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December 13, 2002
Scrooge Was Right! Media Humbug on Needy Illegals Ignores
Reality
By
Joe Guzzardi
The
Christmas spirit is unusually elusive this
year. Perhaps I should heed the advice of my
aware but uninvolved friends and give up the
fight to successfully resolve the
National Question.
“Let it go,” they urge. “Move to
Idaho and take up trout fishing.”
Alas, as appealing as that sounds,
it is not meant to be. I am mesmerized by, on one hand,
the magnitude of the challenge and, on the other hand,
the deep hole the U.S. has dug for itself regarding
immigration.
As
Peter Brimelow likes to say, “It’s simply
fascinating.”
How could I ever drop the good
fight when every week some new jaw-dropping item
surfaces to spur me on?
Between Thanksgiving and Christmas,
the New York Times and the San Francisco
Chronicle run their appeals for the down and out.
Their charities are named, respectively
“The Neediest Cases Fund” and
“The Season of Sharing Fund.”
Over the years, I’ve noticed that a
significant percentage of these “needy” cases were born
outside of the U.S. Naturally, neither newspaper
mentions the immigration status of their subjects.
But drawing on my deductive powers gleaned from 15 years
of immigration analysis, it’s not hard to figure it out.
Lo and behold, many are here
illegally. And surprise, surprise, some of their straits
aren’t that dire.
You’re already familiar with their
stories: they are the Jesus Apodacas of the
Denver Post, the “Enriques” of the
Los Angeles Times and the Edwin Sabillons of the
New York Times.
The new wrinkle is that in addition
to supporting these families indirectly with your
tax dollars, the Times and the Chronicle
would like you to donate to charities that will then
give cash assistance directly to them.
Here are a few cases:
“Setting
Pride Aside and Stumbling Upon Day Care” by Judy Tong,
New York Times.
Miriam and
Francisco Ortigoza (most likely entered the U.S.
illegally from Mexico in 1990). Ortigoza earns $26,000
annually as a service coordinator for Mid-Island Therapy
Associates (a job an American won’t do?). But despite
being young, healthy and earning a lower middle class
income, Ortigoza can’t support his family of two
toddlers and a mostly non-working (and non-English
speaking wife). The oldest child is enrolled in the
federally funded Head Start Program. A caseworker with
Children’s Aid, perceiving other needs in the household,
authorized a $200 payment for clothing and $698 for
furniture. After reading the story, I’m unclear what the
compelling financial crisis is--unless it is Mrs.
Ortigoza’s “desire to go back to school.”
“Escaping into Literature with Some Outside Help” by
Kari Haskell, New York Times
Andres
Zambrano (illegal, Ecuador) is a 19-year-old junior at
Bard College studying literature and writing poetry. He
recently won a scholarship from the Children’s Aide
Society. At a three-week seminar on theater arts this
summer, the Neediest Cases Fund picked up Zambrano’s
$600 room and board. Apparently, Zambrano’s “probing
mind” hasn’t figured out that a part-time job is
what thousands of college students rely on when they are
short. Nevertheless, the fund encourages future
donations to support Zambrano’s continued evolution as a
poet.
“Healed Hearts, Physical and Spiritual,” by Arthur
Bovino, N.Y.Times
Nadezhda
and Tevy Saksonov (legal from Tajikistan--unless the
American Embassy is now putting illegal aliens “on a
special plane for sick people”). Although the
Saksonovs have a son living in New Jersey, the couple
has been on assistance since their arrival in America in
1992. But they hit jackpot—if you will—when Mrs.
Saksonova had a heart transplant (a heart no American
wants?) and Mr. Saksonova underwent quadruple bypass
surgery. (Author’s note: without a $250,000 deposit
neither you nor I could even get on the list for a heart
transplant. The medical care the Saksonova’s received is
called, according to a Los Angeles nurse, “the
multi-million dollar treatment.”)
“Single Mom finds struggles worth it because of her
son,” John Coopman, S. F. Chronicle
Patricia Santillan (illegal from Mexico) came to the
U.S. six years ago after “a life she made” (never got
married) didn’t work out. She and her lover, both
non-English speaking, worked menial jobs and lived on
the San Francisco streets. A bitter dispute over child
custody ensued after Santillan’s lover abandoned her.
Santillan turned to La Raza for legal assistance. Her
association with La Raza evolved into part time work as
“a de facto social worker…telling poor families where
to go for food, clothing, work or money.” (!)
Who
knows the true circumstances of these individuals? I
certainly
don’t trust the Times or the Chronicle
to tell me. But as described, the stories don’t reflect
a life and death need for immediate cash assistance.
Let
me share my own example of what I consider a deserving
case. A few years ago, I wanted to buy walnuts in bulk.
I searched the classified ads until I found an address
in a nearby town.
When I located the house, I walked to the shed out back.
There, an elderly couple sat shelling walnuts. They
recognized my picture from the Lodi News-Sentinel
and invited me into their house.
On
their walls were photographs, medals and citations from
World War II. Both had been heroes; he in the
Battle of the Bulge and she in the
Pacific.
Over the years, I’ve had dozens of visits in that living
room. Once, around Veterans Day, I said, “Well, you
must be very proud of what you did for your country.”
And
in reply the gentleman said, “It just doesn’t matter
much anymore, does it?”
Joe Guzzardi [email
him], an instructor in English at the Lodi
Adult School, has been writing a weekly newspaper column
since 1988. This column is exclusive to VDARE.COM.
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