Election Direction

Dear Gabacho:
Where do the US presidential candidates stand on the issue of immigration? Who would you rather see win if you were an immigrant?

Need Opinion Regarding The Election

Dear NORTE :
Obama and McCain's plans to rectify our immigration system are similar. They both agree that the US should secure the borders first and crack down on companies that hire undocumented immigrants. Both of their plans include increasing border personnel and the use of technology to preserve the integrity of our borders.

Obama supports a system that allows undocumented immigrants in good standing to pay a fine, learn English, and go to the back of the line for the opportunity at citizenship. Obama also believes that the US needs to do more to promote economic development in Mexico to decrease the cause of illegal immigration.

McCain supports a system that will meet America's labor needs. He says that he will implement a temporary worker program that will reflect the labor needs of the US in both the high-tech and low-skilled sectors while protecting employment opportunities for US workers. McCain also would like to reform caps for the H-1B visa program to rise and fall in response to market conditions.

In my opinion, McCain seems more interested in protecting our borders while Obama seems more interested in rooting out the cause of illegal immigration.

To see more detailed explanations of the two candidates' plans for immigration reform, visit:

Obama's Web Site on Immigration

and

McCain's Web Site on Immigration

Mexican vs. Hispanic vs. Ignorance

Today we have a special Ask El Gabacho featuring a question asked live, right before el Gabacho presented his Hispanic Cultural Awareness training to the High Country Human Resource Association (HCHRA) in Steamboat Springs, CO, by one of the meeting facility's maintenance staff (not affiliated with the HCHRA).

"What's the difference between a Mexican and a Hispanic?"
Gabacho responds:

This sounds like the beginning of a very bad joke. Is it? [It was.] The punchline notwithstanding, the difference is this: a Mexican is a person that was born in Mexico. Hispanic is a term created by the US government in the 70's to categorize people whose native language is Spanish. A Mexican could be considered Hispanic, but not all that are considered Hispanic are Mexican. For example, a Guatemalan could be considered Hispanic, but they are not Mexican. Hope that helps everyone.

To see the string of comments that followed this presentation, please go to: http://steamboatpilot.com/news/2008/jun/29/experts_give_tips_helping_spanishspeaking_workers/