View Full Version : What Will Kirsten Gillibrand's Appointment Mean For Immigrants?
Congresswoman Kirsten Gillibrand has been chosen to fill Hillary Clinton's former New York Senate seat, and groups on both sides of the immigration issue will be watching closely to see how this conservative Democrat moves forward in her new position.
http://immigration.about.com/b/2009/01/23/what-will-kirsten-gillibrands-appointment-mean-for-immigrants.htm
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/andrea-batista-schlesinger/gillibrand-needs-to-chang_b_160391.html
VaeVictis
01-24-2009, 12:44 AM
I was looking at the comments on the huffpost link and was disturbed by what I saw. This is a liberal site and I saw only one comment out of over a page that could be construed as agreeing with what the columnist had to say.
It just gets under my skin that more than a small amount of liberals are with the nativists on immigration. Of course, most of the support that DREAM gets comes from liberals, and it's the liberal politicians who we rely on for support, but it's disturbing to see the sentiment a percentage of that demographic holds.
It reminds me so much of a friend of mine (who's even more liberal than I am) that refused to sign a petition for CIR or even DREAM about a year ago. I was furious with him (but tried not to show it). His mom was and still is unemployed and he's wrongly blaming immigrants for his troubles.
I wish he could understand just how frustrating it is knowing that your girlfriend (of almost four years) could be shipped to a foreign country and banned from returning for at least 10 years...
CIR_DREAM2009
01-24-2009, 09:43 AM
^ I'm sure you're right that liberals are not all lock step on immigration, but the vast majority are. And I don't think Huffpo message boards, or any message board for that matter, should be used as a gauge of public opinion. The people who post on message boards are different because the people who post are the most animated about the issue one way or the other, and there's an anonymous factor that can bring out the negative part of a human being. Also, it's been my experience that restrictionists post everywhere including liberal sites. Restrictionists are like rodents.
I think the best way to find out public opinion is through opinion polls or going out there and talking with real people (and use it as a chance to convince them if they disagree with you).
Still crossing my fingers for Gillibrand. New York Dreamies and immigration groups now have a job to do and secure Gillibrand's vote.
ibrahim
01-24-2009, 04:00 PM
I'm a NY Dreamie and i know the part of NY shes from shes represents Hudson valley, probably the most racist part of the state, i just hope she votes on our side to help her get re-elected.
daffodils
01-24-2009, 04:05 PM
I'm a NY Dreamie and i know the part of NY shes from shes represents Hudson valley, probably the most racist part of the state, i just hope she votes on our side to help her get re-elected.
Seriously, I wouldn't send my worst enemy to live in her district.
But as soon as her transition to a Senator is settled, we plan to call her, e-mail her, and show her that we deserve her vote. This is NY, she will be under a lot of pressure to be liberal on this issue. It is irritating that we went to from a sure vote from Clinton to this..but at least she is not someone like Sessions (as far as I can see.)
That being said, I still cannot stand her.
lilbawler2001
01-25-2009, 12:30 PM
Throughout the day, the New Yorkers she met formally and informally seemed to want reassurances that she was flexible on some of the positions that have made her a popular Democrat in a heavily Republican Congressional district, and Ms. Gillibrand seemed eager to provide those assurances.
When a reporter held up Saturday’s edition of the Spanish-language newspaper El Diario, which called her anti-immigrant in its front page headline, she replied, “It’s understandable. They don’t know me.”
Ms. Gillibrand also later met with Hispanic leaders and strategists, including Representative Nydia M. Velázquez (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/v/nydia_m_velazquez/index.html?inline=nyt-per) and Roberto Ramirez (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/r/roberto_ramirez/index.html?inline=nyt-per), the former Bronx Democratic Party (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/d/democratic_party/index.html?inline=nyt-org) chairman.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/25/nyregion/25trip.html?ref=todayspaper
I am pretty confident now that she would support CIR and dream act.
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