A green card bill that will be a bonanza for Indian, Chinese, Latino and Filipino immigrants is making its way through Congress and has passed the House of Representatives.
It will have the impact of denying green cards to other countries, including Ireland,as a new quota will give more to the countries listed above.
This is from The New York Times last week: “The House of Representatives on Tuesday passed a bill that tweaks the visa system to allow more highly skilled immigrants from India and China to become legal permanent residents.
“The legislation also includes a measure that will more than double the green cards based on family ties available for Mexicans and Filipinos, the two national groups facing the longest backlogs on the family side of the system. It raises the country limit for 226,000 family green cards each year to 15 percent from the current seven percent.
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READ MORE:
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“The bill seemed likely to pass easily in the Senate, said Senator Charles E. Schumer of New York, a leading Democrat on immigration.”
There you have it, for all those bleeding heart Irish individuals who have always said the Irish should never, ever seek to do a deal for their own immigrants.
Such people usually cite the Hispanics as the ones we must wait for in order to all win comprehensive immigration reform together.
One thing I’m certain of -- neither the Hispanics, the Filipinos or the Indians or Chinese were worried about Irish concerns when they went ahead and bent Congress to their will on this issue last week.
Funny, isn’t it, that many Irish adopt this respectful strategy of waiting for comprehensive while other countries know full well it is an utter pipe dream.
They get on with it and are proving successful as the above story makes abundantly clear.
Indeed, they will hit the number of Irish green cards available because Mexico and the Philippines have just carved up more visas for themselves, which will leave countries like Ireland with less.
Don’t get me wrong -- I’m not blaming the various governments or lobbyists or politicians who put this together. More power to them, I say, if they can help their own people.
But I am criticizing those in the Irish American sphere who have long claimed that we, meaning the Irish, could never move on our own in case we offended some people.
Well, guess what? We Irish, with our own undocumented problem and thousands fleeing Ireland every month, just got “offended” by this – and it doesn’t matter a whit.
This is a done deal and the Irish are no part of it mainly because of a reluctance to even express our wishes.
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READ MORE:
More stories on Irish immgration issues from IrishCentral
Angry deputy quits Labor Party over Budget cuts – six weeks after winning Dublin by-election
Sinead O’Connor to marry husband No. 4 in Las Vegas
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Congressman Luis Gutierrez of Illinois signed onto this bill after years of saying comprehensive only.
Gutierrez said, “We need bigger fixes to our legal immigration system so that employers and families use official channels, not black-market ones. We want people to go through the system, not around it.”
Yes indeed, we agree with the congressman on that score.
Schumer also thinks the aforementioned House bill is a good thing and I firmly believe it is as well -- if you are from one of those countries.
It is high time we woke up again to this reality, that without concerted pressure we will never get action on immigration.
It ultimately involves the Irish government and the Irish American community standing and working together.
So what are we waiting for?
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Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.Pittsburghkid | Dec 10, 2011, 01:27 AM EST
This is designed to make Whites a minority. It is great to blame the Irish Americans, but this site support liberals. If White American speak up for themselvies they a racist or some kind of fob. I was the likes of Teddy Kennedy, and Obama. This site falls all over Obama like a fool, who might be 1/16th Irish.
GeorgeDillon | Dec 09, 2011, 02:32 PM EST
The Irish have absolutely no claim on residence in the US. They have their own country--Fix It, You Fools!
whatISinAname | Dec 08, 2011, 06:22 PM EST
Keep my white Irish ancestors out of USA. Need to compete in years to come with our brains not ditch diggers. So let the Chinese and Indians in. Irish can go to the rest of Europe and Australia and be construction workers.
joycean | Dec 08, 2011, 03:19 PM EST
I am not so much concerned with the race of immigrants as what they contribute to this country. The Indians and Chinese would be entering if they qualified as "highly skilled." Most likely scientists and engineers. They are Asians. Fillipinos are Pacific Islanders, like Hawaiians. Locally, most Fillipinos are doctors and nurses, also highly skilled. Many have been in the US military.The Mexicans would be the families of legal Mexicans who are already here.
averagejoewa | Dec 08, 2011, 02:03 PM EST
What do China, India, the Philipines and Mexico have in common? None of them is white. This is all part of the plot to turn the United States into a Third World country through immigration.
merefalow | Dec 08, 2011, 01:45 PM EST
its all over for whitey baby,he just don,t know it yet,bloody crazy self inflicted racial genocide/.
cillowen | Dec 08, 2011, 12:31 PM EST
when will it go completely brown/yellow - not too far off i fear - one shii-te look of all, then.
joycean | Dec 08, 2011, 11:15 AM EST
This never was a white country: Native Americans, Africans among earliest settlers.
gavinpchow | Dec 08, 2011, 09:18 AM EST
More obama care. Wise up White People. They want to make the new world only one color,and that color is not white..I just hope that all of the people affected by obamas new world order wise up and vote him and his Chicago crew out of our lives..
borefield | Dec 07, 2011, 10:11 PM EST
The Irish are waking up finally, all of you slobbered, drooled and voted for Obama. You got what you asked for. Just look at the stupid adoration he was afforded when he reluctantly went to Ireland. All of it makes me sick. You promoted him also Niall.
Woodman | Dec 07, 2011, 07:31 PM EST
I remember dealing w the Irish govt' folksduring the Irish hunger strikes, they never lifted a finger. The folks in the Irish gov't won't help anyone but themselves- that's a conflict of interest for them -to help someone without getting their cut. So it's pretty much yourself alone baby. And learn from others. Take a look at the immigration lawyer ads in the Jamaican newspapers. If you are the victim of "domestic violence," you get to stay. That means either you or the old lady get beaten - call the cops and create a record. Don't need to be married or even hetero now. Also if you have some American kids here,(marriage optional, so bastards are okay, they are automatically citizens whether you are here legal or not. Get them on public assistance and that should help pay your way here. No need to pay their way too. Also very hard to send you back if you have the crying American kiddies. And you can go the welfare, while you work off the books. Nial is correct the Irish should do what the other immigrants do.
seagreen | Dec 07, 2011, 04:49 PM EST
Joycean, Returned from Australia a couple of months ago, and there is a lot of decent pay work in Western Australia. I do believe that much of the work there was in the industrial and mining sector. Alberta appears to be where much of the demand is in Canada, about half of the population of Newfoundland under 30 are working there. You are fortunate to have the options that you have. Good for you . When I posted, just felt that other countries such as you mentioned, in my opinion are a better option than getting into this mess here. You would probably maintain your identity a little easier also.. Good Luck
radoncone | Dec 07, 2011, 04:24 PM EST
Can you publish a list of who is backing it?
joycean | Dec 07, 2011, 04:16 PM EST
Seagreen, You could be right about the reason for the increase in Indian visas. I would add that the Irish can work anywhere in the EU as well as Canada and Australia. Unemployment is a problem here too.
Nelsonbarry | Dec 07, 2011, 04:04 PM EST
sounds like the old days where Irish need not apply. Just a little more of Obama care or should I say doesn't care.
seagreen | Dec 07, 2011, 04:00 PM EST
I'm focused on the skilled quota from India. To me it is obvious that this is a result of the corporate lobby. Increasing the quota of skilled Indian nationals will allow American corporations to create a new wage tier, and to effectively fracture the present wage structure to skilled Americans that have been educated in American Universities and technical schools. These corporations want a world wage, and the dismantling of the American lifestyle is their first priority. Why do the Irish want to come here when you can go to Canada. Americans cannot go to Canada, but the Irish can. Those of us born and raised in the US see the writing on the wall. We pretent we like each other here in the US. We do not, in fact we are starting to hate each other ! Do you Irish want to emigrate into the middle of this. ?
joycean | Dec 07, 2011, 03:40 PM EST
What Niall is arguing is that Irish Americans somehow let Ireland down by not lobbying for more Irish visas. What Joan points out is that there are only a few areas with strong Irish populations: New York,Boston,Chicago,and San Francisco. So lobbying might not be that effective, since the votes would only come from certain areas - not nationwide, and those areas have been subjected to recent population change: New York and California have more Hispanics and Chinese. If you read Niall's article, the increase in Chinese and Indian quotas is for "highly skilled" applicants; for Mexican and Filipinos, for family reunification. Since Mexico, the Phillipines, and China are currently the three highest sources of immigrants to this country, it would make sense they have the largest number of families to be reunified. irish Americans benefitted from earlier immigration policies, but the number of Irish immigrants, especially those seeking permanent resident status, isn't there.
PiperMac52 | Dec 07, 2011, 03:25 PM EST
Thanks to President Obama and his effort to "change the face of America", white Europeans seem to no longer be welcome. Yet he allows millions of illegals to come across the southern border unimpeded, sues states that try to remedy the invasion and we spend billions of tax payer dollars on social programs etc. to support his vision while average working class Americans are without jobs in record numbers and struggling to survive.
SingleDonald | Dec 07, 2011, 02:47 PM EST
I agree with the numerous critics of joycean! The acronym, NINA, evolved to mean, "No Irish or Italians need apply". This was an extremely prejudiced phrase put in job adds. My father saw them, before & after World War II. ALL groups came here to better themselves, including my grandfather, who emigrated from Italy, in 1908. He worked as a mason, and shunned Public Assistance. OK, when things got SO bad, during the depression, he swallowed his pride and filed for Welfare. This only lasted about 3 weeks, though. Many immigrants today come here with the sole purpose of getting on the public dole. They are lazy bums, who are often dregs on our American Society, and eyesores, to boot! I say, tongue in cheek, that we should accept immigrants from good places, such as Italy & Ireland. Of course, I am only kidding. There should be no restrictions on national origin, so long as the people come over ready to "pull their own weight", and not be a drain on American citizens.
greensod | Dec 07, 2011, 01:55 PM EST
This is a whole new world we live in.Might as well get used to it.
whatISinAname | Dec 07, 2011, 01:55 PM EST
Should definitely allow people from Indian in especially since our English, Dutch, French, German and Irish ancestors who came here early on decided to cheat and then wipe out the indigenous peoples who lived here. Funny the white man think something is not "discovered" until a white man discovers it. Look at all he racist comments below.
FastEddy | Dec 07, 2011, 01:48 PM EST
You all get a better deal here by coming in "illegal", same as the meskins. No income taxes, low school tuition, better treatment from employers, "free" health care ... Green card = Not!
peterson | Dec 07, 2011, 01:28 PM EST
Another obumma idea to gain the votes of illegal aliens. Irish Americans should not vote for him. He refuses to make it illegal for non citizens to be able to vote.
GeorgeDillon | Dec 07, 2011, 01:25 PM EST
This is crazy. Indians, Chinese and filipinos already have Open Door access to migrating to Ireland. Dublin is full of them. Why can't they be satisfied with that?
Murph46 | Dec 07, 2011, 12:41 PM EST
Well said Katiemac!
brennanirish | Dec 07, 2011, 12:22 PM EST
Niall, you nailed the points. Don't begrudge other groups from accomplishing what we could not or did not work hard enough at, and hold those politicians, who paid lip service to Irish immigration, acountable. By any objective measure the Irish measure up to the "preferred" groups.
whatISinAname | Dec 07, 2011, 12:07 PM EST
Blazing Saddles 1974 sanitized quote: All right... we'll give some land to the blacks and the Chinese. But we don't want the Irish!
Murph46 | Dec 07, 2011, 12:06 PM EST
Anon refuses to follow history ,Germans lead in US percentage of population FOLLOWED by Irish,plus Irish are as well educated as any ethnicity,their contributions to US history are enormous including numerous Presidents.Anon would make a good politician with all the obfuscation!
Anon1265 | Dec 07, 2011, 11:57 AM EST
hooligan6a says: I would rather see Irish people coming here then others that don't appreciate our way of life. The Irish have done more for this country then all the rest put together--------------------------- Umm... the only reason Irish have "done more" is because there were more of them earlier on in USA's early years. Give it another 100 years with the majority of Indian and Chinese immigrants, and one would be able to say that Indians and Chinese have "done more than the rest put together." How much a group does for a country depends on their numbers, most of the time. By the way, what are you saying? Just because the Irish came and lived their life in USA a couple hundred years ago, there is an everlasting preference for them? The Mexicans you speak of who are not culturally integrated are only first and second generation. The Irish weren't integrated the first few generations either.
Murph46 | Dec 07, 2011, 11:57 AM EST
So much for your great liberal and Clinton connectivity.I guess they should get the old signs out- Jobs Available-Irish Need Not Apply! And here I thought O'bummer was part Irish,coming from my ancestral home of County Offaly!
Scrivner | Dec 07, 2011, 11:56 AM EST
Nial--why did you not inform us of this earlier? and include Bill Numbers? Our reps and Senators seldom think in terms of titles, but the Bill Number zeros in what a constituent is camplaining or praising and focuses a course of action on them.
Anon1265 | Dec 07, 2011, 11:53 AM EST
I agree with Joycean. USA wants high skilled and educated people - but most of all, they want people who'll stay and be American. In Canada, the Irish migrants who have come here in the last few years are only interested in making money (which they send back home). They don't stay and have intention to. How does that help us, when the Irish migrants only come here to steal jobs from us? All points in time, we have given preference to some countries over others. For the first hundred years, North America gave preference to European countries. Now the shoe has changed. But that's because it should. The eastern countries are quickly becoming first world economies with high education and skills, while Europe is not keeping up. That's just life. Deal with it. One question -- how come the Irish only like to flood to North America every time they have something wrong with their country? First it was the Famine, now it's their economy. Stay in your own country and fix yourselves.
Anon1265 | Dec 07, 2011, 11:47 AM EST
Irishlassred, Joycean talked about modern day Irish people. What does the past have to do with anything? So just because some Irish immigrants have contributed in the past, ALL of them should be welcome to USA?
ReturnedYank | Dec 07, 2011, 11:34 AM EST
In fairness to Joycean, I was once a smart-ass Irish immigrant -- raised on the Irish Times and RTE -- who thought being anti-American was clever. I came around, returned to Ireland, and still see some of that. I think it is less prevalent than it used to be, however. Maybe that is because I have no time for the South Dublin media anymore. Or maybe it is because I am involved in tech and startups. It is also largely due to the fact that the anti-Americanism of Ireland is prevalent among the West-Brit set. And that I have absolutely zero time for.
mhichil | Dec 07, 2011, 11:28 AM EST
usa is feked, more layoffs coming. It is in the process of self destruct.The only thing of value is a Case of Guinness at Costco for $19.00..... can I come back to Ireland yet?.. I thought so...
joan1954 | Dec 07, 2011, 11:18 AM EST
NY and Boston, Chicago and San Francisco are what seems to be to largest centers of Irish life in the US. That doesn't mean they aren elsewhere but lobbying is not done on a national basis especialy through the GAA and other Irish groups. Anything done is based from the Irish centers little is done from the south or southwest. The issue is one that a group must come together that includes all the US not just the Irish national areas in the country.
Irishlassred | Dec 07, 2011, 10:53 AM EST
OMG, is Joycean a fecking idiot or what? What haven't the Irish done for this country? For God sake, get your arse out of a Faux News Channel and do some intelligent reading. Mostly, please, go away from here - what rubbish.
Searlit | Dec 07, 2011, 10:36 AM EST
Reading Joycean's post makes me think he works for Fox news. It's absolutely backwards.
hooligan6a | Dec 07, 2011, 10:20 AM EST
joycean, You say the main interest in coming to the US for the Irish is to make money. What the hell do you think motivates the people from India, China, Mexico and any other people that immigrate to the US? If you want to see people, that have little apprecian for American values, go to the barrio in LA or El Paso or Phoenix. it looks like they carried half of Mexico City up here. they have no use for our values or culture or our way of life. Talk about anti-american, have you seen their rallies where the they carry Mexican flags and burn American flags. Wake up!! I would rather see Irish people coming here then others that don't appreciate our way of life. The Irish have done more for this country then all the rest put together
Springfield9 | Dec 07, 2011, 10:01 AM EST
@ Joycean - 125,000 Irish men bled the fields of America to save the Union. Just what is a "disproportionate number of Irish affiliated people"????????? Do you have a quota in mind? To say that the Modern Irish are "Anti-American" is a wildly inaccurate generalization. I suggest that you take your meds.
shuvonn | Dec 07, 2011, 09:59 AM EST
You claim there is a disproportionate number? How racist is that??? You claim They are not a good fit? You have GOT to be kidding me, Ireland pays to educate them in college and America Benefits from that. Everyone dreams of making money,and your tarring all with the one brush is simply childish and not reflective of the contributions Irish citizens have made to this country since it's creation. Are we going back to no Irish need apply joycean?
hollabackgurl | Dec 07, 2011, 09:59 AM EST
Ireland has been the most profitable nation in the world for US corporations taking advantage of its bonanza tax codes. That gravy train should cut both ways and if our politicians were competent it would.
tankcommander | Dec 07, 2011, 09:58 AM EST
JOYJEAN IS FULL OF CRAP.ALL THIS BILL WILL DO IS ALLOW MORE UNSKILLED INDIVIDUALS TO COME TO THIS COUNTRY AND APPLY FOR BENEFITS RIGHT AWAY. THEY'LL BRING NOTHING TO THE TABLE. IF THIS PASSES ,THE FLOOD GATES WILL OPEN ONCE AGAIN AND AMERICA WILL BECOME A THIRD WORLD COUNTRY.
joycean | Dec 07, 2011, 08:53 AM EST
Niall, each of those countries has a population many times the size of Ireland. China and India, particularly, offer us many highly skilled workers, many educated in this country. We also have many Filipino doctors and nurses. Mexico is one of our closest neighbors. There are already a disproportionate numer of people in this country of Irish ancestry. Also, the Irish today do not seem a good fit for this country. Their main interest in immigration seems to be coming here to make money. They have little appreciation for American values and tend to feel being anti-American is very clever.