May this story be for Tejano, Mexican-Americans or any Latinos who are left wondering why Paul Ryan and Romney are the worst things for the agricultural industry, the economy and Americans.  Recall to your memory when  Rep.  Paul Ryan supported the controversial Sensenbrenner bill via H.R. 4437.

Remember that one?  That’ the one we fought back in 2005.

Activism flyer DeeDee Garcia Blase circulated in December 2007.

The Sensenbrenner bill sparked walk outs by Latino students across the nation for being perhaps  the most oppressive and discriminatory legislation of the last decade during that time.

Below are only a few photos of when Latino Students walked out due to the draconian Sensenbrenner bill that were taken in Kansas … the Heartland of America where the agricultural industry RELIES on immigrant labor.

Activism the Tequila party leaders have been part of since the Sensenbrenner Bill Days of 2005. Protectionist and restrictionist Republicans like Paul Ryan and Mitt Romney harm the farmers in the midwest and the agricultural industry. (Photo taken by DeeDee Garcia Blase 2005)

Activism the Tequila party leaders have been part of since the Sensenbrenner Bill Days of 2005. Protectionist and restrictionist Republicans like Paul Ryan and Mitt Romney harm the farmers in the midwest and the agricultural industry. (Photo taken by DeeDee Garcia Blase 2005)

The Sensenbrenner Bill of 05 would have turned ministers, priests and people of God who helped the undocumented into felons.  Here is a summary of the bill from the Civil Rights Monitor:

After months of intense debate, the Border Protection, Antiterrorism, and Illegal Immigration Control Act (H.R. 4437) passed the House of Representatives by a margin of 239-182. Sponsored by Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner, R-Wisc., the act purportedly aimed to combat undocumented immigration in the U.S. However, civil rights groups

Paul Ryan voted for priests and nuns to be felons for helping the undocumented neighbors.

argue that many of the act’s provisions will curtail fundamental human and civil rights, resulting in adverse effects for both immigrants and citizens alike.

Among other things, H.R. 4437 would create a 700-mile fence along the U.S.-Mexico border; eliminate the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program (whose recipients are mostly from Africa); increase the penalties for employing undocumented immigrants; and make it a felony to house undocumented immigrants, with a punishment of no less than three years in prison plus fines.

H.R. 4437 also makes any unlawful presence in the U.S. – even a visa overstay – a felony, and expands the government’s ability to lock up indefinitely immigrants who cannot be deported. These provisions especially incurred the criticism of the civil rights community, who called the act “harsh and unfair.”

 

Wade Henderson, president and CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights (LCCR), said, “While we need to have a comprehensive approach to reforming our nation’s broken immigration system, this deeply flawed bill attempts to criminalize undocumented immigrants without providing any safe, legal alternatives for people who simply want to share in the American Dream.”

 

Many organizations, such as American Civil Liberties Union, the National Council of La Raza, the American Immigration Lawyers Association, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce also expressed similar sentiments on H.R. 4437.

 

LCCR also pointed out that H.R. 4437 bears many similarities with the immigration reform laws enacted in 1996. A report done in 2004 by the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights Education Fund, in partnership with the American Bar Association, criticized the 1996 laws for creating a “two-tier system of justice that singles out one segment of society for less favorable treatment.”