Pamela Constable, Washington Post, May 6, 2008
In just over a decade, Frederick County has been transformed from a bucolic, timeless community of dairy farms and strawberry festivals to a fast-paced mosaic of high-tech firms and housing developments, Pilates classes and exotic eateries, mega-stores and McDonald’s.
The changes have also brought thousands of Hispanics, some legal immigrants and others not, who have migrated up Interstate 270 to meet the demand for construction and service jobs. Until now, the county has handled the influx with outreach classes in schools and community policing programs. Chic Hispanic restaurants flourish in downtown Frederick, and working-class Latinos have remained relatively invisible.
Suddenly, however, their presence is igniting a controversy that some fear could escalate into the kind of war over illegal immigration that has torn apart Prince William County. In the past month, the Frederick County sheriff has joined with federal authorities to identify and deport illegal immigrants, and county commissioners have proposed legislation to ban free translation of county business and require public schools to track down students who are in the United States illegally.
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Local opponents of the measures, including black, white and Hispanic residents, say the crackdown and other proposed actions smack of racism and political grandstanding. They say Latinos have been welcomed by Frederick’s businesses as a source of cheap labor. Since 1990, the county’s Hispanic population has more than tripled, from fewer than 5,000 to more than 15,000, growing to about 5 percent of the county’s inhabitants.
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Regional organizations on each side have joined the fray. CASA of Maryland, a nonprofit group that lobbies for immigrant rights, plans to present a report today that accuses Jenkins and his department of racial profiling, imprisoning “alarmingly high” numbers of Latinos and using crime fighting as a “subterfuge to deport immigrants.”
Help Save Maryland, a rapidly growing citizens group that opposes illegal immigration, has supported the crackdown in group e-mails, radio interviews and newspaper columns. The coordinator of the Frederick chapter has accused opponents of “playing the race card.”
In the Hillcrest neighborhood, where many of Frederick’s Latinos live (often in households that include legal and illegal immigrants), residents describe growing anxiety. Priests say parishioners have stopped driving to church for fear of run-ins with the police. Check-cashing stores say people are closing their bank accounts. And everyone is asking whether Frederick will become the next Prince William.
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Last month, at a meeting organized by the NAACP, several black pastors spoke emotionally of what their community had endured in the days when the Ku Klux Klan operated openly in Frederick and black children were banned from public playgrounds. They vowed not to let Hispanic immigrants be victimized by a new wave of discrimination and called for better communication among all local ethnic groups.
Another moderating factor is the practical approach taken by many officials in Frederick. At a county commission meeting last month, several members pointed out that if translation was barred for county documents and events, it would prevent non-English-speaking residents from learning about health hazards, new laws or even English literacy classes.
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Original article
(Posted on May 7, 2008)
Comments
Ponder this question, just whose country is this? I’ll bet a whole bunch of those who thought they were getting some “more cheap labor”, have rethunk’d. Americans sure are a bunch of slow learners. You’d have thought the cotton pickers would have taught them a lesson. I fear school is just about over. The final lesson = King Hussein & Queen Meeshell?
Posted by The Old Sage at 6:59 PM on May 7
“Priests say parishioners have stopped driving to church for fear of run-ins with the police.”
Heh. Criminals not filling the collection plate as generously as before? A little law enforcement coupled with a guilty conscience works wonders every time. And the simple task of heading back across the border would cure both the fear and the guilt.
“…if translation was barred for county documents and events, it would prevent non-English-speaking residents from learning about health hazards, new laws or even English literacy classes.”
And this is a problem, why? Our governments responsibility to non-English speakers ends at the No Trespassing signs posted on the border. And starts again with deporting those who didn’t heed the warning.
Posted by Edward at 7:34 PM on May 7
The Hispanic pop has increased from 5000 in 1990 to 15000 today!
This is one of many ruses used to fool innocent Americans into helping the liars who perpetrate the ever transient illegal immigrants into and throughout USA. There are most likely 30,000! There is no way to track a continuously transient legal/illegal population (except they speak only Spanish & not English) and this is HOW they deceive USA.
Repeal state sponsored illegal birthright citizenship or USA will be speaking Spanish by 2030. No birthrigth citizenship to noncitizens period. It is against immigration/national security laws on books. This is why politicos want to have comprehensive reform. V
Posted by at 9:13 PM on May 7
I just read an article on WND by Jerome Corsi entitled, “Unemployment Plummets after crackdown on illegals,” outlining the tough stance, and tough laws passed, in Oklahoma against illegal aliens.
He points out that the unemployment rates are rising all across the country, except for Oklahoma which recorded a decline. The US unemployment figure in March was 5.1%, up from 4.4% in March last year, while Oklahoma had a drop from 4%, in March of last year, to 3.1% for the same month this year.
It’s so obvious that getting rid of any foreign peon class that will work for peanuts will, without doubt, provide more jobs for the native population it’s amazing that anyone would be so dense as to declare otherwise and expect anyone to believe them. Yet we read of it everyday printed by many MSM yellow journalistic rags that feel compelled to lie in order to promote their agenda.
Posted by Ranger at 9:45 PM on May 7
They need to go home if they are in the nation illegally. Case closed. They can then call Americans racist from their beloved Mexico or wherever they return to.
Posted by Bobby at 9:52 PM on May 7
“They [local NAACP] vowed not to let Hispanic immigrants be victimized by a new wave of discrimination and called for better communication among all local ethnic groups.”
It boggles the mind to try to figure out these obtuse NAACP types. They seem incapable of even looking out for their own self interests. Except when looking out for own self interests entails “gettin’ theirs” from Whitey. Why they seem unable to view these immigrants as winning players in a zero sum game at their expense is just beyond me.
Posted by underdog at 10:05 PM on May 7
[Illegal] Immigrants Feel Less Welcome in Frederick
GOOD!!!
Posted by A Reader at 10:18 PM on May 7
In twenty years the place will be relegated to the ashbin of “divirsity ” failures when the majority Whites are forced to leave(for the usual reasons they leave when Blacks take over aneighborhood) and Hispanics prevail. It’l loook like Mexico due in large part to their replication rate.
Posted by D. Andrews at 11:47 PM on May 7
“…plans to present a report today that accuses Jenkins and his department of racial profiling…”
I’m sorry, wasn’t there a point in time where that was called “logic?”
Posted by Aaron at 1:42 AM on May 8
“Hispanics…who have migrated up Interstate 270 to meet the demand for construction and service jobs…”
That should read, “Hispanics, our shiny new manual labor permanent underclass, flooding and destroying yet another white community and depressing the wages for the guys that used to earn a good living landscaping and working construction.”
I used to know a lot of guys that made a great living doing that kind of work, and doing it well. Now it’s only Aztecs that people can afford to pay to do the work.
Posted by Homogeneity: Not Just For Milk Anymore at 6:32 AM on May 8
The issue here is NOT what illegal immigrants want… BUT WHAT THE AMERICAN CITIZENS, COLLECTIVELY WANT!
An inconvenient, unpalatable TRUTH ignored by not only Legal AND Illegal immigrants, but also by the advocacy groups, and the greedy business and corporate entities who would rather hire CHEAP (illegal immigrant) labor than pay a fair wage to American workers!
It took a few years, but Americans slowly came to their senses, looked around at what what happening all around them. Seeing the absurdity of Spanish language signs, billboards, even seeing newspapers and public documents printed in Spanish AND English.
We have, to our dismay, witnessed houses on our streets, rented by what appeared to be a normal, decent if Mexican family — SUDDENLY BECOME HOME TO AN EXTENDED FAMILy — of anything from four to six adults and their complement of children — to 20 or more ADULT MALES living in that house. With the accompanying noise, traffic, trash music blasted at top volume. With both adults and children seemingly oblivious to what a bathroom is for… urinating, even DEFECATING wherever, whenever the urge comes on them.
We have unwillingly witnessed our communities invaded — first by a few, then a flood of Hispanic immigrants. Bringing their unwanted, alien lifestyle with them. Disrupting and destroying our once decent communities with their presence and the third-world lifestyle they can’t seem to leave behind.
We have seen our healthcare centers — hospitals, clinics, even private doctor offices — overwhelmed with aliens, barely able to make voice their complaints. With the burden of PAYING for their needed healthcare thrust on the already overburdened American taxpayers!
We have seen our schools struggling to teach hordes of little brown students, barely having a minimal understanding of OUR language. Dumbing, dragging down their White classmates to their learning level.
Watched with dismay as hordes of aliens lurk on parking lots and street corners, hoping to land a day’s manual labor job.
A stench of human urine in the air. Empty beer cans and liquor bottles everywhere.
We’ve heard those fine phrases… ‘Honest’ people coming to better themselves… Family values don’t stop at the border. But apparently someone forgot to translate that to the immigrants. Given the increase in burglaries, petty theft, shoplifting immediately noticeable as immigrants become more numerous on one’s town. As to sex crimes like rape, child molestation, pedophilia… suddenly much more noticeable in the news (try reading the CRIMESTOPPER websites for various cities if you have a problem believing my statement — particularly for Texas cities).
The incredible impact on taxes is felt as the immigrant population increases. Demands for welfare, for example. No, Virginia, there IS a Santa Claus. If you need proof, look at the welfare office in your community — you’ll see Hispanics OVER-REPRESENTED as they clamor for hand-outs, courtesy of the U.S. taxpayer.
Another effect of immigration, one corporations and businesses would dearly like to keep a dark secret… Immigrants DISPLACE American workers at every level! Driving down the wage structure to the point American workers cannot compete for jobs! Twenty years down the road, YOUR children and grandchildren will be competing with those of the current illegals for the jobs in every sector. While adding insult to injury, YOUR TAXES educated the Hispanic who got the job your son, or grandson, your daughter or granddaughter should rightfully have landed.
Thos unpleasant little scenarios described above is what open borders, what unchecked immigration means and will mean for us and our descendants! Which explains WHY so many THINKING Americans are now waking up to the ugly truths about immigrants!
Posted by Fed Up at 8:16 AM on May 8
>>>It boggles the mind to try to figure out these obtuse NAACP types. They seem incapable of even looking out for their own self interests.
Because except for a few “bright lights”, most Blacks are too unintelligent to understand THEY ARE THE FIRST TO BE DISPLACED IN THE JOB MARKET — BY ILLEGALS! Then again, being perpetually acclimated to sucking on the welfare teat rather than working, maybe most Blacks just don’t care. But Blacks also can’t grasp the premise the average 20-year-old Black punk can’t just walk in from the street, have the Employment Manager shake his hand and offer him a $65,000 a year job — just because the kid exerted himself enough to walk in. There’s something else required: Like a work ethic, relevant education and practical skills or prior work experience!
I know, I know. Just more rampant White racism… Actually expecting, demanding that the Black job applicant has something to offer the company considering him.
Posted by Fed Up at 12:06 PM on May 8
My home town…sigh…
I live in the outskirts,when I grew up I iived in the city.
My parets died and my sis took the house.The WHOLE west side of the city is now latino.Our crime rate is up,machete murders etc.
They all need to go back home.
Posted by jack at 12:23 PM on May 8
I talked to my sister the other month about the house she had to buy for herself and her three children as she is going through a divorce and the soon to be ex-husband refuses to move from what used to be her home. She mentioned she had hired some mexicans to landscape the yard for practically nothing. I mentioned to her the low price she paid meant no taxes to be collected to help maintain the system, and that she was actually paying more than she might think as the mexican’s wives, girlfriends, and children were sucking money out of the system. Her attitude was, “Well then; I should be getting a cheap price for the landscaping.”
I visited her the other week and can say she has the house looking nice. She did happen to have white people paint the interior and put on a front porch. I was looking at the new wooden fence in the back yard and mentioned that the back yard had seemed much bigger when I looked at it on the internet. She then told me that when she came home from work, she noticed the fence did not follow the property line. When she asked the mexican about it he told her there were too many roots to put the fence where it was supposed to go. Earlier he had made a big point about how it was going to take a lot of concrete to fill the post holes. She realized later that only every other post hole had been filled with concrete. The post holes that were filled with concrete had an inadequate amount so her brand new fence is a rickety mess.
As I was taking the tour I observed a brand new John Deer riding mower in the shed. She said she had decided to mow the yard herself instead of hiring the cheap mexicans.
Posted by Drew at 2:54 PM on May 8
A legal Mexican will start a roofing business and with his contacts with illegal Mexicans he will employ them at substandard wages,cut his prices and make a killing while putting whites out in the cold.
Posted by at 3:09 PM on May 8
Twenty years down the road, YOUR children and grandchildren will be competing with those of the current illegals for the jobs in every sector.
Actually, I think it might be worse than that. It doesn’t look like the children of the current crop of border jumpers seem to share much of that willingness to work that their parents do. In general, they do horribly in school, and large amounts of them wind up in gangs and crime. They seem to be turning out much more like American blacks.
This means that if the whole cheap-Mexican-labor fiasco will be continued, it will mean shipping in whole new loads of third-worlders, rather than using the posterity of the current group.
Jack:
I know what you mean bro. I’m from Mt. Airy originally. My old man worked in Frederick when I was a kid. It was a nice town. Quiet, mostly, and fairly tight knit. It’s depressing to go through much of it now. South street is unrecognizable. Having areas where you can’t walk alone at night was unthinkable when I was growing up. Now it’s just accepted. Add to that all the traffic, noise and trash, Frederick just ain’t what it was.
Posted by BW Sam at 4:21 PM on May 9
