Month: May 2008

When our forclosure rate was number one in the state, there was no place to go, BUT up.  It is important that forclosed homes are purchased, as each vacant home will cost the taxpayers $30,000.  We can all hope that with the better press regarding the modification to the “probable cause” portion of the immigration resolution,  that times will begin to turn around.  There are still tough economic times ahead for the nation as a whole with the housing crisis, but we can hope that the incredibly cheap housing in PW, not exactly what I want to be known for, will at least soften the double forclosure rate we experienced.   I have this horrible feeling though, that we were more than happy to have all these immigrants here to help build the community and now we can offer cheap housing because so many felt the need to leave their dreams behind, not wanting to live in a community enveloped in fear and hate.  Now, before some people start yellin’ about how the resolution wasn’t to blame for this mess, I agree, we would be, like the rest of the nation, suffering through the housing crisis, but PW was hit especially hard and we do know first hand stories of people leaving, legal immigrants, not wanting to reside in PW County because of the anti-Hispanic climate.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/03/AR2008050301095.html

I (Elena) used this information in a letter to the editor I wrote after the appearance of the KKK in Manassas. Why, we should be asking ourselves, is it possible for the KKK and Neo-Nazi groups to build membership by using illegal immigration as their marketing tool ? You can see from this blog, that there are plenty of reasonable people with legitimate concerns, so how are these groups exploiting citizens concerns? How did their extremist rhetoric become mainstream and how do we address this very troubling development?

New York, NY, February 6, 2007 … The Ku Klux Klan, which just a few years ago seemed static or even moribund compared to other white supremacist movements such as neo-Nazis, experienced “a surprising and troubling resurgence” during the past year due to the successful exploitation of hot-button issues including immigration, gay marriage and urban crime, according to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL).

The League, which monitors the activities of racist hate groups and reports its findings to law enforcement and policymakers, has documented a noticeable spike in activity by Klan chapters across the country. The KKK believes that the U.S. is “drowning” in a tide of non-white immigration, controlled and orchestrated by Jews, and is vigorously trying to bring this message to Americans concerned or fearful about immigration.

“If any one single issue or trend can be credited with re-energizing the Klan, it is the debate over immigration in America,” said Deborah M. Lauter, ADL Civil Rights Director. “Klan groups have witnessed a surprising and troubling resurgence by exploiting fears of an immigration explosion, and the debate over immigration has, in turn, helped to fuel an increase in Klan activity, with new groups sprouting in parts of the country that have not seen much activity.”

http://www.adl.org/Civil_Rights/immigration.asp

Done some SPRING cleaning and feeling it’s time for a change. Let’s see if we can work with this ‘template’. It needs some tweaking so please be patient. Also, I am including 3 permanent pages on the top navigation, an ‘About’ page, a ‘Solutions’ page and a ‘Wacky Comment’ page. Feedback welcome.