal aliens, as well as stricter penalties for employers who employ illegal aliens. They generally want strict immigration laws because they perceive that as being best for the American public.

Comprehensive Immigration Reform- This position is generally taken by those who see the current immigration system as “broken” and want to advocate for a complete overhaul with several revisions. It can include all or several of the following aspects:

1. Addressing the undocumented population in the US by creating a path to legalization (either permanent or temporary)

2. Addressing the backlogs of those who have applied through the existing legal avenues to come to the US- oftentimes by increasing the numbers of how many can come to reflect the current realities of applicants, increased efficiency in processing applications, increased staffing and/or funding to support reforms

3. Addressing the future waves of immigrants – most often through a temporary guest worker program but could include a new way to attain permanent or temporary legal status in the U.S. The previously proposed legislation varies significantly in terms of the kinds of rights this population would have in the US

4. Refugee/Asylum Seekers- There are several issues that need addressed:
- Making sure the funding is in place to allow the allotted number of refugees who are eligible to come to the US to actually be able to come (often funding falls short)
- Material support/Refugee status – Currently, anyone that is seen as having given material support of any kind to anyone deemed a "terrorist" or "terrorist organization" is not eligible for refugee status. Because many refugees come from oppressive regimes and may have been forced into “helping” what are considered to be "terrorist organizations," this law greatly limits the number of people eligible to receive refugee status.
- Due process for asylum seekers- Because of a shortage of lawyers and internal problems in the system, asylum seekers may not be read their rights and given the due process they legally deserve
- Backlogs for asylum seekers- There are significant backlogs for those who have applied for asylum/refugee status. Many must stay in detention centers until they are granted the appropriate paperwork.

5. Security/Enforcement Measures- Previous legislation has proposed everything from making undocumented immigrants and those who aid them into felons to employer verification technology to determine whether potential employees have legal status to creating a fence at the US/Mexican border. Some strongly believe in a need for security measures to be put into effect, while others include this aspect to appease the enforcement only advocates.

Best of luck in working for social change! I really appreciate your support around this issue as well!

Fear and Deception

I saw a movie on Friday night that really got to me. It's called "Why we fight" and it is based on militarism in the US and US foreign policy. We've been talking in conflict transformation about how people often react negatively and shut down when they feel like something about their own identity is being threatened. We also talked in another class about how often people say it is "human nature" to avoid or be threatened by the "different" or the "unknown" and, yet, how there's hundreds of examples that demonstrate how that is not really true. In his book, Privilege, Power and Difference, Johnson notes that "Scientists, psychotherapists, inventors, novelists (and their fans), explorers, philosophers, spiritualists, anthropologists, and the just plain curious are all drawn toward the mystery of what they don't know" (Johnson, 16, 2001). It is dangerous to begin to talk about "human nature" especially when we only base our ideas on what our own experiences reveal. Clearly, that would be the most logical place to start, but the way people think or behave often has just as much to do with how they are brought up to behave or think as whatever they "naturally" would. It is revealing to go to other parts of the country or the world, where the assumptions we had made about "human nature" or the way people live are totally negated.

What is scary to me about a culture of militarism and imperialism is that it takes excess- the unnecessary- at the cost of others' basic needs and justifies it with rhetoric about "national interest" or "national security." I truly question these words. The United States of America already possesses more nuclear arms than any other country on Earth- enough to blow the entire world up several times over. Why- when people are going without health care, when school districts can't "afford" to pay teachers a reasonable salary and provide enough resources for students, when people go hungry, go without basic dignity, are we spending billions and billions of dollars funding the potential destruction of the world several times over? Sometimes I feel so simple, like a small child asking her father, "but why does the US government want to blow the world up Daddy?" Why would they invest so many resources in sheer destructive potential? Will that protect us? Will us being able to destroy the earth 5 times protect us? Are these weapons going to destroy everyone else but not us? Can we really think we're immune?

And then to think it's not just national security concerns or questions about preserving democracy. It's not about that at all. There are huge contracts tied into the production of weapons. Essentially, war makes people rich. The United States spends more on defense than ALL OTHER BUDGETS COMBINED. We arguably have the most powerful economy on earth, enough weapons to destroy the earth several times over- who are we defending ourselves from? And why do we think that our security lies in military force? Probably because that's what we're "led to believe" because of rhetoric, but the people telling us this are salespeople, in business, just like people that sell you a car or a cell phone. Why are we so much more skeptical of people selling us a new TV set than of our national leaders who we are responsible to hold accountable? Our tax money is funding their business of the mass production of unnecessary military equipment and arms. And why? Because major corporations fund campaigns much more effectively than school teachers. Our representatives can't "afford" to tell us the truth. Our government has too much at stake.

I feel so disillusioned to find that my beautiful country, full of democracy and voice and liberty and justice for all is killing people to make a profit and all the people I love, with me, are standing by because we either don't know about it or simply choose to ignore what we do know or what we could know because it makes us feel horrible. It hurts to the core of who we think we are and we don't know what to do about it...So, we just deny it. Instead of going to rent a documentary or look up alternative news sources or trying to get closer to the truth, we pretend it's going to go away. We continue to believe the "military-industrial" complex that Eisenhower warned us of, hasn't arisen yet, and, if it has, that at least it won't touch us. It won't affect OUR lives and OUR children. Well, it has and it is and it absolutely will. Mother Teresa of Calcutta once said, "If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten we belong to one another." Do we have what we would consider real peace in our lives? Do we always remember the truth that God gave us to one another? This world is getting smaller by the day. Every action our government takes represents us, the people of the United States, to the rest of the world. We have to educate ourselves about what is going on, what others' experiences are, where we can cut excess in government spending for destructive purposes and in our own lives. We must learn to live simply so that others may simply live.

I recommend renting the films: "Why we fight" and "Arms for the Poor"(about US militarism) "Broken Rainbow" (about Native Americans), "Down and Out in America" (about poverty in the US) just think about the messages- consider that they might have some truth... Maybe they aren't "feel good" films, but taking time to be "uncomfortable" can move us closer to living lives of love than we may realize. My parents taught me that true committment and true love is not always about what "feels good." Their lessons stay with me to this day.