Illegal or not—immigrants are real Americans

The June 14, 2012 TIME Magazine cover above inspired me to re-issue this column originally published November 13, 2007.

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Above all else, being American is an attitude. It is an affirmation of hope, the dream that sweat and energy can create a better life. No ethnic group can lay claim to that ideal. Nor is it limited to a single language.

The upheaval we are seeing today is part of a larger pattern. For centuries people have come to this land with dreams of a better life. Their arrival has invariably been met with resistance. Eventually, their foreignness becomes familiar and they are welcomed into the fold, usually to be replaced by the next wave of newcomers who endure a similar fate.

Many say today’s wave of immigrants is different. They arrived here illegally. In truth, the world is not so simple. The first illegal immigrants in Texas came from Tennessee. Most of these Anglo squatters settled in the Mexican province of Tejas without any legal rights. Today, Texas is one of the most prosperous regions in the world and their legal indiscretions are long forgotten.

At its core, the current migration from south to north on our continent is easy to understand. The U.S. has the jobs. Mexico and Latin America have the labor. The economic gravity at work in this dynamic is as powerful as the tides—and just as irresistible.

A look at our planet from space shows no national borders. Examine a fifty-year-old globe and it becomes apparent that sovereign boundaries are illusions that change over time. What we are seeing today is Adam Smith’s invisible hand redrawing the map of our hemisphere.

We can choose to resist—and create turmoil and strife. Or we can accept today’s immigrants for what they really are: the latest wave of Americans.

Raul Ramos y Sanchez

TIME cover on the undocumented betrays unconscious bias

I'm heartened that the editors of TIME magazine chose to feature a story about undocumented immigrants on its June 14th cover. The premise is provocative and timely. The art direction for the cover, however, leaves much to be desired.

The editors of TIME selected 35 undocumented immigrants for the photo centered on Washington Post journalist Jose Antonio Vargas who "came out" last year. However, I find it troubling that the people most prominent in the photo all look like a stereotypical "Hispanics." This is disturbing for two reasons.

First, because not all undocumented immigrants are Latinos. (Almost 20% of the undocumented are not from Latin America.)  And second, because not all Latinos look like the people pictured on the cover. To me, the arrangement of the models reflects an unconscious bias. The photographer, Gian Paul Lozza, tells a different story.

”They come from so many different countries, religions and backgrounds,” photographer Gian Paul Lozza said in an article about the making of the cover. “We wanted to bring that diversity to the light. This is not just a problem for Latinos, as we hear about often, but for every culture from around the world.”

I agree with Mr. Lozza. It's a shame his photo does not reflect that diversity.

Raul Ramos y Sanchez

A life well lived

The grief over losing a loved one is the price we pay for the joy of having them in our lives. The most unfortunate souls are those with no one to mourn. My father-in-law left the world this week, grieved by many. This was a testament to the life he led.  

John G. Haller, Jr. will not be remembered in history books. But his family and friends know he left the world around him a better place than he found it. There is nothing more important any of us can do.

One of six siblings raised in a small Ohio town during the Great Depression, John’s parents welcomed their children’s many friends and shared whatever they had. When World War II came, John answered the call of duty and joined the Marines. After the war, like so many others, John began his own family. He and his wife Dorothy Lee had three children within six years.

It’s hard for us today to realize what it meant to be a parent in the days before credit cards. John worked a second job as a school bus driver during the holidays to have enough money for the kids’ Christmas gifts. When he lost his wife to a sudden illness at 37, John took on the burden of being a single parent without complaint. He would wait until his youngest child was out of high school before he remarried. Throughout his life, John’s children and extended family were always at the center of his life. Decades after the passing of his wife, Dorothy Lee, John’s in-laws still included him in their family gatherings.

Along with family, John also valued friends. He retired from GM after more than twenty years and joined many of his fellow workers in a Florida community where they continued their friendship. For many years, this group maintained the ties formed on the job into retirement – and made new friends along the way.   

John came from a generation whose motto seemed to be: “don’t complain and don’t explain.” He embraced life with vigor, joy, humor and love. Intellectualizing and gushy words were not his style. His deeds spoke much more eloquently than words.

Although hampered by severe arthritis, John improvised ways to get on with life and lived independently until his last days. At the end of his life, John continued to show his resolve and strength. To spare others from worry, John did not tell his children and grandchildren how ill he had become until it was unavoidable. John donated his body to Wright State School of Medicine, sparing the family the expense of a burial – and giving tomorrow’s physicians a chance to learn something that could help others.  

John G. Haller, Jr. would have been 90 in August of this year, a long life that saw many changes in the world. But John’s character never changed. He led a selfless life, devoted to family and friends. To all of us who knew him, John leaves a priceless legacy: an example of a life well lived. 

Radio interview discusses PANCHO LAND, third novel of the Class H Trilogy

Wednesday, May 30^th at 8PM Eastern - 5PM Pacific

Listen live or catch a podcast at: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/conversationslive

If you're not watching a rerun of Modern Family next Wednesday night, I hope you'll tune in for my interview on Conversations LIVE with Blogtalk radio "Featured Host" Cyrus Webb. The popular half-hour show includes guests from the arts and entertainment scene, the world of sports, along with social commentary and human interest stories.

We'll be talking about immigration and the Latino identity (which the media invariably gets wrong) and how these issues may affect the November elections along with the craft of writing and getting published. Oh, yeah. We'll also discuss the upcoming third installment of the Class H trilogy, PANCHO LAND. 

You can catch the show live online and call in here. But if you just can't pass up that Modern Family rerun,it's OK. You can listen to a podcast later at the same link. Either way, I think you'll find it worthwhile.

Tuning in online doesn’t get any easier. Just go here and click play.

Raul Ramos y Sanchez

Progressive cause not served by Olbermann, Moore and Rivera

When Bill O'Reilly screams at a guest to shut up it warms the hearts of his fellow travelers. But to independent thinkers, bullying a guest on your own show is morally repugnant -- and the sign of a pathetically weak argument. After Rush Limbaugh called Sandra Fluke a slut for daring to disagree with him on health care reform, most rational people saw it as an irrational act. Not surprisingly, most who support Limbaugh's ideology rushed to his defense. But the bottom line is this: O'Reilly, Limbaugh, Hannity, Beck and other far-right media personalities are revered by those who agree with them. But their shrill, heavy-handed tactics fail to persuade many in the center.

Enter Keith Olbermann, Michael Moore and Geraldo Rivera. These meida figures, while popular with liberals, fail to sway many in the center for the same reasons. Moreover, their biased approach to political discourse contradicts the very core of progressive thought.

Being inclusive and fair is one of the core principles of progressives -- something which reactionaries often mock and exploit. But the strength of progressive thought has been proven countless times in the course of U.S. history. The end of slavery, the right of women to vote, child labor laws, social security, and civil rights laws are all progressive movements almost universally revered today. These accomplishments epitomize the still unmet ideals of this nation. Yet they were vehemently opposed at the time -- just as most progressive causes are opposed today.

The words of Martin Luther King, Jr. were inspirational; he did not mock those who disagreed with him. Abraham Lincoln went to war to preserve the nation but never belittled his enemies and was conciliatory in victory. Legendary TV journalist Edward R. Murrow ended Senator Joe McCarthy's witch hunt by letting McCarthy's own words condemn him, not by rhetorical bluster.

So let the voices of repression rant. Trying to shout them down is simply playing their game.

Raul Ramos y Sanchez

Arizona contemplates citizen posses patrolling the border

"The border crossers were traveling in a pickup truck in a wash that is commonly used for human smuggling. They were ambushed by an unknown number of subjects in camouflage clothing armed with rifles. Shots were fired at the pickup truck at which time two subjects were fatally struck." 

Pima County Sheriff's Office

As the Arizona legislature considers SB 1083, a new law that would post armed civilians with five days training on patrol along its border with Mexico, an incident that left two dead in Pima County on April 8th brings the wisdom of such a law into question.

According to its sponsor, Republican State Senator Sylvia Allen, SB 1083 will establish a Special Missions Unit (SMU) for "securing the safety and protection of the lives and property of the citizens of this state." In reality, what this legislation will mean is posses with guns and very little training roaming the desert looking to "enforce the law."

That could well be what happened at approximately 10:35 pm on April 8 when the Pima County Sheriffs Office reported border crossers in a pickup truck "were ambushed by an unknown number of subjects in camouflage clothing armed with rifles. Shots were fired at the pickup truck at which time two subjects were fatally struck." Authorities found one body in the bed of the pickup and the other in a dry riverbed near the truck. Agents from the Casa Grande Border Patrol Station apprehended five unarmed border crossers hiding in the brush nearby.

Which brings us back to SB 1083. Who would volunteer for this kind of duty? I'm sure Senator Allen envisions only upstanding citizens will respond to the call. But let's get real. Most citizens will do everything possible to avoid jury duty. Who is going to volunteer to risk life and limb in the desert? I think we all know the answer to that.

Someone like George Zimmerman, the vigilante shooter of Trayvon Martin, comes to mind. Or perhaps another Shawna Forde, the former Minutemen volunteer who was sentenced to death for the murders of a 9-year-old Arivaca, Ariz., girl and her father in a home invasion she orchestrated to rob the family. It's naive at best to deny someone of this ilk will not be among those who volunteer to serve on these posses.

Lest anyone have doubts about the level of irrational hate toward the undocumented that exists in some circles, here is an excerpt from nativist website SendEmBack.org...

A "shoot to kill on sight" policy should be established for illegal border crossers. This should be done without regard to race, gender, sexual orientation, age, religion, national origin, or citizenship status. -- Donald E. Pauly

In fairness, the men in the camouflage clothing in the April 8 Pima County killings could have been a rival smuggling ring looking to eliminate its competition. Even so, putting armed civilians with very little training and questionable motives into this environment is like trying to put out a fire with gasoline. But to some lawmakers in the toxic nativist atmosphere of Arizona politics, SB 1083 seems like a sensible solution.

Raul Ramos y Sanchez

A rare insight into one of the most disturbing trends of our times

As I read MURDERS MOST FOUL, the relevance of Rebecca Coffey’s book became painfully clear. Seven people were killed and three more wounded at Oikos University by student One L. Goh, the latest tragedy in a baffling series of U.S. school killings that began in 1927.  In MURDERS MOST FOUL, Coffey plumbs that disturbing history, an exploration that suggests the trend may continue.

These widely publicized tragedies have provided many with a soapbox for their views.  MURDERS MOST FOUL avoids that temptation. Instead, Coffey scours away the sensationalism and presents us with unvarnished portraits of those who have committed some of history’s most merciless crimes, often with methodical premeditation. In prose compelling by its stark focus, Coffey avoids facile polemics and challenges us to reach our own conclusions, something which may leave some readers unsatisfied. For me, the lack of sermonizing was a sign of respect to the reader’s intelligence. In all, I found  MURDERS MOST FOUL a rare insight into one of the most disturbing trends of our times.


Raul Ramos y Sanchez

New Pew study shows few Hispanics/Latinos like the label

Pew Research Center study – April 4, 2012:

51% of people labeled Hispanic or Latino say they most often identify themselves by their family’s country of origin; just 24% say they prefer a pan-ethnic label.

A new Pew study reveals what most of the 50 million people with origins in a Spanish-speaking country in the U.S. already know: we are not a cookie cutter group.

Is everyone from an English-speaking country alike? What would a study find in common among people from English speaking countries like the United States, Canada (English and French speaking), Jamaica, Australia (including the indigenous population), and South Africa (including those with origins in Europe and those who are indigenous to Africa)? Are they a single race? Do they share the same customs? As absurd as this question seems, this is in essence what the Hispanic/Latino label attempts to do. 

That said, bonds among Latinos in the U.S. do exist—and have grown. These bonds have been forged primarily out of the solidarity generated by a common sense of exclusion. It is an alliance formed mostly by prejudice. We lock arms because we are misunderstood.

In the minds of many mainstream Americans (and even among some Latinos), we are a monolithic group. Headlines that say the U.S. will be a “non-white” nation by the middle of the 21^st century terrify a lot of people. These headlines, along with the election of an African-American president, have fueled the surge of reactionary groups like the Tea Party and armed right wing militias.

But I predict that as the understanding of the real nature of Latinos increases, those fears will diminish. A younger generation of non-Hispanic Americans will grow up without the fears of their elders. Ultimately, the need to ally ourselves will diminish and, sadly, the same differences that exist among non-Hispanics will prevail among Latinos. Some demographers predict the Hispanic/Latino label will fade away by the end of this century or sooner as intermarriage and assimilation blur the already fuzzy distinctions that define the label. Perhaps that process has already begun.

Raul Ramos y Sanchez

Social media as social activism

Latinos in Social Media intiated a sustainable development project in and around Monte Cristi, Dominican Republic. Using social media as a recuriting device, they ran medical clinics for pregnant mothers in villages with little or no access to regular health care. They also introduced local artisans to social media tools they could use to help sell their crafts.

Efforts like these are yet another example of grassroots efforts for social progress made possible by the power of social media. A warm congratulations to all the dedicated people of LATISM. 

The Scratch Pad - a writer's recycling bin

After writing three novels, one of the handiest tools I've adopted is a "Scratch Pad" for works in progress. In creating my most recent novel, PANCHO LAND, I refined the process considerably. As the name implies, the Scratch Pad is a place to experiment with elements from your manuscript and store information that's pertinent to the story. 

Even for someone like me who carefully plots a novel before actually fleshing it out, once you are putting meat on the bone of each scene, you'll invariably hit points in the story that suggest several options. My Scratch Pad lets me play out these options in shorthand form and select the one that seems best. The Scratch Pad is also a handy place to store chunks of the manuscript that I am revising but don't want to discard. More than once, I've gone back to the Scratch Pad and used the discarded material for reference -- or used it somewhere else.  This saves having to create a complete manuscript version every time I change a plot point. Before I adopted the Scratch Pad idea, I'd save dozens of versions of my manuscript. 

I don't use a fancy program for my Scratch Pad, just use a simple Word file. What makes Word excellent for a Scratch Pad is the search function. I just dump the stuff into my Scratch Pad in rough chronological order. When I need to find something, I just search the Word document using the CTRL-F Find function and zero in on what I need.  I used to save a lot of backup material in separate Word files. But I later realized that it was quicker to open a single document and search through it than to go through a long menu looking for a particular scene.

Another way I use my Scratch Pad is to store research. My novels often use historical data, technology and demographics. I store the data and links in my Scratch Pad for reference and often craft the narrative right there, with the data on the same page, before exporting it to my manuscript file.  

I hope as a reader, you found this peek under the tent at the craft of writing interesting. If you are a fellow writer, may this help you in our lonely work. Either way, leave me a message if you feel inspired. 

Raul Ramos y Sanchez