Center for Immigration Studies exposes itself in public
Posted by Elena del Valle on March 8, 2007
By Patrick Osio, Jr.
Editor, HispanicVista and columnist, San Diego Metropolitan Magazine
Patrick Osio, Jr.
Mark Krikorian, Executive Director of Center for Immigration Studies (CIS), at what was dubbed a “think tank” conference on January 26th to review immigration issues promoted in part by San Diego University’s Trans-Border Institute (TBI), called on the Department of Homeland Security to use eminent domain to purchase from half-mile to a mile of land along the US-Mexico border, and demolish the buildings to create a “border security zone” to “insulate ourselves” from Mexico.
Krikorian’s bizarre ideas would demolish San Ysidro, and Otay Mesa, in San Diego. Do away with much of Calexico in Imperial Valley, California; Nogales, Arizona, El Paso, Laredo, Brownsville and numerous smaller border towns in Texas.
Krikorian was not finished. Referring to the trans-border economy as “a parasitic phenomenon,” he rejects that cities across the border from each other form integrated economies. Thus, he suggests that all border crossing cards allowing visits of up to 72 hours within a 25 mile zone from the border issued to Mexican border residents who go through a screening process, as has been done for decades, be canceled. In short, no Mexican should be able to cross legally into the US.
Krikorian’s ‘parasitic’ border crossers contribute to the San Diego economy over $3-billion in annual retail sales and accompanying sales-taxes of over $235-million, not counting business to business sales estimated at over $9-billion annually. Similarly border cities across Arizona and Texas have integrated economies in varying degrees. El Paso and Ciudad Juarez have for decades set the benchmark for border cities cooperation and integration. Laredo, Texas handles over $20-billion in annual exports to Mexico.
The best thing that can be said about the fanatical ideas presented by Krikorian is that it put an end to the deceitful masquerade perpetrated by the Center for Immigration Studies.
According to the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), CIS was founded in 1985 “as a think tank to support the more activist work of the anti-immigrant Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR).” CIS describes itself as “independent” and “nonpartisan,” but its studies, reports, and media releases consistently support its restrictionist agenda…”
CIS is one of several anti-immigration groups exposed in a Wall Street Journal article (“Borderline Republicans” June 14, 2004), “In fact, CIS, FAIR, NumbersUSA, Project-USA and more than a half-dozen similar groups that Republicans have become disturbingly comfy with, were founded or funded (or both) by John Tanton, a retired doctor in Michigan. In addition to trying to stop immigration to the U.S., appropriate population-control measures for Dr. Tanton and his network include promoting China’s one-child policy, sterilizing Third World women and wider use of RU-486.”
The mastermind of the groups, John Tanton, was exposed by the Intelligence Report published by the SPCL, “The Puppeteer,” (June 12, 2002) written by Rick Swartz. In an interview with SPLC, Swartz said: “The (Tanton) blueprint envisaged creating a whole array of organizations that serve the overall ideological and political battle plan to halt immigration. …They camouflage the links between these organizations, their true origins, so that they appear to have arisen spontaneously. But in fact they have the same creator, Tanton.”
Swartz also observed, “Another tactic of Tanton’s is to turn ethnic groups on each other, to create conflict between different ethnic and racial groups. One of his big arguments has always been that immigration hurts blacks. FAIR has bought radio advertising on black radio stations to push that vision… basically saying, “You know why you don’t have a job? Because some undocumented Mexican came in and stole yours from you.”” Swartz added, “…it’s the oldest trick in the book. It’s called making those who don’t have a lot but are making progress feel threatened by those coming after them.” And, “The Tanton vision… is of an apartheid United States beset by racial violence, and whites not going quietly into the night as their numbers are overwhelmed by the demographics of immigration.”
There is no question that academic institutions have the right, indeed the obligation, to hold and attend conferences on the critical issue. But they also has the responsibility to inform its audiences beforehand not as David Shirk, Trans-Border Institute director, who participated and his organization helped promote, commented afterwards, “Serious scholars have to take the Mr. Krikorians of the world seriously; they represent a long tradition of nativism in this country.”
Beyond identifying Mr. Krikorian as a nativist, his organization’s background and connection to other extremists groups must also be made public at such forums. And, spouting such ridiculous ideas, how can serious scholars and people of good will take Krikorian’s ideas seriously?
Patrick Osio is the editor for HispanicVista.com, an Internet public interest weekly publication. Osio also writes a monthly column, The Connection, for the San Diego Metropolitan Magazine. He has garnered five awards from the SD Society of Professional Journalists. For over 15 years, he was a consultant to the private and public sector on trans-border business and economic affairs. He is a frequent lecturer on U.S.-Mexico issues and a frequent guest on radio talk shows.
I believe that this would be a good idea to create a mile wide border, assuming that those of whose homes will be destroyed are given living facilities. It is wrong to just destroy their homes and leave them stranded.
I think that these ignoranty nazi b**tards should be deported to Germany or Russia and see how they like it. TThey are no better than the fascists of the 1930’s. I am totally disgusted with them and hope they get overwhelmed by numeric victory of other racial groups. After all the whites have caused more grief in this world than any other race.
The Center for Immigration Studies sounds like the KKK of the 21st Century and Mar-K K-ri-K-orian is their fanatical grand wizard. Please tell me that rational political parties do not miss his thinly veiled racist attitudes. Please tell me that something more than this article is being done to “expose” this man and his disgusting organization for what it truly is.
Sandy, you are delusional if you think that”CIS appears to be genuinely pro-immigrant — just concerned that illegals are jeopardizing opportunities for legal immigrants and other citizens, as well as consuming a disproportionate amount of welfare resources”. These people run an anti-immigrant hate group drumming up support for attacks on people from other countries of the world. They are hiding their racism behind the screen that lead you to believe the nonsense quoted from you above. And that is some of the more benign of the monstrous hate filled nonsense these people peddle. I copied this paragraph from an investigative article on the Center for Immigration Studies, I recommend you research the groups mentioned. They are all about hate and right wing nutterey. Please don’t take my word for it, goggle all the groups and people mentioned in the following graph.
“In fact, CIS, FAIR, NumbersUSA, Project-USA and more than a half-dozen similar groups that Republicans have become disturbingly comfy with, were founded or funded (or both) by John Tanton, a retired doctor in Michigan. In addition to trying to stop immigration to the U.S., appropriate population-control measures for Dr. Tanton and his network include promoting China’s one-child policy, sterilizing Third World women and wider use of RU-486.”
Your research will reverse your original ideas about the hate group CIS.
warmest regards, Ted B
Despite their wacko border proposal, CIS is right that something effective needs to be done to reduce the flood of illegals (12 million & counting) coming from Mexico. CIS appears to be genuinely pro-immigrant — just concerned that illegals are jeopardizing opportunities for legal immigrants and other citizens, as well as consuming a disproportionate amount of welfare resources. Hard to understand why so many in the Hispanic media (who presumably are law-abiding citizens or legal immigrants) don’t distinguish between legal & illegal immigration.
Immigration, like overseas outsourcing and “guest worker” programs, is simply a means of expanding the U.S. labor supply for the purpose of lowering worker wages. Hispanic workers in the U.S.A. suffer as much economic injury from these programs as any other ethnic group and should join with other workers in seeking lower levels of legal immigration as well as an end to illegal immigration and all “guest worker” (both high-tech and low-tech) programs.
But, the immigration question should also be considered from the perspective of its effect upon global warming and other environmental problems. Most of those, who come into the U.S.A. by crossing the southern border on foot, come from countries where the per capita production of carbon dioxide is less than 30 pounds per day, but when they enter the U.S.A., they come into a country where the per capita production of carbon dioxide is more than 120 pounds per day. The half million or so (conservatively estimated) immigrants who enter the US on foot set a high priority on obtaining a motor vehicle – which usually turns out to be an older vehicle that offers only the poorest fuel economy.
And there are other problems that arise as a consequence of immigration. Excess immigration burdens the budgets of our schools not only by increasing the student population but also by increasing the percentage of children who come into the education system with language difficulties when those students come from homes where English is not the primary language. Immigration also increases demand for shelter in American communities and therefore raises the price of rent in many areas. Illegal immigrants usually lack any health insurance and must seek emergency health care in hospital emergency rooms, a fact that increases the cost of hospital care for everyone when the illegal immigrant skips out on the bill.
As to the positions attributed to Dr. Tanton with regard to population controls: The true cause of global warming as well as shortages of fuel, food and other resources, is excess population. Calling each other nazis will not delay the day when we must finally do something to halt population growth that will ultimately lead to mass starvation and violent revolutions all over the world. China acted responsibly when they instituted the “one child” program. The high proportion of Spanish-speaking immigrants in the U.S.A. is a consequence of Latin America’s failure to act with equal responsibility on the same issue.
Rique, if you are extremely worried about having too many children, get a vasectomy and end your days of worrying about getting your partner pregnant. But you see what Republicans are doing, trying to shut down family planning by defunding Planned Parenthood and riders telling Washington DC government what they can NOT spend their own tax dollars on. Damn criminal Rethugs think they control the government and in order to stop President Obama having a second term are working hard to send the country into the depression that the president saved from when he took over from the criminal conspiracy known as Bush/Cheney administration. The Rethug boys that almost destroyed America! And we should trust the arrogant Rethugs?
Any country has the right to enforce its borders. Without effective borders, there is no real sovereignty, and those who enter another country are allowed to determine immigration policy if the host country doesn’t enforce its own laws. Mexico is much harder on illegal immigrants than the U.S., but I don’t hear anyone calling Mexico “racist.” If the U.S. continues on its present path, we will have a total population of at least 600,000,000, and possibly a billion or more, by 2100. That won’t be a very pleasant country for anyone to live in, regardless of their ethnic background.