While contemplating an appropriate and relevant post for Labor Day, September 7, 2015, I began to think about the purpose and history of this American holiday, juxtaposed against the divisive landscape of immigration reform, particularly as it plays out in the presidential debates, the press, and social media. So I decided to explore a little by googling “Labor Day 2015” and “Immigration Reform” together, just to to see what would pop.
I encountered many diverse views, values, opinions and beliefs, some that I agreed with and others that I didn’t. In my opinion, while we may examine and defend our own perspectives on a particular topic with passionate fervor, it is just as important to consider and understand the opposing viewpoints, while engaging in critical thinking to develop counterarguments to those viewpoints. (Can you smell that whiff of “CCSS Argumentation” in the air?)
So, in the interest of impartial and balanced blogging, I have provided, for your holiday reading pleasure, a list of links, all found within the first ten pages of my search. Warning: It includes the good, the bad, and the ugly. I also challenge you to conduct your own research on these two intersecting, and frequently clashing, topics. The links below are in no particular order. Let the intersecting and clashing begin! (I think I hear fireworks in the background. Do you?)
Wishing you and yours a relaxing and reflective Labor Day,
Laurie Nesrala, CABE Education Consultant and CABE Corner Editor
The Daily Caller: http://dailycaller.com/2015/08/31/this-labor-day-weekend-remember-how-immigration-depresses-workers-wages/
California Labor Federation: http://www.calaborfed.org/index.php/site/page/2821
The Sierra Club: http://www.sierraclub.org/compass/2015/09/labor-day-2015-uniting-labor-climate-and-racial-justice-movements-our-best-hope
The United Food & Commercial Workers International: Unionhttp://www.ufcw.org/2015/09/01/the-true-meaning-of-labor-day/
Time magazine on Obama’s Labor Day Speech: http://time.com/3248311/obama-immigration-rights-labor-day/
National Day Laborer http://www.ndlon.org/en/pressroom/press-releases/item/1163-federal-judge-confirms-long-island-day-laborers-are-protected-by-us-constitution
U.C. Berkley Labor Center: http://laborcenter.berkeley.edu/on-labor-day-dont-pit-immigrants-against-black-workers/
Conscious Being Alliance: http://www.consciousbeingalliance.com/2015/09/us-agents-grab-rwandan-prof-for-deportation-to-certain-death-at-start-of-holiday-weekend/
Dear Mona on FiveThirtyEight Data Lab: http://fivethirtyeight.com/datalab/which-countries-have-the-most-immigrants/
