According to the AMERICAN FARM BUREAU, "the average American farmer feeds 128 people."

See how the immigration issue is tied to your kitchen table!

Anti-immigration sentiment sweeps across America. A journey from Florida to New York, including a trip to the Mexican border, reveals the lives and issues of legal and illegal migrants and farmers working toward a better life.

Is the immigration system in America flawed?

Immigrants are dying to feed America.

Discrimination of immigrants has existed in the United States since the English persecuted the Irish at the beginning of this country’s history. It was once generally considered that if you were Greek or Southern Italian you were not white. Anti-immigration sentiment is nothing new in the U.S.

American farmers and agriculture rely on immigrants to do jobs that Americans won’t do or feel that are simply beneath them. This is causing problems for many people. Some see the problem first hand. Others only see the problems in the news from the perspective of those extreme points of view of the left and the right side of our political system.

American Harvest attempts to shed light on the changing face of the United States in particular as it relates to Agriculture. This film also points out the flaws and inconsistencies of the current U.S. policy on immigration.

The filmmakers follow both legal and illegal farm workers and the farmers caught in the middle of a flawed immigration policy.

The debate in Washington on immigration reform is a crucial one for agriculture in the Finger Lakes region.

The fruit and vegetable industry, as well as many dairy farms, are dependant on a reliable, legalized workforce of migrant laborers to help harvest our crops and milk cows.

There is virtually no pool of local labor to draw from to help staff our farm operations, which are the backbone of the regional economy.

So without a supply of guestworkers from other countries, our industry would be in peril.

Over the past several weeks, the debate in Washington has been heating up again on this issue.  We are fortunate to have the strong support of Rep. James Walsh, Rep. Randy Kuhl, Rep. Thomas Reynolds and Rep. John McHugh on this issue. They have all signed on as sponsors of the AgJobs Bill, which would ensure a consistent supply of farm labor.

In the Senate, both Sen. Schumer and Sen. Clinton support us on this issue as well.  Both recognize the importance of agriculture and that labor is an essential ingredient to a thriving farming industry. 

Unfortunately, while the debate drags on, our farms have been subject to frequent raids from the immigration service.  One just last month in Central New York took away workers from a thriving vegetable operation, causing that business severe financial difficulty.  Last fall, dozens of raids throughout central and western New York left crops unharvested.

Despite the fact that our farmers diligently verify I-9 forms for their workers’ legal status, the raids continue to disrupt our businesses.  This must stop.  The only way to stop it is to pass solid immigration reform measures in Washington.

We are hopeful that the issue can be resolved in the next couple of weeks.  Otherwise, we do not hold out much hope that it would come up for debate again until after the 2008 presidential elections.  New York Farm Bureau supports immigration reform legislation that:

• Reforms and streamlines the federal H2a program, to allow permitted seasonal workers to work the planting and harvest times through a process that is not beset with untimely delays, bureaucratic red tape, and prohibitively expensive,
• Provides for some mechanism to adjust the legal status, with sufficient safeguards, for farm workers who have been and remain working in agriculture in this country,
• And allows for the inclusion of year round agricultural workers, when a domestic labor force is not available, into the federal H2a program to help alleviate the worker shortage in agriculture in the dairy industry that exists because of the shrinking population in Upstate New York. 

By that time, two harvests will have gone by without a reliable labor force, which could be devastating to agriculture in our region.  As a result, consumers should expect to pay much higher prices for food and a continued downturn of the Upstate economy.

AGRICULTURE COALITION FOR IMMIGRATION REFORM
National Council of Agricultural Employers

AMERICAN HARVEST supports these organizations:

April 16, 2007

Dear Senator:

The undersigned organizations and individuals, representing a broad cross-section of America, join together to ask you to support enactment of the Agricultural Job Opportunities, Benefits and Security Act of 2007 (AgJOBS, S. 340 and H.R. 371). This landmark bipartisan legislation would achieve historic reforms to our nation’s labor and immigration laws as they pertain to
agriculture.

The legislation reflects years of negotiations on complex and contentious issues among employer and worker representatives and leaders in Congress.

A growing number of our leaders in Congress, as well as the President, recognize that our nation’s immigration policy is flawed and that, from virtually every perspective, the status quo is untenable. America needs reforms that are compassionate, realistic and economically sensible – reforms that also enhance the rule of law and contribute to national security. AgJOBS represents the coming together of historic adversaries in a rare opportunity to achieve reforms supportive of these goals, as well as our nation’s agricultural productivity and food security.

AgJOBS represents a balanced solution for American agriculture, a critical element of a comprehensive solution, and one that can be enacted now with broad bipartisan support. For these reasons, we join together to encourage the Congress to enact promptly the Agricultural Job Opportunities, Benefits, and Security Act of 2007, S. 340 and H.R.371.

Thank you.

AGRI-MARK INC.
AMERICAN AGRI-WOMEN
AMERICAN COLLEGE OF OCCUPATIONAL & ENVIRONMENTAL MEDICINE
AMERICAN FARMLAND TRUST
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF LABOR AND CONGRESS OF INDUSTRIAL ORGANIZATIONS AFL-CIO
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF STATE, COUNTY AND MUNICIPAL EMPLOYEES
AMERICAN FRIENDS SERVICE COMMITTEE
AMERICAN FROZEN FOOD INSTITUTE
AMERICAN GI FORUM OF THE UNITED STATES
AMERICAN HORSE COUNCIL
AMERICAN JEWISH COMMITTEE
AMERICAN MUSHROOM INSTITUTE
AMERICAN NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
AMERICAN SEED TRADE ASSOCIATION
AMERICAN SHEEP INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION
AMERICAN-ARAB ANTI-DISCRIMINATION COMMITTEE
ASIAN AMERICAN JUSTICE CENTER
ASSOCIATION OF FARMWORKER OPPORTUNITY PROGRAMS
CATHOLIC LEGAL IMMIGRATION NETWORK, INC. (CLINIC)
CENTER FOR COMMUNITY CHANGE
CHURCH OF THE BRETHREN WITNESS/WASHINGTON OFFICE
CLAYTON YEUTTER, FORMER SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE AND U.S. TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
COUNCIL OF NORTHEAST FARMER COOPERATIVES
DAIRY FARMERS OF AMERICA
DAIRYLEA COOPERATIVE, INC.
ENVIRONMENTAL WORKING GROUP
THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH
EVANGELICAL LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA
FARM LABOR ORGANIZATION COMMITTEE, AFL-CIO (FLOC)
FARMWORKER JUSTICE
FEDERATION OF EMPLOYERS AND WORKERS OF AMERICA
FIRST PIONEER FARM CREDIT (NY, CT, MA, NJ, NH AND RI)
GENERAL COMMISSION ON RELIGION AND RACE, THE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
HAGYARD EQUINE MEDICAL INSTITUTE
HOUSING ASSISTANCE COUNCIL
INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF TEAMSTERS
IRRIGATION ASSOCIATION
JESUIT CONFERENCE USA
JEWISH COUNCIL FOR PUBLIC AFFAIRS
KING RANCH, INC. (CA, FL, TX)
LABOR COUNCIL FOR LATIN AMERICAN ADVANCEMENT
LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE ON CIVIL RIGHTS
THE LEAGUE OF UNITED LATIN AMERICAN CITIZENS
LEGAL MOMENTUM
LUTHERAN IMMIGRATION AND REFUGEE SERVICE
MEXICAN AMERICAN LEGAL DEFENSE AND EDUCATIONAL FUND
MIDWEST ASSOCIATION OF FARMWORKER ORGANIZATIONS (MAFO)
MIDWEST FOOD PROCESSORS ASSOCIATION
MIGRANT CLINICIANS NETWORK
MIGRANT LEGAL ACTION PROGRAM
MONROVIA GROWERS
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS, INC
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF LATINO ELECTED AND APPOINTED OFFICIALS
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATE DEPARTMENTS OF AGRICULTURE
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATE DIRECTORS OF MIGRANT EDUCATION
NATIONAL CATHOLIC RURAL LIFE CONFERENCE
NATIONAL CHRISTMAS TREE ASSOCIATION
NATIONAL COMMUNITY FOR LATINO LEADERSHIP NCLL
NATIONAL COUNCIL OF AGRICULTURAL EMPLOYERS
NATIONAL COUNCIL OF FARMER COOPERATIVES
NATIONAL COUNCIL OF LA RAZA
NATIONAL FARM WORKER MINISTRY
NATIONAL FARMERS UNION
NATIONAL FARMWORKER ALLIANCE
NATIONAL GRAPE COOPERATIVE
NATIONAL GREENHOUSE MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION
NATIONAL IMMIGRATION FORUM
NATIONAL IMMIGRATION LAW CENTER
NATIONAL KOREAN AMERICAN SERVICE & EDUCATION CONSORTIUM
NATIONAL LEGAL AID AND DEFENDER ASSOCIATION
NATIONAL MILK PRODUCERS FEDERATION
NATIONAL POTATO COUNCIL
NATIONAL THOROUGHBRED RACING ASSOCIATION
NATIONAL WATERMELON ASSOCIATION, INC.
NEW ENGLAND APPLE COUNCIL
NEW ENGLAND NURSERY ASSOCIATION
NISEI FARMERS LEAGUE
NOLTRE NURSERY SERVICES
NORTH AMERICAN HORTICULTURAL SUPPLY ASSOCIATION
NORTHERN PLAINS POTATO GROWERS
NORTHEAST DAIRY PRODUCERS ASSOCIATION
NORTHWEST GROWERS ASSOCIATION
NORTHWEST FARM CREDIT SERVICES (WA, OR, MT, ID AND AK)
NORTHWEST HORTICULTURAL COUNCIL
OFA-AN ASSOCIATION OF FLORICULTURE PROFESSIONALS
OXFAM AMERICA
PACIFIC COAST PRODUCERS
PACIFIC NORTHWEST CHRISTMAS TREE ASSOCIATION
PERENNIAL PLANT ASSOCIATION
PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH (USA) WASHINGTON OFFICE
PRODUCE MARKETING ASSOCIATION
SERVICE EMPLOYEES INTERNATIONAL UNION (SEIU)
SNAKE RIVER FARMERS ASSOCIATION (ID, IL, OH, UT)
SOCIETY OF AMERICAN FLORISTS
SOUTHEASTERN DAIRY COOPERATIVES
SOUTHERN NURSERY ASSOCIATION
SOUTHERN POVERTY LAW CENTER
SOUTHERN STATES COOPERATIVE
TURFGRASS PRODUCERS INTERNATIONAL
UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST ASSOCIATION OF CONGREGATIONS
UNITED AGRIBUSINESS LEAGUE
INTERNATIONAL UNION, UNITED AUTOMOBILE, AEROSPACE AND AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENT
WORKERS OF AMERICA (UAW)
UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST, JUSTICE AND WITNESS MINISTRIES
UNITED EGG PRODUCERS
UNITED FARM WORKERS
UNITED FARM WORKERS FOUNDATION
UNITED FOOD AND COMMERCIAL WORKERS INTERNATIONAL UNION
UNITED FRESH PRODUCE ASSOCIATION
UNITED METHODIST CHURCH, GENERAL BOARD OF CHURCH AND SOCIETY
U.S. APPLE ASSOCIATION

UNITED STATES CONFERENCE OF CATHOLIC BISHOPS
UNITED STATES EQUESTRIAN FEDERATION
WESTERN ASSOCIATION OF NURSERYMEN
WESTERN GROWERS
WESTERN UNITED DAIRYMEN
WHOLESALE NURSERY GROWERS OF AMERICA
WILLIAM C. VELASQUEZ INSTITUTE
WINEGRAPE GROWERS OF AMERICA
WINE INSTITUTE
WOMEN'S DIVISION - UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
WORKING AMERICA, AFL-CIO
YANKEE FARM CREDIT (VT, NH AND NY)
ALABAMA NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
ALABAMA WATERMELON ASSOCIATION
TELAMON CORPORATION (AL)
ARIZONA NURSERY ASSOCIATION
CAMPESINOS SIN FRONTERAS (AZ)
CATHOLIC CHARITIES, PHOENIX, AZ
CHICANOS POR LA CAUSA (AZ)
ESLABON ASSOCIATES, INC. (AZ)
PACIFIC SOUTHWEST DISTRICT/UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST ASSOCIATION (AZ)
KARIN L. CRAWFORD, OWNER OF GOD'S GARDEN TREASURES, TEMPE, AZ
FLOWER FRENZY, TEMPE, AZ
JOE & VIKKI KOZORA, PRESCOTT, AZ
ROBERT A. REED A.I.F.D, CREATIONS BY REED, PHOENIX, AZ
KRIS SCHUEHLE MOUNTAIN HIGH FLOWERS, SEDONA, AZ
KEN YOUNG, PHOENIX FLOWER SHOPS, SCOTTSDALE, AZ
ARKANSAS GREEN INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION
ARKANSAS CONFERENCE BOARD OF CHURCH AND SOCIETY
CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF ARKANSAS
UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS LEAGUE OF UNITED LATIN AMERICAN CITIZENS
CALIFORNIA LANDSCAPE CONTRACTORS ASSOCIATION
CALIFORNIA STRAWBERRY COMMISSION
CALIFORNIA WOOL GROWERS ASSOCIATION
FARM CREDIT OF NESS CITY
ALLIED GRAPE GROWERS (CA)
BLUE DIAMOND GROWERS
CALIFORNIA-ARIZONA WATERMELON ASSOCIATION
CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF NURSERIES AND GARDEN CENTERS
CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF WINEGRAPE GROWERS
CALIFORNIA AVOCADO COMMISSION
CALIFORNIA AVOCADO SOCIETY
CALIFORNIA CANNING PEACH ASSOCIATION
CALIFORNIA CITRUS MUTUAL
CALIFORNIA CITRUS NURSERY SOCIETY
CALIFORNIA CUT FLOWER COMMISSION
CALIFORNIA DAIRIES, INC.
CALIFORNIA FARM BUREAU FEDERATION
CALIFORNIA FLORAL COUNCIL
CALIFORNIA FIG ADVISORY BOARD
CALIFORNIA FRESH TOMATO GROWERS DBA CALIFORNIA TOMATO FARMERS
CALIFORNIA GRAPE AND TREE FRUIT LEAGUE
CALIFORNIA STRAWBERRY NURSERYMEN’S ASSOCIATION
CALIFORNIA WOMEN FOR AGRICULTURE
COLAB IMPERIAL COUNTY (CA)
FAMILY WINEMAKERS OF CA
FRESNO COUNTY FARM BUREAU
GROWER-SHIPPER ASSOCIATION OF CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
GROWER-SHIPPER VEGETABLE ASSOCIATION OF SAN LUIS AND OBISPO COUNTY (CA)
IMPERIAL COUNTY FARM BUREAU (CA)
IMPERIAL VALLEY VEGETABLE GROWERS ASSOCIATION
KERN COUNTY FARM BUREAU
KINGS COUNTY FARM BUREAU
LAKE COUNTY FARM BUREAU
LAKE COUNTY PEAR ASSOCIATION (CA)
LIVE OAK FARMS, LE GRAND, CA
MARIN COUNTY FARM BUREAU
MENDOCINO COUNTY FARM BUREAU
MERCED COUNTY FARM BUREAU
MONTEREY COUNTY FARM BUREAU
NAPA COUNTY FARM BUREAU
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA GROWERS ASSOCIATION
NURSERY GROWERS ASSOCIATION (CA)
OLIVE GROWERS COUNCIL OF CALIFORNIA
ORANGE COUNTY FARM BUREAU
RAISIN BARGAINING ASSOCIATION
SACRAMENTO VALLEY FARM CREDIT
SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY FARM BUREAU
SAN DIEGO COUNTY FARM BUREAU
SAN DIEGO COUNTY FLOWER & PLANT ASSOCIATION
SAN FRANCISCO FLOWER MART
SANTA BARBARA COUNTY FARM BUREAU
TULARE COUNTY FARM BUREAU
VENTURA COUNTY AGRICULTURAL ASSOCIATION
AFSCME LOCAL 2076 (CA)
ALLIANCE OF FOREST WORKERS AND HARVESTERS (CA)
BERKELEY GLOBAL JUSTICE (CA)
BROKAW NURSERY, INC. (CA)
CALIFORNIA CHURCH IMPACT
CALIFORNIA HUMAN DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
CALIFORNIA INDIAN BASKETWEAVERS ASSOCIATION
CALIFORNIA RURAL LEGAL ASSISTANCE FOUNDATION
CARECEN-LA (CA)
CATHOLIC CHARITIES (CA)
CATHOLIC CHARITIES - DIOCESE OF SANTA ROSA (CA)
CHICANO FEDERATION OF SAN DIEGO COUNTY CA
COALITION FOR HUMANE IMMIGRANTS RIGHTS OF LOS ANGELES
COMITE LATINO (CA)
FRANCISCAN FRIARS OF ST. BARBARA PROVINCE (CA)
FRESNO HEALTHY COMMUNITIES ACCESS PARTNERS (CA)
HOLY REDEEMER LUTHERAN CHURCH (CA)
HOUSEFARMWORKERS OF SANTA PAULA (CA)
IMMIGRANT LEGAL RESOURCE CENTER (CA)
KINGS COMMUNITY ACTION ORGANIZATION (CA)
LATIN AMERICA COMMITTEE OF THE LORETTO COMMUNITY (CA)
LEAVENS RANCHES (CA)
LIVINGSTON MEDICAL GROUP (CA)
MERRYHILL SCHOOL (CA)
MEXICAN AMERICAN HUMAN RIGHTS ORGANIZATION (CA)
NORTH COAST PAX CHRISTI (CA)
ORANGE COUNTY INTERFAITH COMMITTEE TO AID FARM WORKERS (CA)
ORGANIZACIÓN EN CALIFORNIA DE LIDERES CAMPESINAS (CA)
OUR LADY OF VICTORY MISSIONARY SISTERS (CA)
PACIFIC SOUTHWEST DISTRICT - UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST ASSOCIATION (CA)
PESTICIDE ACTION NETWORK (CA)
RADIO BILINGÜE, INC. (CA)
REDWOOD PEACE AND JUSTICE CENTER (CA)
SIREN (CA)
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA ECUMENICAL COUNCIL
SOUTHWEST COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER (CA)
TEAMSTERS 948 (CA)
VENTURA COUNTY AG FUTURES ALLIANCE (CA)
WALK YOUR TALK PRODUCTIONS (CA)
THE WATSONVILLE LAW CENTER (CA)
CAROL WHITAKER, VICE PRESIDENT, COMMERCIAL RELATIONSHIP MGR, UMPQUA BANK (CA)
PAULA BRYANT, UMPQUA BANK (CA)
RAYMOND CAMERA AND RAYMOND CAMERA, JR., CAMERA BROTHERS (CA)
DON AND MARGARET EUTENIER, PEAR GROWERS, LAKE COUNTY, CA
QUERCUS RANCH (MARK NAVONE, OWNER) (CA)
LAKE COUNTY LAND & CATTLE, LLC (CA)
JOE CONANT, WHITNEY WARREN RANCH, LTD. (CA)
THE PEAR DOCTOR, INC. (CA)
BROC AND SHARRON ZOLLER, ZOLLER’S VINEYARDS (CA)
JANE SAMUEL, SUNRISE FRESH (CHERRY GROWER) (CA)
PARDEE TREE NURSERY (CA)
US AGRISEEDS (CA)
ELIZABETH ELWOOD PONCE AND KENNETH ELWOOD, LASSEN CANYON NURSERY INC. (CA)
JIM AND KATHRYNE RIETKERK, KALLISTO GREENHOUSES (CA)
LARRY R. THORNTON, PEAR FARMER (CA)
DAVID C. WEISS, BELLA VISTA FARMING COMPANY, LLC (CA)
COLUMBINE LANDSCAPE, INC. (CA)
W. F. LIMITED (CA)
3 G LABOR SERVICE, INC. (CA)
EAST WEST TREES (CA)
ANDREW J. SCULLY, PHILIP E. SCULLY TONI M. SCULLY, SCULLY PACKING CO. (CA)
JOHN DIEPERSLOOT, KINGSBURG ORCHARDS (CA)
GEORGE JACKSON, KINGSBURG ORCHARDS (CA)
DAVID JACKSON, DAVID JACKSON FARMS (CA)
KEN ENNS, ENNS PACKING CO., INC. (CA)
MIKE JENSEN, THE HMC GROUP MARKETING. INC. (CA)
HAROLD MCCLARTY, THE HMC GROUP MARKETING, INC. (CA)
PAT RICCHIUTI, JR., PR FARMS (CA)
STEVE VOLPE, ROYAL MADERA VINEYARDS (CA)
BOBBY BIANCO, ANTHONY VINEYARDS, INC. (CA)
STEPHEN BISWELL, MT. CAMPBELL DEVELOPMENT (CA)
NICHOLAS BOZICK, R. BAGDASARIAN, INC. (CA)
WAYNE BRANDT, BRANDT FARMS, INC. (CA)
ANTON CARATAN, ANTON CARATAN & SONS (CA)
CHRIS CARATAN, M. CARATAN, INC. (CA)
KIRK CERNIGLIA, ROYAL MADERA VINEYARDS (CA)
ALLAN CORRIN, CORRIN FARMING (CA)
STANLEY COSART, W. F. COSART PACKING CO. (CA)
VERNE CROOKSHANKS, VENIDA PACKING, INC. (CA)
JERRY DIBUDUO, BALLANTINE PRODUCE CO., INC. (CA)
EDGE DOSTAL, CHIQUITA FRESH NORTH AMERICA (CA)
RICHARD ELLIOT, DAVID J. ELLIOT & SONS (CA)
TONY FAZIO, TRI-BORO FRUIT CO., INC. (CA)
RON FRAUENHEIM, FRAUENHEIM FARMS (CA)
MICKY GEORGE, GEORGE BROS., INC. (CA)
DAN GERAWAN, GERAWAN FARMING, INC. (CA)
RANDY GIUMARRA, GIUMARRA VINEYARDS CORPORATION (CA)
STEVE HASH, STEVE HASH FARMS (CA)
DOUG HEMLY, GREENE AND HEMLY, INC. (CA)
PHIL HERBIG, ENNS PACKING CO., INC. (CA)
ROBERT IKEMIYA, ITO PACKING COMPANY, INC. (CA)
STEVE JOHNSON, JOHNSON ORCHARDS, INC. (CA)
BRIAN JONES, SUN VALLEY PACKING (CA)
HERB KAPRIELIAN, KCC HOLDING LLC (CA)
DAVID MARGULEAS, SUN WORLD INTERNATIONAL, LLC (CA)
LOUIS PANDOL, PANDOL BROS., INC. (CA)
DENNIS PARNAGIAN, FOWLER PACKING COMPANY, INC. (CA)
JUSTIN PARNAGIAN, FOWLER PACKING COMPANY, INC. (CA)
CLIFF ROLLAND, ABE-EL PRODUCE (CA)
CLIFF SADOIAN, SADOIAN BROS., INC. (CA)
SARK SARABIAN, SARABIAN FARMS (CA)
TOM SCHULTZ, CHASE NATIONAL KIWI FARMS (CA)
JIM SIMONIAN, SIMONIAN FRUIT COMPANY (CA)
BRENT SMITTCAMP, WAWONA PACKING CO., LLC (CA).
KENT STEPHENS, MARKO ZANINOVICH, INC. (CA)
DEAN THONESEN, SUNWEST FRUIT COMPANY, INC (CA).
STAN TUFTS, TUFTS RANCH LLC (CA)

CHILES WILSON, ALL STATE PACKERS, INC. (CA)
JOHN D. ZANINOVICH, ZAN FARMS, INC. (CA)
JON P. ZANINOVICH, JASMINE VINEYARDS, INC. (CA)
MARKO S. ZANINOVICH, MARKO ZANINOVICH, INC. (CA)
RYAN ZANINOVICH, V. B. ZANINOVICH & SONS, INC. (CA)
STEVE FORTIN, SIERRA-CASCADE NURSERY, INC. (CA)
BARBARA ANN SHEETER, DELANO, CA
BRASSICA NURSERY, INC., NIPOMO, CA
CHARLENE COULSON, CAMERON PARK, CA
DUTCH FLORIST, PALM SPRINGS, CA
FLOWERS BY ADELAIDE, INC., LA JOLLA, CA
FRANK QUINTANILLA - GOLDEN ROSE FLORIST, ROSEMEAD, CA
JOHN FURMAN, CALIFORNIA PAJAROSA, WATSONVILLE, CA
DWIGHT MATSUNO, KB GREENHOUSES, INC., WATSONVILLE, CA
MAXIMUM NURSERY INC., WINFRED VAN WINGERDEN, CARPINTERIA, CA
MELLANO & COMPANY, SAN LUIS REY, CA
OCEAN VIEW FLOWERS, LOMPOC, CA
SAN DIEGO COUNTY FLOWER & PLANT ASSOCIATION, CARLSBAD, CA
SHANNON KELLEY, NIPOMO, CA
STANFORD FLORAL DESIGN, PALO ALTO, CA
SUNLET NURSERY, INC., FALLBROOK, CA
WILTON LEE, LEE'S FLORIST & NURSERY, BERKELEY, CA
ASSOCIATED LANDSCAPE CONTRACTORS OF COLORADO
COLORADO NURSERY & GREENHOUSE ASSOCIATION
COLORADO POTATO ADMINISTRATIVE COMMITTEE
COLORADO SUGARBEET GROWERS ASSOCIATION
COLORADO WINE INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT BOARD
SISTERS OF SAINT FRANCIS (CO)
AMATO WHOLESALE FLORIST, DENVER, CO
CHERRIE SILVERMAN AIFD, AAF CHERRY BLOSSOMS FLORIST, WESTMINSTER, CO
DWIGHT LARIMER, BOULDER, CO
LAFAYETTE FLORIST & GREENHOUSES INC., LAFAYETTE, CO
IMMIGRATION SERVICES, CATHOLIC CHARITIES (CT)
CONNECTICUT FLORISTS ASSOCIATION
CONNECTICUT GREEN INDUSTRIES COUNCIL
CONNECTICUT GREENHOUSE GROWERS ASSOCIATION
CONNECTICUT NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
H.F. BROWN, INC. (CT)
LYMAN ORCHARDS (CT)
DELAWARE NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
LATIN AMERICAN COMMUNITY CENTER (DE)
TELAMON CORPORATION (DE)
AYUDA (DC)
CAIR COALITION (DC)
SISTERS OF NOTRE DAME BASE COMMUNITIES UNIT (DC)
SPANISH CATHOLIC CENTER - MT. PLEASANT (DC)
CONSOLIDATED CITRUS, LP (FL)
DUNDEE CITRUS GROWERS ASSOCIATION (FL)
FLORIDA CITRUS MUTUAL
FLORIDA CITRUS PACKERS
FLORIDA FRUIT AND VEGETABLE ASSOCIATION
FLORIDA GRAPE GROWERS ASSOCIATION
FLORIDA HORSE COUNCIL
FLORIDA NURSERY, GROWERS, & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
FLORIDA THOROUGHBRED BREEDERS' AND OWNERS' ASSOCIATION
FLORIDA TOMATO EXCHANGE
FLORIDA WATERMELON ASSOCIATION
GULF CITRUS GROWERS ASSOCIATION
INDIAN RIVER CITRUS LEAGUE (FL)
PEACE RIVER VALLEY CITRUS GROWERS ASSOCIATION (FL)
TAMPA BAY WHOLESALE GROWERS
AFSCME FLORIDA
AGENCY OF WORKFORCE INNOVATION (FL)
AMERICAN MUSLIM ASSOCIATION OF NORTH AMERICA (FL)
BELLE GLADE HOUSING AUTHORITY (FL)
BETH-EL FARMWORKER MINISTRY, INC.(FL)
BIG CYPRESS HOUSING CORPORATION (FL)
CASA (FL)
CASA SAN JUAN BOSCO, INC. (FL)
CATHOLIC CHARITIES (FL)
CATHOLIC CHARITIES BUREAU, LEGALIZATION PROGRAM (FL)
CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF CENTRAL FLORIDA, INC.
CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF THE DIOCESE OF ST. AUGUSTINE (FL)
CENTRAL FLORIDA HEALTH CARE, INC.
CENTRAL FLORIDA JOBS WITH JUSTICE
CENTRO CAMPESINO FARMWORKER CENTER (FL)
CHRIST THE KING CATHOLIC CHURCH (FL)
CHURCH OF OUR SAVIOR, MCC (FL)
CHURCH WOMEN UNITED OF FLORIDA
COALITION OF FLORIDA FARMWORKER ORGANIZATIONS
COMMUNITY HEALTH OF SOUTH DADE, INC (FL)
DEMOCRACIA AHORA (FL)
EVERGLADES HAMMOCKS, INCORPORATED (FL)
FANM AYISYEN NAN MIYAMI, INC./HAITIAN WOMEN OF MIAMI
FARMWORKER ASSOCIATION OF FLORIDA, INC.
FARMWORKER COORDINATING COUNCIL OF PALM BEACH COUNTY, INC. (FL)
FARMWORKER EDUCATION AND SERVICES PROGRAM (FL)
FARMWORKER JOBS AND EDUCATION PROGRAM (FL)
FARMWORKERS SELF-HELP, INC. (FL)
FLORIDA ADVISORY GROUP, NATIONAL FARM WORKER MINISTRY
FLORIDA AFL-CIO
FLORIDA ASSOCIATION OF COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS
FLORIDA CATHOLIC CONFERENCE
FLORIDA CITY UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
FLORIDA COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS, INC.
FLORIDA EQUAL JUSTICE CENTER
FLORIDA IMMIGRANT ADVOCACY CENTER
FLORIDA IMMIGRANT COALITION
FLORIDA IMPACT
FLORIDA LEGAL SERVICES, INC.
FLORIDA NON PROFIT HOUSING, INC.
FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY HUMAN RIGHTS CENTER
GULFCOAST LEGAL SERVICES, INC. (FL)
HARVEST TIME MINISTRIES, INC. (FL)
HISPANIC COALITION, CORP. (FL)
HOLY REDEEMER RESPECT LIFE (FL)
HUMAN SERVICES COALITION OF DADE COUNTY, INC. (FL)
INDIAN RIVER COUNTY HOUSING AUTHORITY (FL)
INDIANTOWN NON PROFIT HOUSING, INC. (FL)
JACKSONVILLE AREA LEGAL AID, REFUGEE IMMIGRATION PROJECT (FL)
LEGAL AID SERVICE OF BROWARD COUNTY (FL)
LEGAL AID SOCIETY OF PALM BEACH COUNTY, INC. (FL)
LEGAL AID SOCIETY OF THE ORANGE COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION, INC. (FL)

LITTLE MANATEE HOUSING CORPORATION (FL)
MANATEE COUNTY FARMWORKER EDUCATION PROGRAM (FL)
MEXICAN AMERICAN COUNCIL (FL)
MIGRANT EDUCATION PROGRAM (FL)
MOVIMIENTO FAMILIAR CRISTIANO CATOLICO- USA (FL)
MUJER, INC. (FL)
NATIONAL FARM WORKER MINISTRY IN FLORIDA
NATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR WOMEN, TAMPA CHAPTER (FL)
NEW HOPE UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST (FL)
NORTHEAST FLORIDA HEALTH SERVICES, INC. (FL)
ORLANDO ASSOCIATION OF COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS FOR REFORM NOW (ACORN)
PEACE & SOCIAL CONCERNS COMMITTEE -- MIAMI FRIENDS (QUAKERS)
PINELLAS SUPPORT COMMITTEE OF NFWM (FL)
REDLANDS CHRISTIAN MIGRANT ASSOCIATION (FL)
RURAL NEIGHBORHOODS, INCORPORATED (FL)
ST. AUGUSTINE DIOCESAN JUSTICE AND PEACE COMMISSION (FL)
ST. FAITH'S EPISCOPAL CHURCH (FL)
ST. FRANCIS XAVIER CATHOLIC CHURCH (FL)
SARASOTA/MANATEE FARMWORKER SUPPORTERS, INC. (FL)
SEIU FLORIDA PUBLIC UNION
SOUTHERN LEGAL COUNSEL, INC. (FL)
TAKE THESE HANDS (FL)
THE AGRICULTURE AND LABOR PROGRAM, INC. (FL)
THE GUATEMALAN MAYA CENTER IN LAKE WORTH (FL)
UNITE FOR DIGNITY, INC. (FL)
WECOUNT! (FL)
PATRICIA K. EGAN, BOYNTON BEACH FLORIST & GIFT BASKETS, BOYNTON BEACH, FL
GREG ABERCROMBIE, PRES. ABERCROMBIE FLOWER MARKET, INC., WINTER HAVEN, FL
IVIANA OTERO-SPISAK, HOMESTEAD, FL
KISSIMMEE FLORIST, KISSIMMEE, FL
SARASOTA ENCHANTED FLOWERS, SARASOTA, FL
TINA STOECKER AIFD PFCI; DESIGNS OF THE TIMES INC., MELBOURNE, FL
GEORGIA GREEN INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION
GEORGIA MILK PRODUCERS
GEORGIA WATERMELON ASSOCIATION
WINEGROWERS ASSOCIATION OF GEORGIA
EL QUETZAL (GA)
SOUTHEAST GEORGIA COMMUNITIES PROJECT, INC.
TELAMON CORPORATION (GA)
RAMON GARCIA, ATLANTA, GA
MARIETTA FLOWER SHOP, INC., MARIETTA, GA
CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF IDAHO
ENVIRONMENTAL CARE ASSOCIATION OF IDAHO
IDAHO GROWERS AND SHIPPERS ASSOCIATION
IDAHO NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
MARSING AG-LABOR SPONSORING COMMITTEE (ID)
POTATO GROWERS OF IDAHO
SNAKE RIVER FARMERS ASSOCIATION
TAKASUGI SEED FARMS (ID)
TRISH EVANS, POST FALLS, ID
KATHLEEN GOICEOCHEA, GOODING, ID
ILLINOIS GRAPE GROWERS & VINTNERS ASSOCIATION
ILLINOIS LANDSCAPE CONTRACTORS ASSOCIATION
ILLINOIS NURSERYMEN’S ASSOCIATION
ILLINOIS SPECIALTY GROWERS ASSOCIATION
ORNAMENTAL GROWERS ASSOCIATION OF NORTHERN ILLINOIS
CATHOLIC CHARITIES, ARCHDIOCESE OF CHICAGO, IMMIGRATION AND NATURALIZATION SERVICES
CHICAGO WORKER'S COLLABORATIVE
CHURCH OF THE BRETHREN (IL)
CHURCH WOMEN UNITED IN ILLINOIS
COUNCIL OF ISLAMIC ORGANIZATIONS OF GREATER CHICAGO
INTERFAITH LEADERSHIP PROJECT (IL)
INTERFAITH WORKER JUSTICE (IL)
MUJERES LATINAS EN ACCIÓN (IL)
NATIONAL IMMIGRANT JUSTICE CENTER (IL)
NOTRE DAME AMERICORP MISSION VOLUNTEER (IL)
SISTERS OF PROVIDENCE (IL)
SOCIAL CONCERNS COMMITTEE, SISTERS OF CHARITY, BVM (IL)
UNITED STATES HISPANIC LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE, USHLI (IL)
UNITED STEELWORKERS LU 7234 (IL)
DAVID HAASE, DBA/DAVE'S FLOWER GARDEN, DANVILLE, IL
DIEHL FLORIST, WATERLOO, IL
FLORAL DESIGNS ON 99TH, CHICAGO, IL
HOFMANN FLORIST, CHICAGO HEIGHTS, IL
JIM PHILLIP, PHILLIP'S FLOWERS, WESTMONT, IL
JOHN A. LOOBY III, LAKE FOREST FLOWERS, LAKE FOREST, IL
TIM CLESEN, CLESEN WHOLESALE, EVANSTON, IL
INDIANA-ILLINOIS WATERMELON ASSOCIATION
INDIANA NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
DISCIPLES FARM WORKER MINISTRY (IN)
HEARTLAND CENTER/ OFFICE OF PEACE AND JUSTICE DIOCESE OF GARY (IN)
MICHIANA PEACE AND JUSTICE COALITION (IN)
PEACE WITH JUSTICE COMMITTEE (IN)
RURAL OPPORTUNITIES, INC. (IN)
SISTERS OF PROVIDENCE - SAINT MARY-OF-THE-WOODS (IN)
TELAMON CORPORATION (IN)
INTERNATIONAL FLORAL DISTRIBUTORS, INC., RICHMOND, IN
IOWA NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
WOMEN, FOOD AND AGRICULTURE NETWORK (IA)
NATIONAL CATHOLIC RURAL LIFE CONFERENCE (IA)
PROTEUS, INC. (IA)
SISTERS OF CHARITY OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY (IA)
GOODE GREENHOUSES, INC., DES MOINES, IA
KANSAS NURSERY AND LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
SER CORPORATION-KANSAS
UMOS (KS)
BLUE GRASS FARMS CHAPLAINCY, INC. (KY)
KENTUCKY NURSERY AND LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
KENTUCKY THOROUGHBRED ASSOCIATION
KENTUCKY THOROUGHBRED OWNERS AND BREEDERS
NORTHERN KENTUCKY VINTNERS & GRAPE GROWERS ASSOCIATION
IMMIGRATION LEGAL SERVICES, CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY
OUTREACH FOR JESUS (KY)
BELMAR FLOWER SHOP, INC., LOUISVILLE, KY
LYNN PENNINGTON, VERSAILLES, KY
CATHOLIC CHARITIES (LA)
JOHN, JUDY, AND CLAIRE ROGERS, ZACHARY, LA
DARLENE B. WAX, GONZALES, LA
MAINE LANDSCAPE AND NURSERY ASSOCIATION
FARM CREDIT OF MAINE
MAINE POTATO BOARD
MAINE LCLAA CHAPTER
MAINE MIGRANT HEALTH PROGRAM
ERLENE R. LEBORGNE, ROSEMONT FLORAL, PORTLAND, ME
SHELLEY PEASE- SHELLEY'S FLOWERS, WALDOBORO, ME
ANGELICA NURSERIES, INC. (MD)
MARYLAND-DELAWARE WATERMELON ASSOCIATION
MARYLAND NURSERY AND LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
MARYLAND JOCKEY CLUB
CASA OF MARYLAND
CATHOLIC LABOR COMMITTEE OF BALTIMORE
IRISH APOSTOLATE USA (MD)
MEDICAL MISSION SISTERS (MD)
NATIONAL ADVOCACY CENTER OF THE SISTERS OF THE GOOD SHEPHERD
SIKH COMMUNITY CENTER (MD)
SISTERS OF CHARITY (MD)
TELAMON CORPORATION (MD)

GREENSTREET GROWERS INC., RAYMOND E. GREENSTREET, II (MD)
HUNT VALLEY FLORALS, BROOKLANDVILLE, MD
MASSACHUSETTS NURSERY AND LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION, INC.
OFFICE OF TOTAL ASSISTANCE, INC. (MA)
WESTERN MASSACHUSETTS LEGAL SERVICES, INC.
NOURSE FARMS, INC. (MA)
AMERICAN FLORAL SUPPLY, WILMINGTON, MA
STEPHANIE'S FLOWERS OF CHESTNUT HILL, CHESTNUT HILL, MA
BENTON HARBOR FRUIT MARKET, INC. (MI)
MICHIGAN APPLE COMMITTEE
MICHIGAN CHRISTMAS TREE ASSOCIATION
MICHIGAN GREEN INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION
MICHIGAN FOOD PROCESSORS ASSOCIATION
MICHIGAN NURSERY AND LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
MICHIGAN POTATO INDUSTRY COMMISSION
MICHIGAN VEGETABLE COUNCIL
WINEMICHIGAN
CENTER FOR CHICANO-BORICUA STUDIES (MI)
COLDWELLBANKER/AJS SCHMIDT (MI)
EL VOCERO HISPANO (MI)
GRAND RAPIDS FRIENDS OF FARMWORKERS (MI)
HENDRICKS & WATKINS, PLC (MI)
HOLLAND HOSPITAL (MI)
JUSTICE AND PEACE AWARENESS CENTER (MI)
LABOR COUNCIL FOR LATIN AMERICAN ADVANCEMENT (MI)
MICHIGAN MIGRANT LEGAL ASSISTANCE PROJECT, INC.
SUGAR LAW CENTER FOR ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL JUSTICE (MI)
TELAMON CORPORATION (MI)
BRUCE ANDERSON, MOEHRING-WOODS FLOWERS, GROSSE POINTE WOODS, MI
MINNESOTA NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
BENEDICTINES FOR PEACE (MN)
CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF ARCHDIOCESE ST. PAUL-MPLS (MN)
CHURCH OF SAINT ANNE - ST. JOSEPH HIEN (MN)
FRANCISCAN SISTERS OF LITTLE FALLS (MN)
SCHOOL SISTERS OF NOTRE DAME, SHALOM NORTH AMERICA (MN)
UMOS (MN)
ARDITH E. BEVERIDGE AAF AIFD PFCI, MINNEAPOLIS, MN
MISSISSIPPI IMMIGRANTS RIGHT ALLIANCE (MS)
MISSISSIPPI NURSERY AND LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
NATCHEZ TRACE GREENHOUSES AND GARDENS, KOSCIUSKO, MS
MISSOURI-ARKANSAS WATERMELON ASSOCIATION
MISSOURI NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
AFRICAN MUTUAL ASSISTANCE ASSOCIATION OF MISSOURI (AMAAM) (MO)
INSTITUTE FOR PEACE AND JUSTICE (MO)
LORETTO COMMUNITY (MO)
MISSOURI IMMIGRANT & REFUGEE ADVOCATES
UMOS (MO)
WESTERN SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE WORKING GROUP (MT)
MISSOURI WINE & GRAPE BOARD
MONTANA NURSERY AND LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
MONTANA POTATO IMPROVEMENT ASSOCIATION
NEBRASKA FLORISTS SOCIETY
NEBRASKA NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
NAF MULTICULTURAL HUMAN DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION (NE)
NEBRASKA APPLESEED CENTER FOR LAW IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST
MEL AND JOEY SCHWANKE, GREENS GREENHOUSES INC., FREMONT, NE
NEVADA LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
NEVADA ASSOCIATION OF WINE & GRAPE GROWERS
CATHY PARRISH, FLOWERS BY PATTI, RENO, NV
NEW HAMPSHIRE PROFESSIONAL PLANT GROWERS ASSOCIATION
VILLAGE GREENERY, MEREDITH, NH
NEW JERSEY NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF THE ARCHDIOCESE OF NEWARK, THE BISHOP FRANCIS CENTER FOR IMMIGRATION
SERVICES (NJ)
MIGRATION AND REFUGEE SERVICES, DIOCESE OF TRENTON (NJ)
NEW JERSEY IMMIGRATION POLICY NETWORK (NJ)
SOUTHERN JERSEY FAMILY MEDICAL CENTERS, INC. (NJ)
UFCW (NJ)
UNITED FOOD AND COMMERICAL WORKERS LOCAL 1360 (NJ)
BLESS FLOWERS, NORTH BERGEN, NJ
KUBE-PAK CORP., ALLENTOWN, NJ
MONDAY MORNING FLOWER & BALLOON CO., PRINCETON, NJ
RANDY SCHENAUER - THE ELITE FLOWER, GALLOWAY, NJ
SUZANNE LANKENAU, RIVERSIDE, NJ
THEODORE S. JOHNSON, SEWELL, NJ
NEW MEXICO HORSE COUNCIL
NEW MEXICO NURSERYMEN / TREES OF CORRALES
AMANECER, INC. (NM)
CAMPESINOS SIN FRONTERAS (NM)
FAMILY UNITY PROGRAM (NM)
HANDS ACROSS CULTURES (NM)
HELP-NEW MEXICO, INC (NM)
RURAL OPPORTUNITIES, INC. (NM)
AGRI-PLACEMENT SERVICES, INC. (NY)
CAYUGA MARKETING GROUP (NY)
EMPIRE STATE POTATO GROWERS
FARM CREDIT OF WESTERN NEW YORK (NY)

NEW YORK AGRICULTURAL AFFILIATES
NEW YORK APPLE ASSOCIATION
NEW YORK HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY
NEW YORK STATE NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
NEW YORK STATE VEGETABLE GROWERS ASSOCIATION INC.
NEW YORK STATE WINE GRAPE GROWERS, INC.
NEW YORK WINE & GRAPE FOUNDATION
PRO-FAC COOPERATIVE (NY)
TORREY FARMS INC.
UPSTATE NIAGARA COOPERATIVE INC.
AGRICULTURAL MISSIONS, INC. (NY)
CITA, INDEPENDENT FARMWORKER CENTER (NY)
COMMISSION ON SOCIAL ACTION OF REFORM JUDAISM (NY)
EASTERN ALLIANCE OF FARMWORKER ADVOCATES (EAFA) (NY)
ELECTRICAL WORKERS MINORITY CAUCUS IBEW 25 (NY)
EPISCOPAL MIGRATION MINISTRIES (NY)
FARMWORKER LEGAL SERVICES OF NEW YORK, INC.
GLOBAL WORKERS JUSTICE ALLIANCE (NY)
HUDSON RIVER HEALTHCARE, INC. (NY)
INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE OF BUFFALO (NY)
NEW YORK STATE MIGRANT EDUCATION, DIVERSITY PROJECT
OAK ORCHARD COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER, INC. (NY)
RIGHT CROSS YOUTH DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM (NY)
ROCHESTER ALLIANCE FOR IMMIGRANT RIGHTS (NY)
RURAL AND MIGRANT MINISTRY (NY)
RURAL OPPORTUNITIES, INC. (NY)
TOMPKINS COUNTY HEALTH CARE TASK FORCE (NY)
UNITED METHODIST CHURCH, GENERAL BOARD OF GLOBAL MINISTRIES - MISSION CONTEXTS &
RELATIONSHIPS (NY)
WAYNE ACTION FOR RACIAL EQUALITY (NY)
CARMEN S. COSENTINO, AUBURN, NY
EMIL YEDOWITZ SONS INC., YONKERS, NY
SUSAN L. BERGER, FLOWER A DAY, GRAND ISLAND, NY
THERESA MORON, FLORAL ACCENTS, NORTH TONAWANDA, NY
JACKSON FARMING COMPANY (NC)
NORTH CAROLINA CHRISTMAS TREE ASSOCIATION
NORTH CAROLINA GREEN INDUSTRY COUNCIL
NORTH CAROLINA MUSCADINE GRAPE ASSOCIATION
NORTH CAROLINA NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
NORTH CAROLINA POTATO ASSOCIATION
NORTH CAROLINA WATERMELON ASSOCIATION
NORTH CAROLINA WINE & GRAPE COUNCIL
BLADEN HISPANIC CENTER (NC)
CENTER FOR PARTICIPATORY CHANGE (NC)
EL PUEBLO (NC)
EPISCOPAL FARM WORKER MINISTRY (NC)
FARM LABOR ORGANIZATION COMMITTEE, AFL-CIO (FLOC) (NC)
FARMWORKER ADVOCACY NETWORK (NC)
FARMWORKER MINISTRY COMMITTEE OF THE NORTH CAROLINA COUNCIL OF CHURCHES
THE HISPANIC/LATINO CENTER, INC. (NC)
NC LATINO COALITION
NEW GARDEN FRIENDS MEETING SPIRITUAL STUDIES GROUP (NC)
NORTH CAROLINA COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER ASSOC.
NORTH CAROLINA JUSTICE CENTER
PESTICIDE EDUCATION PROJECT (NC)
ROBESON HEALTH CARE CORPORATION (NC)
STUDENT ACTION WITH FARMWORKERS (NC)
TELAMON CORPORATION (NC)
TWIN STREAMS EDUCATIONAL CENTER'S PEACE1ST PROJECT (NC)
VECINOS, INC. FARMWORKER HEALTH PROGRAM (NC)
YADKIN VALLEY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DISTRICT, INC. (NC)
REDDICK FUMIGANTS, INC. (NC)
DALES FLORIST, FAYETTEVILLE, NC
KARI P SELLS, PRES. OF CENTRAL FLORAL GARDENS, INC., GREENSBORO, NC
W. MICHAEL TROGDON, ASHEBORO, NC
WM. JEF PRATT, HIGHLANDS, NC
NORTH DAKOTA NURSERY AND GREENHOUSE ASSOCIATION
BLOOM'N HOUSE, JEFF GEGELMAN, BEULAH, ND
SHOTWELL FLORAL CO., FARGO, ND
LAKE COUNTY NURSERYMEN’S ASSOCIATION (OH)
NORTHERN OHIO GROWERS ASSOCIATION

OHIO AGRI-WOMEN
OHIO LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
OHIO NURSERY AND LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
OHIO WINE PRODUCERS ASSOCIATION
ADVOCATES FOR BASIC LEGAL EQUALITY, INC. (OH)
ALLEN COUNTY HEALTH PARTNERS (OH)
CATHOLIC CHARITIES LEGAL IMMIGRATION SERVICES (OH)
COALITION FOR THE DIGNITY AND RIGHTS OF THE IMMIGRANTS – CODEDI (OH)
FARM LABOR ORGANIZATION COMMITTEE, AFL-CIO (FLOC) (OH)
GALLON, TAKACS, BOISSONEAULT & SCHAFFER CO., L.P.A. (OH)
HISPANAS ORGANIZADAS DE LAKE Y ASHTABULA (HOLA) (OH)
RURAL OPPORTUNITIES, INC. (OH)
SISTERS OF ST. DOMINIC (OH)
UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST JUSTICE AND WITNESS MINISTRIES (OH)
BARONS GARDENS, STONEY CREEK, OH
BEROSKE FARMS & GREENHOUSE, INC., DELTA, OH
BIG BOUQUET FLORIST, EUCLID, OH
KATHY ARDLE, SCHNEIDER'S FLORIST, SPRINGFIELD, OH
ROBERT M. WILLIAMS, II - VP NORTH AMERICA - SMITHERS OASIS CO., KENT, OH
THE CLEVELAND PLANT AND FLOWER COMPANY, CLEVELAND, OH
TOM HAMILTON, OWNER - BEAVERCREEK FLORIST -, BEAVERCREEK, OH
OKLAHOMA GREENHOUSE GROWERS ASSOCIATION
OKLAHOMA NURSERY AND LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
ORO DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION (OK)
DAVID THOMPSON, GRANADA FLORAL, OKLAHOMA CITY, OK
GARY LEMAY, PAULS VALLEY, OK
UPTOWN FLORIST, ENID, OK
HOOD RIVER GROWER-SHIPPER ASSOCIATION (OR)
ORCHARD VIEW FARMS (OR)
OREGON ASSOCIATION OF NURSERIES
OREGON POTATO COMMISSION
WASCO COUNTY FRUIT & PRODUCE LEAGUE (OR)
CASA OF OREGON
CAUSA (OR)
LATINOS UNIDOS SIEMPRE (OR)
NORTHWEST WORKERS' JUSTICE PROJECT (OR)
OREGON FARM WORKER MINISTRY
OREGON HUMAN DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
OREGON LAW CENTER
PCUN (OR)
SALEM/KIEZER COALITION FOR EQUALITY (OR)
SANTOS CONSULTING SERVICES (OR)
BROADWAY FLORAL HOME AND GARDEN, PORTLAND, OR
DANDELIONS FLOWERS & GIFTS LLC, EUGENE, OR
FRANK ADAMS WHOLESALE FLORIST, PORTLAND, OR
MARTIN W. MESKERS, OREGON FLOWERS, INC., AURORA, OR
KOIDA GREENHOUSE INC., MILWAUKIE, OR
FIVE FORKS FRUIT (PA)
PENNSYLVANIA LANDSCAPE & NURSERY ASSOCIATION
PENNSYLVANIA WINERIES ASSOCIATION
STATE HORTICULTURAL ASSOCIATION OF PENNSYLVANIA
APM ASOCIACION DE PUERTORRIQUENOS EN MARCHA (PA)
FRIENDS OF FARMWORKERS, INC. (PA)
HIAS AND COUNCIL MIGRATION SERVICE OF PHILADELPHIA (PA)
NATIONALITIES SERVICE CENTER (PA)
PENNSYLVANIA COUNCIL OF CHURCHES
PENNSYLVANIA IMMIGRATION AND CITIZENSHIP COALITION (PICC)
RURAL OPPORTUNITIES, INC. (PA)
HOLLABAUGH BROS., INC. (PA)
KATHLEEN DUDLEY, THE BLOOMERY FLORIST, BUTLER, PA
ROBERT'S FLOWERS, HARRISBURG, PA
TIM FARRELL AAF AIFD PFCI, FARRELL'S FLORIST, DREXEL HILL, PA
CENTRO SERVICIOS PRIMARIOS DE SALUD DE PATILLAS INC. (PR)
RHODE ISLAND NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSN
NICHOL NETO, OWNER PETAL'S FLORAL DESIGN & GIFTS, WARREN, RI
SOUTH CAROLINA GREENHOUSE GROWERS ASSOCIATION
WESTERN CAROLINAS HORTICULTURAL ALLIANCE
SOUTH CAROLINA NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
SOUTH CAROLINA WATERMELON ASSOCIATION
IMMIGRATION SERVICES - ST. FRANCIS BY THE SEA R.C. CHURCH (SC)
TELAMON CORPORATION (SC)
MANNY GONZALES, OWNER, TIGER LILY FLORIST, CHARLESTON, SC
SOUTH DAKOTA NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
J.C. RAMSDELL ENVIRO SERVICES, INC. (SD)
UMOS (SD)
TENNESSEE NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION, INC.
CUMBERLAND PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH BOARD OF MISSIONS (TN)
TELAMON CORPORATION (TN)
UFCW LOCAL 1529 (TN)
FLOWERS DIRECT, INC., KNOXVILLE, TN
CORN PRODUCERS ASSOCIATION (TX)
COTTON & GRAIN PRODUCERS OF RIO GRANDE VALLEY
LONE STAR MILK PRODUCERS
PLAINS COTTON GROWERS, INC.
SELECT MILK PRODUCERS
SOUTH TEXAS COTTON AND GRAIN ASSOCIATION
TEXAS AGRICULTURE COOPERATIVE COUNCIL
TEXAS ASSOCIATION OF DAIRYMEN
TEXAS CITRUS MUTUAL
TEXAS COTTON GINNERS ASSOCIATION
TEXAS FORESTRY ASSOCIATION
TEXAS HORSE COUNCIL
TEXAS WINE & GRAPE GROWERS ASSOCIATION
TEXAS NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
TEXAS-OKLAHOMA WATERMELON ASSOCIATION
TEXAS POULTRY FEDERATION AND AFFILIATES
TEXAS QUARTER HORSE ASSOCIATION
TEXAS PRODUCE ASSOCIATION
TEXAS SOYBEAN ASSOCIATION
TEXAS TURFGRASS PRODUCERS ASSOCIATION
TEXAS VEGETABLE ASSOCIATION
AMERICAN GI FORUM OF THE UNITED STATES (TX)
CATHOLIC CHARITIES-DIOCESE OF TYLER, IMMIGRATION DEPARTMENT (TX)
CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF DALLAS, INC. IMMIGRATION & LEGAL SERVICES (TX)
CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS
LA FE POLICY AND ADVOCACY CENTER (TX)
LABOR COUNCIL FOR LATIN AMERICAN ADVANCEMENT TEXAS STATE CHAPTER (TX)
ST. GERARD CATHOLIC HIGH SCHOOL (TX)
SOUTH TEXAS CIVIL RIGHTS PROJECT (TX)
SOUTHWEST KEY PROGRAM, INC. (TX)
UMOS (TX)

ANNMARIE PAYNE, MYSTIC FLORAL, WICHITA FALLS, TX
AWESOME FLOWERS, HOUSTON, TX
C & C FLORIST/TERESA ASHTON, CROWLEY, TX
GROESBECK FLOWER SHOP & GIFTS, GROESBECK, TX
JACK CROSS, ARTHUR PFEIL FLORIST, SAN ANTONIO, TX
TWO GUYS DESIGNS, INC., STEPHENVILLE, TX
WESTERN PEANUT GROWERS ASSOCIATION
WINTER GARDEN PRODUCE
UTAH NURSERY AND LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
HOLY CROSS MINISTRIES (UT)
JOHN B. "JACK" GILES, HUDDART FLORAL CO., SALT LAKE CITY, UT
ST. ALBANS COOPERATIVE CREAMERY (VT)
VERMONT APPLE MARKETING BOARD
VERMONT ASSOCIATION OF PROFESSIONAL HORTICULTURISTS
NORTHERN VIRGINIA NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
VIRGINIA CHRISTMAS TREE GROWERS ASSOCIATION
VIRGINIA GREEN INDUSTRY COUNCIL
VIRGINIA NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
EAST COAST MIGRANT HEAD START PROJECT (VA)
TELAMON CORPORATION (VA)
VIRGINIA COALITION OF LATINO ORGANIZATIONS (VACOLAO)
VIRGINIA JUSTICE CENTER FOR FARM AND IMMIGRANT WORKERS
COUNTRY GARDEN FLORIST, CLIFTON FORGE, VA
FLOWERS WITH LOVE, ARLINGTON, VA
HOLLY TREE FARM, VA
MUDDY LAKE CATTLE COMPANY VA
LARRY DENHOLM FLOWERS 'N' FERNS, BURKE, VA
WASHINGTON APPLE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON ASSOCIATION OF WINE GRAPE GROWERS
WASHINGTON GROWERS CLEARING HOUSE ASSOCIATION
WASHINGTON GROWERS LEAGUE
WASHINGTON STATE NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION
WASHINGTON STATE POTATO COMMISSION
WENATCHEE VALLEY TRAFFIC ASSOCIATION (WA)
YAKIMA VALLEY GROWERS-SHIPPERS ASSOCIATION (WA)
WASHINGTON BULB COMPANY, INC., MOUNT VERNON, WA
LABOR COUNCIL FOR LATIN AMERICAN ADVANCEMENT WASHINGTON CHAPTER (WA)
ALICE C. LARSON, PH.D.
LUTHERAN PUBLIC POLICY OFFICE OF WASHINGTON STATE (WA)
MEMBERS OF THE SOCIAL JUSTICE COMMITTEE OF UNITARIAN FELLOWSHIP (WA)
SEA MAR COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS (WA)
SEIU 1199NW (WA)
WEST VIRGINIA HORSE COUNCIL
WEST VIRGINIA NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION, INC.
TELAMON CORPORATION (WV)
PHILLIP L PEARCE-YOUNG FLORAL COMPANY, CHARLESTON, WV
WISCONSIN CHRISTMAS TREE PRODUCERS ASSN.
WISCONSIN DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND CONSUMER PROTECTION
WISCONSIN GREEN INDUSTRY FEDERATION
WISCONSIN LANDSCAPE CONTRACTORS ASSOCIATION
WISCONSIN NURSERY ASSOCIATION
WISCONSIN POTATO AND VEGETABLE GROWERS ASSOCIATION
WISCONSIN SOD PRODUCERS
WISCONSIN WINERY ASSOCIATION
CATHOLIC CHARITIES, DIOCESE OF GREEN BAY (WI)
HILL CONNECTIONS (WI)
INDUSTRIAL WORKERS OF THE WORLD (WI)
IUE/CWA (WI)
LA CAUSA, INC. (WI)
LATINOS UNIDOS (WI)
LCLAA, MILWAUKEE WI (WI)
MILWAUKEE AREA TECHNICAL COLLEGE (WI)
SISTERS OF ST. FRANCIS OF ASSISI (WI)
UFCW 1473 (WI)
UMOS (WI)
VOCES DE LA FRONTERA (WI)
WISCONSIN MIGRANT COALITION
HARTUNG BROTHERS, INC. (WI)
WALTER ROJAHN - ROJAHN & MALANEY COMPANY, MILWAUKEE, WI
WAUKESHA FLORAL & GREENHOUSE, INC., WAUKESHA, WI
MARK SCHROEDER & COMPANY

2007 DMN Texan of the Year: The Illegal Immigrant

Courtesy of the Dallas Morning News

dallasnews.com

He is at the heart of a great culture war in Texas – and the nation, credited with bringing us prosperity and blamed for abusing our resources. How should we deal with this stranger among us?

07:44 PM CST on Sunday, December 30, 2007

He breaks the law by his very presence. He hustles to do hard work many Americans won't, at least not at the low wages he accepts. The American consumer economy depends on him. America as we have known it for generations may not survive him.

We can't seem to live with him and his family, and if we can live without him, nobody's figured out how. He's the Illegal Immigrant, and he's the 2007 Dallas Morning News Texan of the Year – for better or for worse.

We can't seem to live with him and his family, and if we can live without him, nobody's figured out how.

He's the Illegal Immigrant, and he's the 2007 Dallas Morning News Texan of the Year – for better or for worse. Given the public mood, there seems to be little middle ground in debate over illegal immigrants. Spectacular fights over their presence broke out across Texas this year, adding to the national pressure cooker as only Texas can.

To their champions, illegal immigrants are decent, hardworking people who, like generations of European immigrants before them, just want to do better for their families and who contribute to America's prosperity. They must endure hatred and abuse by those of us who want the benefits of cheap labor but not the presence of illegal immigrants.
2007 Dallas Morning News Texan of the Year

Especially here in Texas, his strong back and willing heart help form the cornerstone of our daily lives, in ways that many of us do not, or will not, see. The illegal immigrant is the waiter serving margaritas at our restaurant table, the cook preparing our enchiladas. He works grueling hours at a meatpacking plant, carving up carcasses of cattle for our barbecue (he also picks the lettuce for our burgers). He builds our houses and cuts our grass. She cleans our homes and takes care of our children.

Yet to those who want them sent home, illegal immigrants are essentially lawbreakers who violate the nation's borders. They use public resources – schools, hospitals – to which they aren't entitled and expect to be served in a foreign language. They're rapidly changing Texas neighborhoods, cities and culture, and not always for the better. Those who object get tagged as racists.

Whatever and whoever else the illegal immigrant is, everybody has felt the tidal wave of his presence. According to an analysis of government data by the Washington-based Center for Immigration Studies, Texas' immigrant population has jumped a whopping 32.7 percent since 2000, a period in which immigration to the United States has exceeded, in sheer numbers, all previous historical eras. Half the immigrants in the state – 7 percent of all Texans – are estimated to be here illegally.

Though many would agree that the status quo cannot be sustained – more illegal immigrants arrive each year than legal ones, a sure sign that the system is a joke – neither Texas nor the nation seemed nearer in 2007 to resolving this complex crisis. We can't deport 12 million people who already live here, but we can't leave our back door open indefinitely. Compromise comes hard because the issue is tangled up with the most basic aspects of everyday life, down to the core of what it means to be American.

This essay cannot put a name or a face to an illegal immigrant, because that would subject him to possible deportation. Because he lives underground, the illegal immigrant becomes, in our rancorous debate, less a complex human being and more a blank screen upon which both sides can project their hopes and fears.

If illegal immigration were an easy problem to fix, the nation wouldn't be at an impasse. In the current atmosphere, it seems, reason doesn't stand a chance of digging us out. Ask Irving Mayor Herb Gears, a man once denounced by anti-immigration activists for running what they called a "sanctuary city." He then found himself targeted by Hispanics because of the city's participation in a federal deportation program.

"One week I'm a traitor, the next week I'm a patriot," laments Mr. Gears.

The mayor says he just wants to respect both people, and the law. His exasperated manner seems to ask, Why can't you do both? Good question.
The economy

If there are jobs in America, Latino immigrants will come, no matter the risk. And why not? They may be at the bottom of the economic ladder here, but they're making about four times, on average, what they could back home.

Antonio, a waiter at a North Texas restaurant, was an accountant in Mexico. He and his wife thought they could make more money in Texas, so they came illegally.

"In the time I've been here, this country has been very good to me. I am a responsible person. I pay my taxes. I pay my bills on time – utilities, mortgage. I pay federal taxes, too," he says.

American prosperity is built in part on the backs of illegal-immigrant labor, such as these workers picking onions on a farm in South Texas.

Antonio resented any suggestion that he should consider returning home or that illegal immigrants don't belong here. He seemed to regard his presence here as exercising a right.

Workers like him find support among business owners – especially in Texas industries dependent on unskilled immigrants, like agriculture and construction. They say that without those workers, they couldn't survive.

Marty owns a North Texas construction company. He has come to view American workers as undependable, lazy and arrogant, while he finds illegal immigrants motivated and reliable.

"I'd rather employ them than Americans," he confides. "In my line of work, I need the Mexicans, and I am for them being here. I need them because I can't find anybody else to do the work."

(Both Antonio and Marty asked that their last names not be disclosed to prevent repercussions.)

The importance of immigrant labor to Texas was underscored this year with formation of a new political alliance – big business and the Legislature's Mexican-American caucus. They threatened to cripple the lawmaking machinery if legislative leaders allowed a slate of "anti-immigrant" bills to advance. The tactic worked.

It's unclear from the data whether illegal immigration is a plus or minus for the nation's economy overall. Harvard economist George Borjas reports that it's more or less a wash. On close inspection, Dr. Borjas, a leading expert in the field, found that immigration's financial benefits accrue to those at the upper end of the economic scale, who can buy labor and its fruits at a lower cost, at the expense of those Americans at the lower end, whose wages go down.

"There is no such thing as a job that natives won't do," Dr. Borjas, an immigrant from Cuba, wrote last year. "Instead, there are jobs that natives aren't willing to do at the going wage."

The state comptroller's office had a different take on Texas, reporting in 2005 that illegal immigrants provided a net economic boost of nearly $18 billion that year. While state government took in more taxes from illegal immigrants than it paid out in services for them, the comptroller said, the opposite was true for Texas' local governments.

Nationally, a Congressional Budget Office report released this month said illegal immigrants cost more in tax dollars than they provide, especially in the areas of education, law enforcement and health. Indeed, 70 percent of babies born in Dallas' Parkland Hospital in the first three months of 2006 were to illegal immigrant mothers. Taxpayers spend tens of millions of dollars annually subsidizing births in that one hospital.

Texas schools are filling up with students classified as of limited-English proficiency, many of whose parents came here illegally. The number has reached more than 30 percent of Dallas students, 36 percent in Irving and 16 percent statewide.

Hispanic immigrants are more likely to be poor, but they don't stay that way. The Hispanic poverty rate has dropped 30 percent since 1994, census data show. At 20.6 percent, that's significantly above the national average of 12.8 percent. But Latinos are undeniably upwardly mobile. Besides, if you want to see what happens when Latinos leave, look at the business losses in Irving since the city's role in the federal deportation program sent a chill through the Hispanic community.
Politics

Earlier this year, U.S. Rep. Jeb Hensarling of Dallas, when asked what his constituents were talking about, said, "Immigration, immigration, immigration." GOP presidential contender Mike Huckabee, born again as an immigration hard-liner, told The New Yorker this month that wherever he campaigns, immigration is the first thing voters ask about. "It's just red hot," he says, "and I don't fully understand it."

John McCain does. Voters are worried, he told the magazine, that illegal immigrants make a mockery of law and the idea of sovereign borders, as well as upset social norms.

"They see this as an assault on their culture, what they view as an impact on what have been their traditions," Mr. McCain says. "It's become larger than just the fact that we need to enforce our borders."

Once the GOP favorite to win the nomination, the Arizona senator set back his campaign this summer by supporting President Bush's call for comprehensive immigration reform. A revolt at the grassroots scuttled that plan in Congress.

Democrats have felt the political whiplash, too. Hillary Clinton, for one, abandoned her support of a New York proposal to issue driver's licenses to illegal immigrants. Most other Democratic presidential candidates fell in line with her.

The political tap dance is trickier in Texas, owing to the 1,300-mile border with Mexico and community ties across the divide. Many local officials bitterly objected to Congress' plan to fence off long stretches of the Rio Grande. Gov. Rick Perry ultimately said "boots on the ground" and not a hard barrier was the answer to keeping out illegal immigrants. Sens. Kay Bailey Hutchison and John Cornyn put forth a measure to ease up on mandatory double fencing if locals have better options.

At the local level, Farmers Branch voters this year approved a local ban on renting to illegal aliens, a move later blocked in court. Despite accusations of racism ("They are so prejudiced, but they don't want to face it," local business owner Elizabeth Villafranca says), and despite the judge's order, City Council member Tim O'Hare was defiant at year's end. Says Mr. O'Hare, "I only wish we had done this earlier."
Culture

It's easy to say, as many immigrant advocates do, that opposition to illegal immigration derives from racist sentiment, because that's undeniably part of the mix. But the culture clash is a lot more complicated.

Illegal Hispanic immigrants are usually Third World peasants who have moved to the First World. They go from a country with sharp class divisions to a middle-class society.

In earlier waves of immigrants, millions of new arrivals left processing at New York's Ellis Island with the expectation that they would adapt fully and deliberately to American norms – the melting pot, rather than the salad bowl. The post-1960s movement toward multiculturalism has made the nation more tolerant of ethnic and cultural differences, but it has also lessened the impetus for immigrants to conform.

"Mexico is radically, substantively, ferociously different from the United States," Jorge Castañeda, formerly Mexico's foreign minister, observed in 1995. It was a period of turmoil, with NAFTA newly inaugurated, a rural uprising in Chiapas and a growing gulf between social classes.

He described Mexicans trying to embrace an American-style work ethic, while others remained glued to a "mañana" view of life, reinforced by low pay, low self-esteem and an inability to penetrate Mexico's rigid class system. Many Mexicans lost hope and sought a better life in America.

Rural Mexicans have dominated the migrant wave, bringing a country-style sense of time and priorities. For Americans, a transfer of Mexican rural culture to our neighborhoods leaves many feeling overwhelmed. The fear of cultural overload is manifested in sights like Spanish-language billboards or large quinceañera parties in public parks. Schoolteachers find it incomprehensible that, for some reason, immigrant students often disappear for days and suddenly return with the expectation that the teacher should catch them up.

"Certain Mexicans can subscribe to a series of rules, from traffic regulations to work discipline and punctuality; others can decide, consciously or otherwise, that they prefer not to," Dr. Castañeda wrote.

Illegal immigration exacerbates the natural tension in American society by injecting more change than can be absorbed – and by defying laws designed to control the rate of change. When immigration restrictionists protest defiance of "law and order," they reveal anger at the cultural revolution Latino immigrants bring – a revolution many U.S. citizens feel powerless to stop.
Identity

Harvard's Samuel Huntington, one of America's most eminent political scientists – and a liberal one – has argued that the immigration wave stands as "the single most immediate and most serious challenge to America's traditional identity."

In his 2004 book Who Are We?, Dr. Huntington identified several factors that set current Hispanic immigration apart from previous episodes in U.S. history.

Most immigrants are Latino and come over a border, not an ocean. Roughly half of these are illegal. Assimilation is slower, writes Dr. Huntington, because the immigrants "remain in intimate contact with their families, friends and home localities in Mexico as no other immigrants have been able to do."

The scale is unmatched, he argues. Since 2000, more immigrants (10.3 million) have arrived in America than in any other seven-year period, according to the Center for Immigration Studies' recent analysis of census data. And in contrast to previous waves of immigration, this one shows no signs of letting up, according to Dr. Huntington.

Not everyone agrees with this assessment. Some of Dr. Huntington's critics point out that the rate of immigration (as distinct from sheer numbers) is not as high now as in previous eras, which ended with successful assimilation of foreign-born populations. Besides, though the current immigration flow shows no signs of abating, the Mexican GDP is growing and the national fertility rate has plummeted by almost two-thirds since 1970. That birth rate is nearing the level at which Mexico would need to retain workers for its own economy, thereby shutting off the spigot of immigration into the U.S.

As for assimilation, Roberto Suro, director of the Pew Hispanic Center, points to social-science data indicating that Hispanic immigrants are, in fact, assimilating as fast as immigrants of previous generations. They learn English quickly, and, once they acquire proficiency, they adopt American cultural attitudes.

One other observation of Dr. Huntington's has particular resonance in Texas: The current wave of immigrants has had disproportionate impact on the Southwest. And as the majority of them are from Mexico, they are now settled in areas that used to belong to their ancestors.

Attempts to draw a sharp line between mainstream "Anglo" (for lack of a better term) culture and Hispanic culture is a distortion of the reality we live with in much of Texas, and always have. The border between the two Texan cultures is as porous as the border between Texas and Mexico, which is one reason why our experience with immigration differs from much of America's.

Texas culture reflects the long list of towns with Spanish names. What's more, in a great swath along the border, most cities are run by those with Spanish surnames, too. Today's immigration wave has carried a different version of Hispanic culture to Dallas and other major population centers. And in this increasingly urbanized state, the dominant Anglo culture has felt a rub like never before.

Though towns and cities nationwide have felt the rub, too, it hasn't been on the Texas scale. Leaders in Farmers Branch and Irving were reacting to complaints of runaway community transformation brought on by illegal arrivals.

As 2007 began, the isolated Texas Panhandle town of Cactus was still reeling from the arrests of nearly 300 people at the local Swift & Co. meat-processing plant, the community's economic lifeblood. Dozens of Mexicans and Guatemalans were prosecuted this year for using stolen Social Security numbers to work at the plant.

The town had come to resemble a kind of renegade outpost of illegal immigrants that wouldn't exist in non-border states.
The future

Everything's bigger in Texas, and history and geography guarantee that the immigration problem is no different. And many issues are flaring sooner here. What Cactus, Irving and Farmers Branch are dealing with today, the rest of America may be dealing with tomorrow. Texas, which will be majority Hispanic by 2020, and the nation face an unprecedented challenge that we can't dismiss with gauzy platitudes, nor defer meeting indefinitely.

How Texas – and, by extension, the rest of America – reacts will be unlike how previous generations handled immigration, given how the nation has changed since the 1960s. Fair or not, core American culture and values have become a popular punching bag. Some have cheered that as refining the American character by embracing diversity, inclusiveness and empowerment of ethnic and other minorities. Others worry that America risks losing itself in the process, especially if it gives up on securing the borders.

Historians say that the distinctly American democratic and middle-class ideals grew out of a specific cultural tradition – the Anglo-Protestant. Changed slowly over time by immigrants from the world over, it's now challenged by a strong competing culture.

If critics are correct, we could be seeing the advent of the kind of fractiousness that bedevils public life in Canada and other nations where peoples who speak different languages, and come from different cultural backgrounds, live together only with mutual suspicion and unease.

On the other hand, perhaps the alarmists are wrong. Maybe these ambitious, hard-working immigrants, whatever their documentation, will write the next great chapter of a story that's still deeply American, though with a different accent. If the optimists are right, much work remains to be done to incorporate all immigrants fully into new cultural traditions.

We end 2007 no closer to compromise on the issue than when the year began. People waging a culture war – and that's what the struggle over illegal immigration is – don't give up easily. What you think of the illegal immigrant says a lot about what you think of America, and what vision of her you are willing to defend. How we deal with the stranger among us says not only who we Americans are today but determines who we will become tomorrow.