Comments on: We are all criminals

By: Asalaamu Alaikom wa ramatullah Peace be upon you all and welcome! « American Mexican White & Muslim my journey into Islam & through life

Sun, 17 May 2009 00:13:58 +0000

[...] This is one of my first original blog favorite reads after Molly’s blog that I have read as well….. [...]

By: Robin

Robin — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 09:16:57 +0000

Wow, that was some comment American “Patriot”, makes me PROUD to be an American along side the likes of vigelanties like you, offering to shoot people in the head. Lord have mercy, you ARE a MACHO MAN-uh oh, macho is a Spanish word, I meant ente homar kabir!

By: American Patriot

American Patriot — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 06:29:18 +0000

Illegal alien Mexicans are ruining the best country on Earth. The insanity of illegal immigration must stop now. They didn’t found this country. They didn’t build this country. They didn’t make this country great. “Cheap Labor” isn’t worth the 3rd World crimewave they’ve brought.

True, some illegals just come here to work and are decent people. However far, far too many illegal alien Mexicans are punk assed little criminal scumbags who do nothing but commit violent crime upon innocent US citizens, thereby destroying the fabric of this formerly great country. If I had my way, I’d put a bullet in the head of every rat assed Mexican criminal alien who dares trespass the southern border.

By: sokari

sokari — Sun, 03 Jun 2007 11:15:35 +0000

Brilliant post BFP. I really like the way you link anti-immigration and Islamophobia together. We are all interconnected and the sooner we all recognise this the stronger we become.

By: Holly ~ Destiny's mommy~Brenda Greenwood's sister

Holly ~ Destiny's mommy~Brenda Greenwood's sister — Wed, 09 May 2007 08:02:59 +0000

I have linked this Excellent blog to my page because it was just that, Excellent. there is so much that the great Immigration “debate” encopases….so,so much.

By: Haitham

Haitham — Fri, 04 May 2007 22:40:46 +0000

Sean,

I’ll tell you the reason in very simple and short words:

1. Palestinian and Arab in all the countries that host them, never considered and will ever consider that Palestinians will end up living in these Arab host countries. Arabs were kind enough to support Palestinians for more than 40 years now, and every morning since the occupation began, Arabs and Palestinians wake up to fulfil one dream, which is returning home, Palestine.

2. Palestinians in host countries are not citizens of these countries and they will never be. Not because they can’t, but because they both don’t want to. If Palestinians and Arab accepted that refugees are fully considered as citizens and they practice all the rights of the original citizen, then Palestinians would have dissolved by now and Israel would not have had any problem now.
On the other hand, Palestinians in many Arab countries practice and enjoy more rights than those living as citizen of Israel (a.k.a. Arab Israel).

3. Last but not least, true, focusing on some issues that Palestinians face in Arab countries might be good to improve their lives, but the truth is, the major focus should always be on the roots of the problem, which is the occupation. If and when the occupations ends and all Palestinians take their full rights, then, neither the Palestinians nor the Arabs will have to face any of the issues that we see now. The problem is in the Israeli occupation, not how Palestinians are treated in Arab countries.

By: Sean

Sean — Fri, 04 May 2007 22:18:55 +0000

Haitham,

Though I don’t agree with Craig completely I think he provides a valuable point that is merely glossed over, mainly that Palestinian refugees are limited in the countries in which they are currently resided. In Egypt, Syria, Jordan and other nations Palestians are treated as second-class citizens, unable to work and travel freely or get equal government services or even permant or temporary resident status. Why is this issue never addressed? It seems it is the most similar to that of the current Mexican immigrants to the US, those forced to flee a situation because of hostile forces and the promise of peace and a better life.

Also, another issue glossed over in the current debate is the discriminatory practices of Mexico to more southern immigrants, i.e. Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, etc. These individuals are treated worse then Mexicans in the US but their plight is never mentioned in the media. Just a couple of quick points that I thought of while reading this post.

By: brownfemipower

brownfemipower — Fri, 04 May 2007 16:06:00 +0000

illegal alien
an alien is something that comes from outer space. and illegal alien is something that comes from outer space “illegally”. Human beings are not illegal or aliens.

Haitham, shouldnâ€™t you be more concerned with the fact that Egypt will not let Palestinians in from the Gaza border?
why do you think that is tho? And what do you think happens to palestinians who can’t cross over those borders? Hutto prison in the U.S. was holding a family from palestine that couldn’t cross any of the borders into palestine because isreal refused to give them travel papers. The u.s. has got it’s finger in border crossing issues all over the world–Palestine as well.

And Brownfemipower, do you think you are doing yourself some favors as an advocate for amnesty for illegals when you hop into bed with a Palestinian activist? You couldnâ€™t paint the nightmare scenario with illegal entry any more clearly.
as long as it’s legal to imprison palestinian families indefinitely in the u.s. because israel refuses the right to return, it will ok for mexican families to be held indefinitely because they wanted a job.

By: John Colby

John Colby — Fri, 04 May 2007 14:41:13 +0000

Sabbah, very good article. Let this be the beginning of your investigations into this. The crime of not being “white” is also the crime of the Palestinians, muslims and many others in the world. And one can be “white” without being “white”, and not be “white” while being “white”. You are steering into the territory of monumental truth here. Keep steering towards it. Read Derrick Jensen’s “The Culture of Make Believe”.

By: links for 2007-05-04 « No Snow Here

links for 2007-05-04 « No Snow Here — Fri, 04 May 2007 06:27:28 +0000

[...] Sabbahâ€™s Blog Â» Blog Archive Â» We are all criminals “We are all criminals in this countryâ€“our assimilation process starts with jails and violence rather than open arms and melting pots. Itâ€™s time to love each other more than we love the American dream. Our love for each other will be what saves us.” (tags: poc) [...]

By: Craig

Craig — Fri, 04 May 2007 05:36:54 +0000

An illegal alien is not an “immigrant” – the word “immigrant” implies the consent of the host society, which illegals do not have.

Haitham, shouldn’t you be more concerned with the fact that Egypt will not let Palestinians in from the Gaza border?

And Brownfemipower, do you think you are doing yourself some favors as an advocate for amnesty for illegals when you hop into bed with a Palestinian activist? You couldn’t paint the nightmare scenario with illegal entry any more clearly.

By: Robin

Robin — Fri, 04 May 2007 00:24:44 +0000

Hi brownfemipower,
You have hit the nail on the head but good. The racism in the immigration debate here is outrageous and you are 100% correct in saying our country was founded on immigration. That really SHOULD be a sort of “duh” thing but far too many times those settling down here or living here their entire lives take a zenophobic attitude that does NOT take fact into account. All it takes is looking back on the history of our country to see how manipulating immigration has worked. Back in the 1860′s it was the Chinese who were targeted who were brought here to build the railroads, and then later Europeans of different countries were targeted, quotas were established and in some cases immigration closed it’s doors completely to certain peoples.
So who is the biggest and easiest target now? Those coming from south of our border, but do we take into account that the horrendous economic situations in those countries are very much due to US policies concerning trade and our multinationals in many cases pressuring them into agreements that are good for the US, but CERTAINLY not good for them. Heck, we haven’t even had any problem with overthrowing Latin American countries when it suited “our” purposes. (ie Monroe Doctrine declaring US hegemony over the Americas) Then when they cross the US borders, driven here by “prosperity” relative to their own countries because OUR country is responsible for so much of their hardship, what do we do? We use and abuse them, in many cases pay them illegally under the table so that “OUR” own people can throw hayseed at people whom they see as “lesser”. The hypocracy is just unbelievable.

I live in LA and just two days ago the police fired rubber bullets, tear gas and used batons on people who were PEACEFULLY congregated in McArthur Park at the end of a long immigration march. When you say “it’s the beginning of coming together” there is SO much truth to that. The LAPD received training in Israeli tactics http://www.aztlan.net/brattonisrael.htm and
http://www.israel21c.org/bin/en.jsp?enDispWho=Articles%5El1340&enPage=BlankPage&enDisplay=view&enDispWhat=object&enVersion=0&enZone=Democracy
and then used those very tactics on an immigrant’s march. ABSOLUTELY disgusting-yes-there is a coming together.

I found this poem and Telemundo footage of what went on there

http://www.lataco.com/taco/riot-cops-in-macarthur-park-videos

Jun Velez wrote:

Macarthur Park

They were in the park like you and me
They donâ€™t have the same rights though you see

Their fingers are in our mouths

When you are eating your breakfast drinking your drinks
The sweat of their brow on the ice that you clink

They go to our schools say the pledge of allegiance
Do we listen to reason?
Or just fire the rubber bullets, their all in season

The stick does the talking
See the blood on their brows

Their fingers are in our mouths

When you sip your fruit drink
When you have time to stop and think
Look out at your manicured lawn
From the tiled veranda you sit on

We will use their skills
Cross their border to buy cheap pills
See the heads bent and stooped to ground
Lower than the dirt they that they found

The land was theirs but that doesnâ€™t matter
As long as their tears keeps making us fatter

The gas clouds blind and choke
Over there you can see the smoke
Eyes sprayed with poison and hate
Made from the plants that they traditionally ate

Their fingers are in our mouths

Taste the soil under their nails
Taste the sweat from their brows
Taste the fear in their hearts
And know that one way or another
We all took part

Just another day in the park

Jun Velez, May 3 2007

By: Joseph Kugelmass

Joseph Kugelmass — Thu, 03 May 2007 23:25:26 +0000

Of the many things that struck me, looking over this remarkable post, was the way that the law functions as a permanent and deceptive form of exclusion. Because of the way that legal vs. illegal immigration is represented — which is very much like the difference between terrorists and those Arab-Americans & Muslims we love and accept — immigrants are encouraged to believe that if they are good enough, and work hard enough, and are sufficiently distinguished from the troublemakers, they will get to cross over and become part of the “real America.” But it’s illusory. That America doesn’t exist, since the real America is constituted by these very same relationships of oppression. The law asks assimilation and disempowerment from those people who are in truth already on its right side, and inspires a chilling and divisive hatred for those who are not.

By: brownfemipower

brownfemipower — Thu, 03 May 2007 22:26:00 +0000

Thank you so much haitham–I appreciate the space you’ve made available to me–it’s the beginning of coming together, don’t you think?

By: Haitham

Haitham — Thu, 03 May 2007 21:41:01 +0000

trouvere,

Thanks for the head up. I’m looking forward to watch it.