Farmers Branch and Reader email: CHIP/legal immigrants
A story I wrote earlier this week referred to anti-immigrant legislation, and it referred to Farmers Branch - a city near Dallas that has basically taken out a hit on illegal immigrants by proposing to make it illegal to rent to them, talk to them, kiss their babies, etc. etc. etc.
Just kidding about numbers 2 and 3. I don't think I should have to say that, but people are pretty sensitive. Consider that disclaimer my nod to the word police.
A letter from a reader chastised me for saying that the proposed ordinances were anti-immigrant, not "anti-illegal immigrant."
"Farmers Branch's proposed ordinances are not anti-immigrant. They are anti-ILLEGAL-immigrant. I know, for a reporter who only cares about sensationalism, what's a small little word like "illegal" when you can make an entire city out to be xenophobic?"
Sweet lady. LOVE getting fan mail. Seriously.
For the record, I don't ONLY care about sensationalism. I also care about Happy Hour.
I get this a lot. It's very important to some people that everyone knows they're not against immigrants, they're against illegal immigrants.
The reader, in her articulate indignation, is clearly onboard with her city's proposals and considers people who are against LEGAL immigration to be "xenophobic."
Wonder what she would think about Rep. Jim Jackson's vote in favor of an amendment last night that would have knocked children who are legal immigrants - just not citizens yet - off the CHIP rolls. 16,000 of them, actually. Legal immigrants.
As of 4:06 p.m., he hadn't sent the Journal Clerk any explanation of his vote, nor had he changed it.
Jim Jackson's district includes Farmer's Branch. Just for the record.
Comments
Maybe that woman will follow up with you to let you know she's written Jim Jackson and deplored his vote in the strongest terms.
Or maybe not.
Posted by: Boddhisattva | March 31, 2007 11:28 AM
So, instead of apologizing for your mistake, you choose to make a childish remark. Typical of a Dallas Morning News YELLOW-journalist.
Posted by: Lori Jenkins | April 2, 2007 8:42 AM
It wasn't a mistake, it's a question of semantics.
I suppose I could have chosen to engage in childish name-calling instead.
But I thought the happy-hour remark was actually witty.
Posted by: Brooks | April 2, 2007 10:38 AM
In that case, you owe your readers an apology for an opinion-based article that should have been in the editorial section. You're a reporter. Your job is to write the facts, not inject your personal opinions. There is no mistaking legal with illegal. It is not semantics. I suggest you pick up a dictionary or go back to journalism school.
Posted by: Lori Jenkins | April 2, 2007 4:09 PM
To borrow from Bubba Galt, one of my favorite commenters.... *Sigh*
There was nothing in that article that was an opinion, and you know it. (Or maybe you didn't read it?)
But I do appreciate the journalism tip. Goes down nicely with a spoonful of vitriol.
It might be worth considering that few rational people respond to name-calling and insults. When you're ready to ask me a real question, solicit further insight, you can send me an email.
So thanks for the input and enjoy your week. Always love to hear from our readers. Seriously.
Believe I may have said that already.
Posted by: Brooks | April 2, 2007 5:22 PM
Well, I do agree with your *sigh*. Quite cute! Once again, when you refer to an ordinance as "anti-immigrant" when it actually is "anti-illegal immigrant" then you are, in fact, injecting an opinion. Do you not know the difference between a legal and an illegal immigrant? Let me educate you. My sister and her foreign fiance have been working with an attorney for almost a year to bring her fiance to this country the legal way. After hundreds of papers have been filed and thousands of dollars in fees have been paid, he now will be able to come to this country as a legal immigrant. Illegal immigrants disregard the laws of this country and come here and do what they want, how they want, with no thought to their illegal actions.
If we all thought like you, then I suppose we should just throw out all laws and everyone in this country should just be able to do as he/she pleases, regardless of the repercussions. Or are only illegal immigrants allowed to disrespect the laws of this country?
Posted by: Lori Jenkins | April 2, 2007 6:13 PM
Lori, while I don't doubt the story you have related about your sister, the amount of time, paperwork and money involved in getting a greencard differs depending on which country a person is from. Nevertheless, that is a wholly different situation than the issue addressed here.
People in Farmers Branch have a city councilman who has made it clear that he has political ambitions and is using this one issue to get into the mayor's office.
I have proof, if you're interested. For one thing Tim O'Hare told a fellow attorney about his ambition. For another thing, he made proposals last April to improve the city, none of which included anything about immigrants -- legal or otherwise. Third, he has argued that illegal immigrants have increased crime and reduced property values, neither of which are true.
What he has done is turn the city into a pariah.
wrt the laws -- people break the law -- civil law -- all the time. If they didn't, how would many small municipalities support themselves.
In other words, convince me that you have never ever exceeded the speed limit ever, k?
Posted by: Michelle | April 6, 2007 8:42 PM