Dear Editor: I am outraged by the University of Wisconsin's racial targeting of workers with Spanish surnames.
The actions are most certainly violations of both the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII) and the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986. That the university, which is supposed to be an "enlightened" institution, should engage in this sort of behavior is shocking. When you have supervisors who see themselves as junior INS agents, the outcome is bound to be racial targeting and discrimination.
But I believe the issues here are about more than racial targeting. I think we need to question the idea and impact of considering people "illegal." This sort of zealous pursuit of undocumented workers, real or imagined, forces these workers into a shadow economy in which they become even more vulnerable to exploitation and abuse.
Like it or not, undocumented workers make up a vital and sizeable part of our economy. It is not a question of if undocumented workers should be allowed to work in this country. They do, in the millions. Recent census analyses put their number as high as 11 million. That is over twice the population of Wisconsin.
What is the impact on all of us if a sizeable group of workers is considered "illegal"? When workers are under the constant threat of being turned in and deported, they are in a powerless situation. They cannot demand fair pay, safe working conditions, or any of the most basic standards that we all expect from a job. If one group is vulnerable to exploitation, we all become vulnerable. Wages are depressed, and working conditions worsen for everyone. These workers are forced to live in fear. The university has added to the level of that fear.
I would like to echo the call by the AFL-CIO for "a general amnesty for the millions of hard-working people who make enormous contributions to their communities, many of whom are parents of children who are citizens by birth." The last amnesty for undocumented workers was in 1986. A new amnesty is long overdue -- if not to protect the undocumented, then to protect the rest of us.