The Associated Press used Orwellian language to transform illegal immigrants, their families, and the businesses that broke the law by hiring them - into "victims."
In the August 16 article, "A small town struggles after immigration raid," AP writer Monica Rhor describes Postville, Iowa, the site of a major immigration raid three months ago that led to the arrest of hundreds of illegal immigrants. She describes those in the town who were affected by the raid as "victims." Rhor writes:
It was as if a tornado had whipped through the town or a flood had swallowed up houses. A disaster. Man-made, but a disaster all the same. Three months after the raid, that's how many in Postville describe the events of May 12.
Lives disrupted. People pushed out of jobs and homes. Children separated from parents. Businesses verging towards collapse.
And as in any small town swept by disaster, the community quickly banded together to help the victims.
But wait a minute: they're not victims.
It seems silly to have to belabor the obvious point that the illegal immigrants arrested were (alleged) lawbreakers, but it needs to be done.
And if the illegal immigrants' family members who remain at large are present in the U.S. illegally, then they too are not victims: they're lawbreakers.
The businesses in the town that hired the illegal immigrants are also not victims: if management knew of the workers' legal status, they're lawbreakers as well.
Perhaps we should take up a collection and buy some dictionaries for the AP.
—Matthew Vadum is Editor of Organization Trends and Foundation Watch at the Capital Research Center.
Editor at Large
Comments Policy
Illegal, illegal,
August 18, 2008 - 17:50 ET by bigtimerIllegal, illegal, illegal...
Not a word the left likes to use...anymore than terrorists.
Good lord...they think we can't see through any of this either...
I do hope this becomes a big issue in the remaining debates...it is very much needed.
I'll donate my two cents to this collection for the AP Matthew...in fact I just did.
"America isn't the problem...America is the solution." ~ Rush Limbaugh
not exactly bt
August 18, 2008 - 18:10 ET by TruthMongerthey like it when they fabricate stories about "domestic spying" or "war crimes" or "Bush taking away all of our rights" or Haliburton and "Big Oil," or restroom shoe touching, etc...
they like to use it well enough for lying about Repubs:)
Journalism is the opium of the liberals
I have a few words for the AP
August 18, 2008 - 18:09 ET by BlondeI'm not sure exactly how many words.
T.S. y'all.
David Gregory, do you know which damn network you lie for? ~ Uncle Jimbo, @Blackfive
If the illegal behavior
August 18, 2008 - 18:34 ET by SnappyIf the illegal behavior cannot be corrected through group hugs, counseling or sharing feelings, then the behavior should not be illegal. So, since illegal aliens in this country cannot be made legal through any of the above actions they MUST be victims, falsely victimized by law enforcement and the evil Bush empire. Besides, we are a melting pot country and it is these illegals constitutional right to come to this country and demonstrate violently or otherwise against their treatment and harrasment.
I read that very same
August 18, 2008 - 18:35 ET by superconI read that very same article about an hour ago.
I couldn't finish it.
It was nothing more than a long whiny sob story for illegal aliens.
A word by the way that was absent from the article.
The article was completely one sided unless there was someone who was in favor of the raid at the bottom of the article before I puked on my keyboard.
May I highlight a few key quotes?
"About 60 workers, mostly women with small children, were released on
humanitarian grounds pending court dates. Of those, 40 to 45 were
required to wear black electronic monitoring bracelets, leaving them
unable to work or to leave. "
First of all they are not supposed to be working here and second of all I think the author substituted the word "leave" for "escape".
How about this one?
"The Mexican and Guatemalan families who once pushed strollers along the
streets or frequented the downtown stores and restaurants now try to
stay out of sight. "
Anchor babies.It's very hard to deport someone who is the parent of an American citizen.
It's the biggest scam going.
This is where I gave up.
"Now, about 20 to 25 women remain tethered to the bracelets - black
electronic monitoring devices that dig into the skin of their right
ankles, leaving dark bruises and painful cuts. Some women try without
success to protect their flesh with makeshift bandages fashioned from
bandanas and shorn socks.
And the women who happily embraced hard work are forced to subsist on
donations from St. Bridget's and the local food pantry while they await
court dates.
While they wait, they worry."
Sympathy much...?
The story is clearly written in a manner in which to elicit a sympathetic response from the reader.
Of course you feel for theses people and can sympathize but that is not the point.
No where in the article was there any mention of those whose social security numbers were stolen or of any attempt to track down those people and let them know someone was using their number.
The article made it seem like their only crime was wanting a better life.
In any large community of illegal aliens you have a mini crime wave occurring.
False drivers licenses and identifications.
That's called forgery.
Non payment of taxes.
Bank fraud if they open an account.
Credit card fraud if they use a false name or #SS number.
Drunk driving and driving without insurance.
It's not nothing.
Those crimes have victims.
Victory in Iraq.
Liberals suck.
McCain for Preznint.
"painful cuts and bruises" my @ss
August 18, 2008 - 19:03 ET by UndercoverConservativemaybe if they weren't trying to commit yet anotehr crime by *trying to remove the monitors*!
Too bad if you get hurt trying to pry the thing off or slice it with your machete. Like those idiots who hurt themselves when handcuffed, and somehow it's the police's fault they were trying to get their cuffed hands under their legs and got stuck.
I say we handle illegal immigration the way each criminal's home nation actually handles it (as opposed to their laws which they may or may not follow).
Mexico, you get dropped into the desert, ransomed for a lot of cash, jailed in a dangerous prison or shot. None of this "humanitarian" stuff, that these folks don't bother to show anyone.
"to call an illegal immigrant an "undocumented alien" is the same as calling a streetcorner drug dealer an "unlicensed pharmacist".
"You spend your money anyway you want and respect other's rights to do the same"
We should arrest the real culprits...?
August 18, 2008 - 19:34 ET by BrittanicusWhy not assign our own Class action lawsuit against Agriprocessors in
Postville, Iowa, Swift plants in Cactus, Tex. For hiring illegal
immigrants instead of hiring US citizens and legal residents, which is
having a
massive negative impact on our economy. Let's demand every employer
caught pay the health care, education for illegal alien children, back
taxes for state and federal taxes, workers compensation.
A quote from
Iowa Gov. Chet Culver. "Some employers improperly hire
workers as independent contractors to avoid paying benefits like
Medicare, Social Security, insurance and workers' compensation.
Employers who contribute to the local economy should not have to
compete with those employers, who choose to break the law by knowingly
misclassifying their employees, "
We must go after the predatory
employers with the federal SAVE ACT (H.R.4088) They must be heavily
fined, business assets confiscated and even imprisonment. Chasing
illegal aliens around is a waste of time. Any business that has more
that (5) five illegal aliens in their employ, should be held
accountable with harsh penalties.
The federal SAVE ACT (H.R.4088)
would enforce this. Once the business are harshly punished. Illegal
immigrants will self deport, once no jobs are available. Join nearly a
million patriots like you to Fax reluctant Democrats before November.
Call you Senator or Rep and demand the SAVE ACT, not the hype, lies or propaganda from some Democrats. NUMBERSUSA, CAPSWEB has the unsuppressed truth.
They are not "predatory
August 18, 2008 - 22:24 ET by robert108They are not "predatory employers" unless they paid to get the invaders into this country in the first place. The real culprits here are those who are paid to enforce our borders, and who don't do their job. Everything after that is their responsibility, and no one else's.
In one sense, the ICE raid did the illegals a big favor
August 18, 2008 - 20:01 ET by nkviking75In one sense, there are a lot of victims among the illegal aliens in Postville. I say that because of the many awful allegations that have come out against Agriprocessors, the company that hired all these illegal aliens. If these stories are true, Agriprocessors exploited the illegals, knowing that they were very unlikely to complain to the authorities. In many cases, the illegals were removed from a very abusive situation. ICE did them a favor.
We've all heard stories of companies exploiting and abusing illegal aliens. They too are a part of the problem. Cracking down on them is part of the solution.
When you put the clowns in charge, don't be surprised when a circus breaks out.
Again, when people are
August 18, 2008 - 23:41 ET by robert108Again, when people are allowed to invade this country by the very people who we pay to stop them, everything after that is the fault of those who don't stop them. The invaders come here to exploit the prosperity built by the American people. They come here to take, not to give. They also send a lot of money from here back to their home countries. Stop the invasion, and there will be no invaders to employ. Simple as that. As long as invaders are allowed to come here, someone will employ them, knowingly or not.
The real vicitims are US taxpayers
August 18, 2008 - 20:12 ET by wdhorningUS taxpayers have to spend hundreds of billions on:
And not only is all this costing the tax payers hundreds of billions every year, but those who are poor, but legal emmigrants are deprived of needed services.
And how does all this hundreds of billions impact the US government's ability to pay Social Security benefits? Some say illegals pay into SS and get nothing out, but every time there is an ammesty, which is about to happen again, they then get to claim their SS some day, so that is just a flat out lie.
We are victims of the AP
August 18, 2008 - 20:26 ET by wdhorningThe AP is spreading vicious lies about how illegals are some how victims. The AP ignores the fact that the taxpayers are victims of excess taxes to handle all the expenses illegals cause us with fences, walls, border patrols, courts, lawyers, homeland security upgrades, emergency medical, shelter and food, etc, etc, etc.
Therefore, the AP makes us into victims, because it lies and refuses to recognize that legal citizens have to fork out hundreds of billions in taxes to deal with all of this. So by spreading this myth about how the illegals are victims, they are trying do win them sympathy, and in doing so causing the rest of us to be victims of excessive tax burdens.
I do not see the AP investing its profits in helping economies south of the border to grow. I do not see the AP hiring economists to advise countries south of the border. All I see is, IMHO, a vicious AP that thinks I should fork out my tax dollars for illegals against my will. In fact the overwhelming majority of US citizens are against letting illegals in, letting them have jobs, or giving them all but life saving aid and then shipping them back.
AP: Why the hell do you think Congress' approval rating is in the garbage can? Its the illegals, stupid!
I forgot that holding up
August 18, 2008 - 20:52 ET by wiwfI forgot that holding up OUR border patrol by gunpoint makes YOU the victim.
The Rocky Mountain Collegian: Illustrating Idiocy
Ridiculous article!
August 18, 2008 - 21:00 ET by AlexaShruggedI saw this article the other day, UGH.
Some more choice quotes:
"I wish I could plead with the judge, for my children's sake, that he
would give me a little more time here so my children could continue
studying, so I could keep working."
Well, that would kind of defeat the purpose of arresting you or having any kind of immigration laws, now wouldn't it?
"All
speak of the same concerns, and the same confusion. They do not
understand why some people disparage them as "illegals" or "criminals."
They do not understand why federal officials are pressing criminal
identity theft charges against many of the detained immigrants, who say
they did not know they were buying stolen information."
Uh, maybe people "disparage" you as illegals and criminals because you ARE! Where did you think the information you had to BUY came from?
http://www.AlexaShrugged.com
Criminals openly hiring criminals.
August 18, 2008 - 21:21 ET by ScrapironIf Al Capone had enjoyed the advantage of todays democrats and their media stooges he would be running the country instead of pushing up daisies. Eventually they're total support of criminals and crime will catch up to them. Just about the time (hint, hint) criminals immigrants figure out a lot of them are in D.C. a few months per year and their homes around the country are empty. Don't rob the homes, move into them and claim them as your own. With todays laws they can live there for years and the court won't kick them out.
Old, Retired and glad of it.
Illegal is Illegal
August 18, 2008 - 21:25 ET by GoodieHey AP, how about you provide housing, food, healthcare, transportation, child care, pension plan, internet access, cable tv, (I will stop) at your office for the Criminals? Sure don't sound to good. Well, please understand this is a legal issue, not a social-racial issue, as much as Monnie wants to feel good about her self-serving article, Americans see through this and have been tired for years with the lack of enforcement.
We should of thrown the pill in their water years ago, as well as build a bigger, taller, wider, longer fence-wall.
"If we build it, they will not come" Thank you Minutemen.
unless you've been there
August 19, 2008 - 06:17 ET by CatherwoodI live in a town that has been completely overrun by illegals; the town is small and depends on agriculture. Of course, our schools, hospitals, law enforcement agenicies and public services are overrun with illegals seeking handouts and getting them without the least bit of opposition. One aspect of the illegal plundering game is often overlooked, though: lawsuits. The legal and illegal Mexicans who live here will sue any individual or agency at the drop of a hat when given the chance. They've sued everbody while at the same time destroyed public property with their graffiti, spread gangs and gang violence, nutured the spirti of Mexican nationalism, attacked law enforcement, and, on certain days, have taken over the local shopping areas. In one instance, local bangers. who were undergoing initiation into the gang, broke into a brand new school, did 50k worth of damage then threatened to sue the local school board because the gates to the school were not high enough to keep intruders out, they said. Unless you live among them, you have no idea what they're bringing to America. I would tell you about vandals peeing on an American flag, but I wouldn't want to upset all of you this early in the morning.
Stunned
August 19, 2008 - 14:14 ET by ArtisteI was absolutely stunned when I read this article. The town, the businesses, everyone should be ashamed of themselves for knowingly hiring and hosting illegals. Thankfully, someone stepped up to the plate and let the cat out of the bag.