XPost: misc.survivalism, talk.politics.guns, or.politics   
   XPost: alt.politics.liberalism   
   From: deplorable.redneck@nytimes.com   
      
   Here's a bullshit bleeding heart liberal story trying to justify   
   "immigrants" breaking United States Immigration Laws.   
      
   Nothing but a bunch of word bandying and an attempt to make the   
   act of falsely entering the United States appear benign.   
      
   "Illegals should be immediately deported," roared a Fairhope man.   
      
   "We cannot trust our safety from these illegal invaders," warned   
   a Semmes woman.   
      
   "Send them home, not to Alabama," a Foley woman said.   
      
   And on and on the hot political rhetoric went on the change.org   
   petition that surfaced last week.   
      
   The online petition, tallied with more than 6,100 signatures by   
   Friday, is aimed at stopping the potential of two tent cities   
   housing up to 25,000 "illegal immigrants" in Baldwin County.   
      
   The online reactions were mostly opposite of the more humane   
   reasons county officials gave for their opposition: The   
   airfields targeted for the tent cities do not have running   
   water, electricity, sewer, and could be vulnerable during   
   hurricane strikes.   
      
   But the reaction in this deep red part of Alabama, dominated for   
   generations by a majority of Republican voters, is reflective of   
   the divisiveness of the ongoing immigration policy debate   
   nationwide.   
      
   And in this debate, words matter.   
      
   "It's hard to use words that one side or the other doesn't say   
   that's the wrong word to use or that is the right word to use,"   
   said Leo Chavez, an anthropology professor at the University of   
   California at Irvine who studies media representation of   
   immigration. "It's such a politicized discussion right now that   
   it's hard to come up with words that are neutral."   
      
   Illegal aliens   
      
   Both sides of the partisan dispute have their terminology and   
   are using it for partisan purposes, expert say.   
      
   In using such phrases as "illegal immigrants" or "illegal   
   aliens," left-leaning politicians and academics argue that   
   conservatives are utilizing terms meant to dehumanize people who   
   flee violence in Central America and Mexico for the United   
   States.   
      
   On the flip side, phrasing such as "undocumented immigrants"   
   plays up to unnecessary political correctness, conservatives   
   argue. They also believe it devalues what they view as an   
   "illegal" activity of people crossing the border without proper   
   authorization.   
      
   The scramble over the proper phrasing has been illuminated in   
   recent weeks as the Trump Administration has moved forward with   
   "zero tolerance" enforcement at the U.S.-Mexico border.   
      
   The issue has created sharp divisions in the country. A Pew   
   Research poll taken last month shows that less than a quarter of   
   Republicans and Republican-leaning independents say the nation   
   has a responsibility to accept refugees into the country. Among   
   Democrats, the poll shows 74 percent supporting this notion.   
      
   A Pew Research report, released on Thursday, also showed that   
   only 36 percent of Republicans and Republican-leaning   
   independents believe that most immigrants are living in the U.S.   
   legally.   
      
   Right-leaning references of unauthorized immigrants often insert   
   the word "illegal" into their descriptions.   
      
   According to a Cato Institute analysis over the linguistics of   
   the immigration policy debate, the term "illegal alien" is the   
   most accurate one used.   
      
   Chavez said it's the one used in legal descriptions, if not by   
   academics who prefer the term "unauthorized immigrant" or   
   "undocumented" immigrant.   
      
   Dave Ray, spokesman with the Federal for American Immigration   
   Reform (FAIR) - an organization that supports hardline   
   immigration policies - said the term "illegal alien" is the most   
   "legally precise" of the terms available.   
      
   "It clearly delineates between one of only two possible   
   categories; one either has legal status to be on U.S. soil or   
   one is residing here illegally," said Ray. "It is also used by   
   legal professionals across the board including the United States   
   Supreme Court. In short, it's a widely accepted, non-derogatory   
   term."   
      
   Chavez disagrees.   
      
   "The term 'illegal aliens' is often not helpful because those so   
   described may actually be in the process of acquiring legal   
   status in some form, usually through family sponsorship or   
   through their work," said Chavez. "The problem is further   
   complicated because inflammatory rhetoric does not help us   
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)