IN HONOR OF PRO-IMMIGRATION DAY! Help me keep this one kicked, ya'll.

[peacebaby3]

I'll be spending the day with my friends from Mexico tomorrow.

In their honor:

White Crosses by Edwin McCain
Off the "Scream & Whisper" CD

Well I packed all of my things into this blanket
Took all of this year to earn coyote's fare
I kiss my wife and kids goodbye, choke back the quiver in my breathe
And took my first steps into this corridor of death

If I am lucky I will make it to a train
With 500 of my brothers I will share the strain
I'm standing in this boxcar praying for rain
It's the only way that we will quench our thirst

In these gardens of white crosses
Growing in the California sand
In these gardens of white crosses
We are children of poverty
Trying to make a stand

If we make it past the border, we will scatter
Vanish just like smoke in the autumn wind
I will run until my color will not matter
Hoping I can find some work or possibly a friend

There are others that have made it here and they will show me how
To find a job and a place to lay my head
And I cannot be concerned with the dreams of my children
For there are five others in line for my bed

In these gardens of white crosses
Growing in the California sand
In these gardens of white crosses
We are children of poverty
Trying to make a stand

I will gladly pick your peaches or clean your hotel room
I will do the jobs Americans won't do
With their cell phones to their heads and seven hundred dollar shoes
I will risk my life because it's all I have to lose

Met the devil in the mountains, promised me a ride
He found an 18-wheeler and put all of us inside
Just outside of Victory, 19 of us died
But none of our bodies hit the floor

And my wife, she still wonders when I'm coming home
With the riches that I promised her for leaving her alone
I told her I would send her all that I could save
But I ended up in California in an unknown grave

In these gardens of white crosses
Growing in the California sand
In these gardens of white crosses
We are children of poverty
Trying to make a stand

*********************************************************************************************

I've been a big fan of Edwin McCain for over a decade. He's got a lot more substance than just the big ballads like "I'll Be" that make it to radio.

<http://www.edwin.com>

I realize the immigration issue is a complicated one and I haven't had much to say about it on this board. I certainly won't pretend to have all of the answers, but I'm not sure anyone really does and if I am going to err, I will err on the side of humanity. I will not be a part of going after people who are desperately trying to make a better life for themselves and their families so when I see the powers that be go after the Americans who exploit these people, I'll be more open to some different ideas.

[bluedog]

1. thats the chance an "ILLegal " takes n/t

[democracyindanger]

4. This country would be a lot better off

if everybody had the guts to risk it all to come here, instead of just being born in the right hospital and complaining about those who weren't.

[mdmc]

2. A pro-immi-kick

& R

[laheina]

3. Kick for the profound. nt

[peacebaby3]

5. I really like your signature line. Thanks for the kick. n/t

[eppur_se_muova]

6. Isn't that Thanksgiving? The day the residents welcomed the immigrants? nt

[peacebaby3]

7. Didn't the Native Americans build a big fence to keep out all the white

people? Is that the history of Thanksgiving? Oh crap, I wonder if the Hispanic community is going to put us all on the Rez and force us to assimilate as they take our land?!?!?! :sarcasm:

Last I checked Thanksgiving was in November.

[RebelOne]

8. Kick for anti-illegal immigration

Why should these people be allowed to jump to the front of the line when there are so many others waiting to enter the country legally?

[peacebaby3]

10. Valid point. As I stated in the OP, it is a complicated problem, but

I don't think the answer is to go after a bunch of people that are willing to risk their lives to try to find better. Do you know that one of the proposed solutions actually includes arresting and prosecuting people such as the clergy who might provide food and water to anyone who might be dying trying to cross the border? That's disgusting and unthinkable.

It's time to go after Americans who hire illegals and exploit them.

[Jigarotta]

22. and why are the rules and laws always in favour of the rich...

either they break the old ones without any consequence or make new ones to suit themselves while us pleebs scrap amongst each other for the scraps and point fingers at the 'illegality' of trying to survive .

Piss on that noise.
Time for a change. A change toward real justice, not the fakery we have had to abide with.

WILL WORK FOR CHANGE.

[Robbie Michaels]

9. Thanks for posting this

All of the illegal immigrants I've known through the years are here for a better life. It made me think of them. If they're still around, I hope they're out in force tomorrow.

[EFerrari]

11. Lots of supporters will be out as well.

Most of the businesses in my neighborhood are shutting down until Tuesday.

[Robbie Michaels]

12. I'm Supporting Them Too

I'm not going to work tomorrow. I'll explain all of my reasons in a future post.

[EFerrari]

13. Yes. We're going to the march tomorrow -- noon downtown. nt

[Jigarotta]

23. with you in spirit, sfexpat!

get out there and be Loud and Proud.

[laheina]

14. kick. nt

[AlphaCentauri]

15. justice to the poor and low-income

[roody]

16. I didn't cross the line. The line crossed me.

[peacebaby3]

17. Kick. n/t

[malaise]

18. Kick n/t

[seg4527]

19. here's another: links on the chain, phil ochs

Come you ranks of labor, come you union core,
And see if you remember the struggles of before,
When you were standing helpless on the outside of the door
And you started building links on the Chain.
On the Chain, you started building links on the Chain.


When the police on the horses were waitin' on demand,
ridin' through the strike with the pistols in their hands,
Swingin' at the skulls of many a union man,
As you built one more link on the chain, on the chain,
As you built one more link on the chain.

Then the army of the fascists tried to put you on the run,
but the army of the union, they did what could be done,
Oh, the power of the factory was greater than the gun,
As you built one more link on the chain, on the chain,
As you built one more link on the chain.

And then in 1954, decisions finally made,
The black man was a-risin' fast and racin' from the shade,
And your union took no stand and your union was betrayed,
As you lost yourself a link on the chain, on the chain,
As you lost yourslef a link on the chain.

And then there came the boycotts and then the freedom rides,
And forgetting what you stood for, you tried to block the tide,
Oh, the automation bosses werre laughin' on the side,
As they watched you lose your link on the chain, on the chain,
As they watched you lose your link on the chain.


You know when they block your trucks boys, by layin' on the road,
All that they are doin' is all that you have showed,
That you gotta strike, you gotta fight to get what you are owed,
When you're building all your links on the chain, on the chain,
When you're building all your links on the chain.

Amd the man who tries to tell you that they'll take your job away,
He's the same man who was scabbin' hard just the other day,
And your union's not a union till he's thrown out of the way,
And he's chokin' on your links of the chain, of the chain,
And he's chokin' on your links of the chain.

For now the times are tellin' you the times are rollin' on,
And you're fighting for the same thing, the jobs that will be gone,
Now it's only fair to ask you boys, which side are you on?
As you're buildin' all your links on the chain, on the chain,
As you're buildin' all your links on the chain.

[WillyT]

20. K & R !!!

:kick:

[titoresque]

21. Kick!

My kids are home today with me, and we're not buying a damn thing! In solidarity!!!! Power to the people!

[noamnety]

24. K & R

Humanos no son ilegales.

[Robbie Michaels]

25. Si Se Puede Kick

:kick:

[Dr. Jones]

26. Sorry, you lost me here:

I will gladly pick your peaches or clean your hotel room
I will do the jobs Americans won't do

I simply cannot support this false statement that has done so much damage to my fellow U.S. Middle Class brethren. It's THIS kind of garbage that divides, not unites.

If they want to unite Americans behind their cause: STOP saying "Jobs Americans won't do!!" Because Americans DO do construction, janitorial work, service work, agricultural work, and more. But they increasingly cannot do this anymore because they have been undercut by illegals who work for far less, brought on by asshole companies who employ these illegals against the laws of our country.