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Flu Revives Immigration Debate

By the Associated Press

Posted May 2, 2009 3:55 PM CDT
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(AP) – The swine flu virus has infected the immigration debate, with talk show comments like "fajita flu" and "illegal aliens are the carriers" drawing vehement protests from Hispanic advocates. The volatile immigration issue had cooled off on talk shows and in the blogosphere as the presidential election and economic crisis unfolded. Now, some are using the spread of the virus to renew arguments that immigration from Mexico is a threat to America.

There have been no reports of swine flu leading to incidents of discrimination or profiling of Hispanics. But some Hispanics say racist anti-immigration rhetoric fueled the recent rise in hate crimes against Latinos, and they want to prevent another surge. "Using fears over a serious and ongoing public health issue to demonize immigrants is incredibly low and incredibly cynical," said Sen. Robert Menendez.

Residents wearing a surgical masks ride their bicycles at the Guatemala-Mexico border crossing in Tecun Uman, Guatemala, Tuesday, April 28, 2009.
Residents wearing a surgical masks ride their bicycles at the Guatemala-Mexico border crossing in Tecun Uman, Guatemala, Tuesday, April 28, 2009.   (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)
People, one of them wearing a face mask as a precaution against swine flu, line up at the international border crossing between San Ysidro, CA, and Tijuana, in Mexico, Saturday, May 2, 2009.
People, one of them wearing a face mask as a precaution against swine flu, line up at the international border crossing between San Ysidro, CA, and Tijuana, in Mexico, Saturday, May 2, 2009.   (AP Photo/Guillermo Arias)
People line up at the US-Mexico border crossing in Tijuana, Mexico, Saturday, May 2, 2009.
People line up at the US-Mexico border crossing in Tijuana, Mexico, Saturday, May 2, 2009.   (Guillermo Arias)
Relatives of Juana Garcia react after acknowledging her death outside the National Institute of Respiratory Illnesses, INER, in Mexico City, Tuesday, April 28, 2009.
Relatives of Juana Garcia react after acknowledging her death outside the National Institute of Respiratory Illnesses, INER, in Mexico City, Tuesday, April 28, 2009.   (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)
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COMMENTS
Showing 2 of 2 comments
serfinWI
May 4, 2009 1:53 AM CDT
And Native Americans throughout the Americas that were kicked out and put on res's. were here before all the states became part of the US. I'm pretty sure the Indian Wars were falsely justified as well and look at the vast sums of wealth reaped from all the lands, not just gold. Maybe we should just give all the land back to the original 'owners'. Doubt if those resources had remained in Mexican/Spaniards hands that they would be better off or less corrupt today. The gold would have just gone into the Spaniards pockets.
northeast
May 2, 2009 9:51 AM CDT
For the sake of this argument, let's posit that swine flu is something to actually worry about. That being said, it originated from Mexico. If you can't stop diseases from seeping over your borders, that's a national security problem.

Copyright 2012 Newser, LLC. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. AP contributed to this report.

Politics • Health • US

 
immigration • Mexico • United States • debate • swine flu • H1N1 virus

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