Race-Baiting in Sacramento
The waters of the immigration debate are further muddied by the commentary by Acosta and Kim. The authors assert that continued high levels of immigration (they ignore any distinction between legal and illegal entry) is vital to California’s economy. That is a very arguable proposition. It is more likely that high illegal immigration aggravates already high unemployment, contributes to racial tensions and dilutes the state’s resources available to educate and assist the resident population to prepare for the future.
Your article on May 3 (“Anti-Immigration Bills Flood Legislature”) presented a more realistic appraisal when it cited California lobbyist and Hispanic activist Arnoldo Torres. He is reported to have commented that the millions of legal immigrants are suffering most from the waves of new immigrants in terms such as crime-plagued neighborhoods and substandard schooling.
GEORGE B. HIGH
Executive Director
Center for Immigration Studies
Washington
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