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'Immigrant hunt' riles some at UNT Group stages mock roundup to
call for more enforcement 08:44 AM CST on Thursday, January 27, 2005
A University of North Texas conservative group's demonstration, in
which students who captured people posing as illegal immigrants received a
candy bar reward, angered some on campus and amused others Wednesday. The university's chapter of Young Conservatives of Texas held "Capture
an Illegal Immigrant Day" on campus to call for tougher enforcement of
federal immigration laws. Some members of the group wore orange shirts that said "Illegal
Immigrant" on the front and "Catch me if U can" on the back. Anyone could check in, receive a badge, search for "illegal immigrants"
and receive literature and a reward -- a 100 Grand candy bar. Chris Brown, the group's president, said illegal immigration hurts the
economy and threatens national security. "If they're going to be here, they need to become legal citizens," Mr.
Brown said. "If the law is wrong, then it needs to be changed, but until
that happens, we need to follow the law." Some Latino students said they felt attacked by the display, despite
the assurances from the conservative group that its message was not about
race or ethnicity. "They don't realize how the Latino culture has touched everyone's
lives," Rene Garcia said. "The Latino population has a bit of angst about
this." The Young Conservatives cited some cases in which people linked with
al-Qaeda have been found illegally in the United States. Group members also argued that illegal immigrants take jobs from
Americans, don't pay taxes and hurt the economy. As many as 40 students gathered around the group's display at one time,
arguing with the group Tuesday afternoon. Michele Connole, the group's publicity coordinator, said that the event
was a success and that it was not intended to be offensive. "If it offends you, and you don't want to talk about it, just walk by,"
she said. "We're not going to stop just because somebody was offended.
Personally, breaking the law is offensive to me." Police patrolled the area, but no altercations were reported. The UNT dean of students office schedules the events for the
university's designated free-speech areas. Ken Ballom, dean of students, said his office received one call about
the event from someone who commended it. The group's adviser, political science professor Steve Forde, said the
group did not consult him before the event and had no reason to. He said he would have been out of line to tell students not to do
it. The group used a bullhorn to invite passers-by to "capture an illegal
immigrant, get a candy bar." One student retorted: "No, thanks. My grandfather was one, and yours
probably was, too." Another simply shouted: "Awesome." Trevor Graham, a UNT student who stood at a distance to watch the event
and media coverage of it, said he didn't agree with the Young
Conservatives. "They've definitely got the wrong idea, but I can still laugh at it,"
he said. Aaron Feldsteen, another student, stopped by the table and discussed
the issues with the group. Some members of the student group said they agreed with the political
stance, but they didn't like the event. "Many of us on the campus realize that immigration is a huge problem,"
Megan Svajda said. "But a handful of us disagree with how the organization
went about discussing the issues. We felt the strategy behind it was a
little distasteful." This isn't the first time a Young Conservatives group on a North Texas
college campus has caused controversy. In September 2003, Southern Methodist University officials closed a
Young Conservatives bake sale. The sale, designed to protest affirmative
action, priced cookies according to the buyer's race. For example, white
males were charged $1 for a cookie, and black customers were charged a
quarter. Officials said they halted the sale because it created a
potentially unsafe situation for students. Emma Guzman Ramon, the president of the Denton League of United Latin
American Citizens, said the Young Conservatives of Texas event Wednesday
stemmed from ignorance about illegal immigrants. "If there wasn't a demand for them, they wouldn't be risking their
lives to come across," said Ms. Ramon, an immigration attorney in
Denton. Staff writer Dave Moore contributed to this report. E-mail mzabel@dentonrc.com |