The Elephant in the Room…
By Frank Simpson
Many have lamented the changes in Petaluma over recent years. They have been discussed to a fare thee well in the local papers and elsewhere.
The discussions have been variously framed as issues of development versus no or controlled development, traffic, street maintenance, Big-Box stores versus Eggcentric (local retailers), and the adequacy of our water supply.
Underneath these issues, there is another issue that is frequently brought up in e-mails or in comments posted to blogs or newspaper articles–The Elephant in the Room…Illegal immigrants. The discussion at this level includes unlicensed food carts, taco trucks, unlicensed and/or uninsured drivers, too many people living in a home or apartment, street gangs, day laborers, illegal boarding houses, unlicensed day care homes, and too many cars on the street.
It must be kept in mind that the changes brought about by the immigrant population are occurring everywhere, not just in Petaluma.
In addition, you must remember that:
- Not every immigrant is illegal
- Not every Spanish speaking person is an immigrant &
- The underlying policies and laws behind the immigration influx are set in Washington D.C. and not here.
It is not my purpose or intent in this post to develop a brilliant conclusion on the subject. I can recommend a documentary that may provide some additional background to help understand what is taking place–POV: Farmingville. It was originally broadcast on PBS and is now available on DVD. It documents what happened to a small rural community on Long Island and how they struggled to cope with the situation. According to one review: “FARMINGVILLE is an astounding glimpse into an issue that continues to anger, frighten and confuse us.” (Amazon Editorial Review)
I have seen it at Silver Screen Video and it may be available through the Sonoma County Library. It is definitely worth your time.
The above notwithstanding, I do agree with those that want our local ordinances enforced–for everyone. However, remember that in so doing, Petaluma enforcement officials will be subject to charges of profiling or discrimination. It is a fine balancing act and I don’t envy them the task.
3 Comments »
whammer on 29 Sep 2007 at 3:17 pm #
At first “Eagle-Eyes” thought this headline was referring to a political party and was searching the blog for the name of the party represented by the “donkey.” When he realized the significance and essence of these thoughts, he immediately notified his associate, Hammerhead, who said that topics like “immigration” need to be addressed and discussed, intelligently, in the blogosphere. Electronic community forums, like OPEN, are created so that its residents can share their views. Frank has certainly “hit the nail on the head” with this post.
moxieville on 01 Oct 2007 at 10:29 am #
Farmingville sounds like a good film for us to see all sides on this issue and how it affects us all. Clockwork Orange was an eye-opening film, I don’t compare Petaluma to that - yet, but the issues on the table do need addressing, politically incorrect or not. I applaud you for setting the table and bringing out the first course, Frank. My thoughts always turn to overpopulation globally every time the issue of immigration comes out. I think perhaps globally, population wise we have a clockwork orange situation. Not enough resources for everybody. How we address it domestically is critical. Maybe we can be a shining example for other nations of how to go about it and bring about some positive change. Especially in our glaring blunders of this terrible war. My own feeling, (and keep in mind my family hires about 600 mexican workers every harvest season - “A Day without a Mexican” was a great film to point out how crucial these hardworking people are to our economy and hard-working U.S. citizen farmers who get the shaft from our own government- farmers are a dying breed in our country), is that we need some regulation. Though we have more mexican immigrants than from immigrants from any other country, my feeling is that we need to control all immigration. Canada and Australia have some interesting policies put forth, maybe our country should look at them and consider adopting those rules as well. Immigration has never been easy. Heck, it might be easier now, then when my grandparents got off the boat over two hundred years ago. When my great-great grandparents came over from Scotland, you could be turned down for having so much as an eye-infection let alone passing the silly exam. ..and those were the days when we had lots of elbow room and encouraged immigration. I don’t know what the profound solutions are to this problem, but you are correct Frank, in that it does need fixing - politically correct or not. I don’t think building a wall is a good long term solution. I do hope one day Mexico, who has such proud and beautiful people will be able to reclaim their country back from an incorrupt government … now we need to do the same!
Sorry for the novel of a comment Frank. I hope you will post more about this topic.
Emperor Norton II on 01 Oct 2007 at 11:40 am #
Anyone honest with themselves can’t help but see that the current mass migration, the largest in the history of the world, is at its core not different from the immigration, legal and illegal, of the Irish, the Italian and the other Europeans, including the original Brits and Spanish who took over from the Indians. It seems all immigrants are viewed as “undesirable” by those already there (did the bison blog 40,000 years ago about the Indian immigrants coming over the Bering Straits and put up signs, “Indians stay out”?). My grandparents and parents told their kids all the stories about the signs in store windows “No Irish Need Apply” (well, it’s understandable why you wouldn’t want the Irish). The fact is that the immigrant population arriving now (with the exception of the gang and drug class) is a hardworking, loyal group of Americans who have something to add to the stew (we could learn a thing or two about the meaning of community and family from our hispanic neighbors). The sooner we can come to grips with our fears of loss of identity (American) and language (English) and culture (what culture?) the sooner we can get on with the things that really matter to ordinary people. What makes this so complex and produces such ambivalence is the sheer magnitude of the migration. You can enjoy the waves breaking on the beach, but a tidal wave tends to frighten you. If Americans who fear this migration were smart, they would do all in their power to improve life in foreign countries (and I don’t mean blow them to smitherines like we’re doing in Iraq or building silly walls.). ?Esta bien, Amigos?