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 Editorials | Opinions | May 2007 
Anything is Possible... Like a Hispanic President
 Ralph De La Cruz - sun-sentinel.com
My high school journalism teacher was fond of saying, "If you can't understand my silence, how can you hope to understand my words?" It was a reminder that the unspoken is often more revealing than anything ever said.
I've been thinking a lot about that advice, particularly after Bill Richardson announced last week that he was running for president. Here you have the first viable Hispanic candidate for president. Ever. A man as comfortable speaking in Spanish as English. And yet, his background has drawn less political chatter than the ethnicity of Barack Obama.
You'd think the country would be buzzing about the candidacy of a man who's the son of an immigrant. Who grew up in Mexico and is now governor of New Mexico.
Particularly now, when Americans seem preoccupied with ... Hispanic immigrants. Especially Mexican immigrants. And preoccupied in a not-so-positive way.
The debate about immigration, after all, paints us with a broad brush. A non-union, low-paying painter's brush at that: We're house cleaners or landscapers, the Sheetrockers and fruit pickers of society.
The portrait of immigration has no grays. Depending which side you're on, we're all either victims or freeloaders.
When, in fact, most of us are neither.
And yes, I did say "us." In our core, all immigrants are fundamentally the same.
We've all felt such overwhelming desperation in our lives that, in one life-altering moment, we left the familiar land of our forefathers for the land of anything-is-possible.
That's one hell of a unifying experience. And every family in this country of immigrants has, at some point, gone through it.
Which is probably why it's so difficult to have a meaningful dialogue on immigration. Or even to acknowledge Richardson's historic position. Immigration is personal, emotional and uncomfortable.
But we've got to get over our discomfort. Because once we understand our silence, we'll realize the problem's really not so tough to understand.
All but the most extreme on either side concede that we need to control our borders. At the same time, all but the most extreme also realize we can't deport 12 million to 20 million people. It's not feasible.
That common ground is what the immigration bill in the U.S. Senate focuses on. It deals with people living here in a shadow society - but only after border security is addressed. As it should be.
If we can keep the focus on common ground, solutions will be found. But if we get caught up in guest-worker programs and sending heads of households back home, we'll never get a handle on this issue.
And then there's the fence, The Great Wall of America - a proposed 10-foot high, $6-billion national embarrassment that would cover hundreds of miles. The idea that sparked the most memorable line of the immigration debate: "Build a 10-foot fence and someone will use an 11-foot ladder."
Richardson used that one when he announced his candidacy Monday.
With experience in Congress, as an ambassador and now governor, Richardson's biggest problem may be that many possible supporters are too fed up or too busy to care.
"Don't talk to me about politics," said Raymundo Martinez, one of a group of 10 Hispanic men standing outside Sunshine Bakery on Davie Boulevard. "Talk to me about work, food and comfort."
Not even if the candidate is Hispanic, I asked in Spanish?
He laughs, shaking his head.
"Between politics and politicians, there's a lot of stink," he said. "I don't concern myself with politics."
He paused, and then nodded to the group.
"You see all these men here? Come back in an hour and no one will be here. We'll all either be working or hustling to make a few pennies."
Ralph De La Cruz can be reached at rdelacruz@sun-sentinel.com or 954-356-4727. |
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