2008 Woodie Awards
Activism involves action
GREAT AMERICAN BOYCOTT TO MAKE STAND FOR IMMIGRANT RIGHTS
La Voz Editorial Staff
Issue date: 4/24/06 Section: Editorials
Political action involves more than wearing a T-shirt with a political message. It goes beyond linking to your favorite activist organization on your blog. It means more than listening to a great radio talk show host in the car and yelling, "Right on!" It involves taking a stand for what you believe, in spite of the consequences you may suffer.
May 1 has become the designated date for The Great American Boycott. The boycott is in protest of Chairman Sensenbrenner's far-reaching and heinous legislation House Resolution 4437, The Border Protection, Antiterrorism and Illegal Immigration Control Act of 2005. Americans are asked to stay home from school and work and to not purchase anything.
Participation doesn't mean using the occasion as an excuse to cut school and sleep in, watch T.V., or browse Myspace. It means taking to the streets in protest. It means talking to friends and neighbors and expressing your concerns. It means actively and visibly rejecting the idea that illegal immigrants should be labeled felons - akin to child molesters and murderers.
There are some who, although sympathetic to illegal immigrants, are worried about missing an important test or losing their job.
But political activism involves personal risk. Those who sit safely and politely on the sidelines hoping that a particular situation will automatically change will often find themselves disappointed.
Those who take action get results.
The civil rights movement of the 1960s didn't succeed by asking its supporters to simply write polite letters to their congressional representatives, or by asking for small donations to the N.A.A.C.P. Civil rights activists took to the streets. They marched, risking - and sometimes losing - their lives.
The Great American Boycott and the vision of the United States as a compassionate nation with equality will both suffer painful deaths if we fail to support the Latino immigrant community. Supporting this movement sends a clear message that we are no longer willing to tolerate the unfulfilled promise of our country. It is shortsighted to believe that the fate of immigrant communities is not directly intertwined with ours.
On May 1, take a brave stand and support The Great American Boycott. Tell the lawmakers in Washington that we will not tolerate racism disguised as national security.
Otherwise, whose rights will be undermined next?
May 1 has become the designated date for The Great American Boycott. The boycott is in protest of Chairman Sensenbrenner's far-reaching and heinous legislation House Resolution 4437, The Border Protection, Antiterrorism and Illegal Immigration Control Act of 2005. Americans are asked to stay home from school and work and to not purchase anything.
Participation doesn't mean using the occasion as an excuse to cut school and sleep in, watch T.V., or browse Myspace. It means taking to the streets in protest. It means talking to friends and neighbors and expressing your concerns. It means actively and visibly rejecting the idea that illegal immigrants should be labeled felons - akin to child molesters and murderers.
There are some who, although sympathetic to illegal immigrants, are worried about missing an important test or losing their job.
But political activism involves personal risk. Those who sit safely and politely on the sidelines hoping that a particular situation will automatically change will often find themselves disappointed.
Those who take action get results.
The civil rights movement of the 1960s didn't succeed by asking its supporters to simply write polite letters to their congressional representatives, or by asking for small donations to the N.A.A.C.P. Civil rights activists took to the streets. They marched, risking - and sometimes losing - their lives.
The Great American Boycott and the vision of the United States as a compassionate nation with equality will both suffer painful deaths if we fail to support the Latino immigrant community. Supporting this movement sends a clear message that we are no longer willing to tolerate the unfulfilled promise of our country. It is shortsighted to believe that the fate of immigrant communities is not directly intertwined with ours.
On May 1, take a brave stand and support The Great American Boycott. Tell the lawmakers in Washington that we will not tolerate racism disguised as national security.
Otherwise, whose rights will be undermined next?
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