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 Post subject: 1.8M immigrants, from 200 countries, speaking 100 languages
PostPosted: Fri Jun 20, 2008 8:55 am 
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Is this much diversity good for Illinois? Why is there never any mention of the costs of immigration? Read Ed Rubenstein's report on the IFIRE Reports page.

Notice how they conflate illegal aliens with legal immigrants? They really don't want any distinctions drawn.


http://daily-journal.com/archives/dj/di ... ?id=422627

Illinois: 1.8M immigrants, from 200 countries, speaking 100 languages
06/19/2008, 7:30 pm
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By Andrea Zelinski
Springfield Bureau
217-525-8207

About 1.8 million immigrants who come from 200 countries and speak over 100 languages call Illinois home, according to the New Americans Policy Council.

"Immigrants are a key factor in the future of Illinois," said Fred Tsao, of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, who authored a list of immigrant-related recommendations released this week. "The baby boomers are retiring. If we're going to grow as a state, we will need new workers to come in and many of those new workers are going to be immigrants."

The council spent the past two years working on the recommendations, after being directed by Gov. Rod Blagojevich, to find better ways of integrating immigrants into Illinois' social and economic fabric. Together, they formed two lists of recommendations.

The first was released in 2006 and included creating a welcoming center and providing better bilingual service.

"I think this is a great opportunity for the community to tap into," said Rev. Larry Garcia from New Life Church in Kankakee. "The community's in the shadow and we need to bring it more into the light."

The civic leader also noted problems with the job market, saying the slowing housing industry means many of the area's predominantly Latino immigrants are losing their construction jobs. He suggested finding ways to help retrain potential employees for various fields.

This week they released the final list of recommendations, addressing housing, community safety and economic development. Here's what they said:

. Create a financial literacy campaign with workshops that provide informational tools they need to buy - and keep - houses.

. Offer incentives to builders who construct adequate affordable housing instead of condominiums and large-lot single family homes.

. Encourage police officers to refrain from asking about a person's immigration status. Encourage police departments to hire more immigrants and bilingual officers. Provide a micro lending program to help immigrant entrepreneurs get their small businesses off the ground.

Community leaders say they like the recommendations, but that there's more to be done.

"Jobs are the primary issue because it trickles down to different areas," Garcia said. "Money is always the factor. It's the elephant in the room."

Immigration law attorney Karla Steele in Moline said the initiatives could help the state look good to potential immigrants.

"It makes sense when you look at those things for the State of Illinois, to show a welcoming attitude towards immigrants." Steele said.

She said immigrants in the Quad-Cities, who come from mostly Latin America, Asia and Africa, typically have problems obtaining information or calling police because they're afraid they'll be asked about their immigration status.

The list was made in conjunction with several state agencies, Tsao said. Some programs are already in the pipeline though others, like lending money to entrepreneurs, are linked to state funds in the governor's $34 billion capital plan that may or may not be adopted this year.

Though the recommendations are aimed at legal immigrants, Tsao said undocumented immigrants might be able to take advantage of some of the resources.

"These are for all people who are here and who are working," he said. "Let's find a way so that they can contribute."


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