By Marisa Trevino, KERA 90.1 commentator
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kera/local-kera-500901.mp3
Dallas, TX –
The trouble with people who are brave enough to think outside the box, and then tell everybody about it, run the risk of being considered crazy.
That certainly was the case with the late Dallas Independent School trustee, Joe May. Just before his recent untimely death, Mr. May rattled a lot of nerves when he proposed that the Dallas school district could easily solve its bilingual teacher shortage by hiring college-educated illegal immigrants.
The shockwaves that reverberated within Dallas and rippled across the nation were enough to make some people start acting like the listeners of the original 1938 War of the Worlds radio program where mass hysteria set in at the mere thought of a Martian invasion.
Only this time, fueled by the daily rhetoric of high-profile Congressional and media immigration critics, mass hysteria regarding illegal immigrants has already gained an unfortunate foothold, especially in cities and towns where Hispanic populations are swelling. Mr. May's proposal just sent that paranoia into overdrive.
Of course, Mr. May knew that the federal law prohibiting the hiring of illegal immigrants would have to be changed before anyone could seriously consider his suggestion.
Yet, with his trademark determination, persistence and passion, we are now left to wonder just how far Mr. May could have gone in converting his idea to reality.
Because contrary to everyone who thinks it's a crazy idea - it's an idea that really makes a lot of sense.
But before the proposal can be defended, one issue has to be addressed the public perception of who are illegal immigrants.
Though it's true that many illegal immigrants fit the stereotype of a minimally educated, Spanish-dominant, manual laborer their children do not.
Their children are bilingual, switching seamlessly from Spanish to English. They have been raised on French Fries, shopping malls and cable television. Most of them have risen through the U.S. school system receiving their high school diplomas, and college degrees - believing in the promise that they can be whatever they want.
They're not just smart they're "U.S.-bred" smart. They think of the United States as home and the country of their parents as the place to go for family reunions.
But in the end they are considered the same as their parents illegal immigrants.
Mr. May, like so many of us who personally know young people caught up in this web of senselessness, understood their dilemma and rightfully saw the waste of human talent that shortsighted critics and laws refuse to acknowledge.
What is wrong with giving bilingual teaching jobs to the very people who benefited from the system when they were young?
Who better to teach children struggling with a language than those who experienced themselves the embarrassment of sounding different?
Why are there no objections when illegal immigrants sign up for the military but the idea of allowing a U.S.-raised, college-educated illegal immigrant to teach bilingual education, or any grade he/she is certified to teach, is so repulsive and reason to home-school children?
Mr. May's idea wasn't crazy - it was genius.
The crazy part is that nobody proposed it before this.
Marisa Trevino is a writer from Rowlett.
If you have opinions or rebuttals about this commentary, call (214) 740-9338 or email us.
More government issues and election coverage from KERA's Voter's Voice