Vol. 71/No. 22      June 4, 2007

The bill calls for thousands more immigration cops and new jails. Workers would pay extortionate fees and remain in limbo for years, dependent on bosses for their status. Family reunification would be restricted. The “guest worker” plan would assure bosses a stable supply of workers paid minimal wages, denied benefits, and stripped of their rights and mobility.

This measure is designed to increase competition for jobs, drive down wages for all, and promote the false argument that immigrants—not the capitalists and their profit system—are responsible for unemployment and declining living standards.

The bill would establish a national ID card with a database of photos and other “biometric” information, such as fingerprints, on all newly hired workers. The bosses and their political police will eventually use such an ID to victimize worker militants.

The only effective response to these divide-and-rule tactics is to demand permanent residence for all undocumented immigrants now, with no strings attached, and an end to immigration raids and deportations. The labor movement must champion these demands and organize workers into unions regardless of their legal status.

The integration of millions of immigrants into the permanent proletariat of the United States has contributed to the emergence of a mass political vanguard of the working class. That vanguard is resisting the attacks of the bosses and their government, gaining confidence and experience as it combines struggles for labor demands with broader political fights. This is developing despite setbacks and standoffs the trade unions and working class continue to suffer on the whole.

This kind of resistance is the reason behind the crisis the U.S. rulers face over immigration reform. They had a much easier time agreeing on how to “end welfare as we know it” in the 1990s than writing a bipartisan immigration bill they can pass now. This is a more intractable problem for Washington than foreign policy questions like the Iraq war, where they have more options for maneuver and redeployment. The millions of foreign-born already in the U.S. working class, and the constant flow across the border, are a permanent feature of the U.S. class struggle. No matter what the capitalists do, they draw these workers more into politics.

All working people have a vital stake in this battle. Let’s join with those standing up to the police thugs and demand: Unconditional legalization for all now! Stop the raids and deportations! Prosecute the cops for their assaults!  
 
 
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