Director of the Iowa Center for Immigrant Leadership and Integration
Director of the Iowa Center for Immigrant Leadership and Integration at the University of Northern Iowa
PROFILE
Mark Grey
Guest
FROM Mark Grey
To the Point
Rough Jobs, Illegal Immigration and Identity Theft Horrendous working conditions in meatpacking plants were exposed by Upton Sinclair in his novel, The Jungl e, back in 1906. One hundred years later, the plants are staffed mostly by recent immigrants, both illegal and legal. Last week, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Bureau raided Swift & Company plants in six states. Agents, some wearing riot gear, locked down the plants and divided employees by citizenship status. The expressed purpose of Operation Wagon Train was to crack down on identity theft, but only 65 charges were filed against 1282 people arrested. It's alleged that some of those arrested were separated from their families, even though they were legal residents who left their papers at home. Scattered families are trying to get back together where meatpacking is all that keeps towns together. Will the incident spark immigration reform in the new Congress?
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To the Point
Terrorism and tweets, hate speech and murder Just days before an election, Britain is coping with a rash of deadly terrorism, and Prime Minister Theresa May is on the defensive. And again today, President Trump has tweeted criticism of the Mayor of London. Later, a double murder in Portland, Oregon has revealed the ugly past of a supposedly “progressive” city. One immediate question: is “hate speech” protected by the First Amendment?
To the Point
Will the Senate write a healthcare bill in secret? While Democrats and Republicans argue White House relations with Russia, another question is being decided behind closed doors: who gets help buying health insurance and who doesn't? We hear how the pros and cons are being shrouded in secrecy.
To the Point
Trump's new look at civil rights and global warming President Trump is reportedly ready to pull the US out of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. We look at the possible consequences. On the second half of the program, we hear about cuts in Obama-Era civil rights programs called for by the Trump Administration's first budget plan.
To the Point
Trump plays scolder-in-chief with NATO allies At the opening of NATO’s dramatic new headquarters in Brussels today, President Trump acknowledged that Article 5 — promising that “an attack on one nation is an attack on all” -- has only been invoked one time: in the aftermath of September 11. But the President failed to provide what 27 other Alliance members have been waiting for: a re-commitment by America’s new leader to Article 5. Instead, they got a scolding.