This article is based on a talk from the panel “Fighting to win: How to defeat immigrant bashing, anti-LGBT bigotry, Islamophobia and the ultra right” at the Nov. 13-14, 2010, National Conference on Socialism, sponsored by the Party for Socialism and Liberation.
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Today, millions of our immigrant sisters and brothers all over the U.S. are being imprisoned behind the walls of detentions centers or the invisible bars of an underground existence. This country was built by immigrant labor; the racist persecution of these workers is necessary to continue the capitalist domination and exploitation of all workers.
The PSL has been deeply involved in the fight against anti-immigrant racism. We have organized protests, confronted racist groups like the Minutemen and participated in numerous coalitions for immigrant rights.
A pivotal point in this movement occurred in 2006. Millions of workers marked International Workers’ Day with strikes, walkouts, boycotts, demonstrations and vigils. The “Day Without Immigrants” was the single largest working-class action in U.S. history, arising in response to the Sensenbrenner bill that would have criminalized undocumented workers and their supporters.
These actions forced some of the largest corporations in the world to shut down for the day. The cost of the one-day boycott was estimated at $300 million in Los Angeles alone—equal to one-fifth of the city’s daily intake. Alongside allied organizations, the ANSWER Coalition (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism) and the PSL participated in and led many of the organizing efforts, raising the demands of amnesty and full rights for all.
The movement was seen as a serious threat by the capitalist class. They responded with a wave of ICE raids, detentions and deportations while actively promoting racist anti-immigrant forces such as the Minutemen.
Unemployment epidemic: Caused by immigration ‘problem’ or capitalist crisis?
There is no “immigration problem.” This false concept must be seen in the context of the economic crisis that has unemployed millions, providing an opportunity to pump up the fear of immigrants “stealing U.S. jobs.” Over the past two years, millions of jobs were indeed stolen not by immigrants but by the boards of directors of mega-corporations who handed out pink slips to protect their bottom line.
After 2006, the Democrats steered the movement away from militant action. In preparation for the 2008 elections, they shelved real demands for immigrant rights talking about “pragmatism” to disguise their unwillingness to advance the desires of the immigrant community.
During 2010, two proposed immigration reforms were put on the table by Democratic Party leaders. In the House, a bill was drafted by Rep. Luis Gutierrez; Sen. Charles Schumer drafted a Senate bill.
Under the Gutierrez bill, in order to gain legal status, undocumented people would have to demonstrate they had been working, pay a $500 fine, learn English and undergo a criminal background check, among other provisions.
The Schumer plan, on the other hand, would require biometric fingerprint-based social security cards to ensure that undocumented workers cannot get jobs, would strengthen “border security” and initiate a guest worker program and a “tough but fair” path to legalization for workers already in the U.S.
In comparison, the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act was more progressive than these proposals because despite some reactionary elements, it granted amnesty to nearly 3 million immigrants.
The so-called “comprehensive immigration reform” framework of today such as the Schumer proposal would codify into law the political apartheid imposed on undocumented workers while failing to address the reality that global capitalism and imperialism continues to push workers to migrate into the U.S.
This year an upsurge in the movement developed in response to the wave of anti-immigrant racism and the stepped-up repressive state tactics. This upsurge included the March 21 March on Washington, which brought out as many as half a million people, the movement to pass the DREAM Act and May Day actions that brought out thousands of workers.
Arizona’s racist law SB1070 sparked actions nationwide. In Arizona, there were daily protests supported and organized by the PSL. On July 10 in Boston over 600 people, mostly youth, took to the streets to protest the presence of Ariz. Gov. Jan Brewer during the annual meeting of the National Governors Association.
The struggle against anti-immigrant racism is not easy, but we know that democratic rights have never been just handed over by the ruling class. For African Americans in the 1960s, for women in the early 20th century and for workers in the 1930s, rights were only secured through a long and determined struggle.
Likewise, it is only the struggle that will bring about full rights for immigrants. It is crucial that immigrants not fight this struggle alone. Unity amongst workers of all backgrounds is what is required to win not only this but all struggles.
