by
Sound street ambi underneath narr
NARR
Before his trip, Calderon promised to advocate for the millions of Mexicans now living in the United States. But in his rushed stop in New York City on Monday, Calderon spent less than half an hour with Mexican leaders, who run nonprofits for services like education and health. Activist Joel Magallan spoke at the meeting. He was left uncertain why Calderon and his aides came at all.
ACT: JOEL MAGALLAN 01
TIME: (07)
I think they are just making the plan what they will do in the United States to support the immigrants. But I don't think they have a plan already.
NARR
Magallan says the meeting with Calderon's aides was a good first step. But Magallan, who founded one of the largest nonprofits for Mexicans in New York, says he wants Calderon to gather more data about what Mexicans are contributing to the U.S. economy.
ACT: JOEL MAGALLAN 02
TIME: (05)
So we need more research and we need to show the positive contribution.
NARR
Many Americans don't see a positive contribution from the nearly 12 million immigrants who are in the country illegally. Instead they blame them for social problems, like overcrowded schools and hospitals.
The day the Mexican president arrived in New York, one right-wing group called Patriots for American Control and Enforcement protested the visit.
SOUND street ambi from protest fades up, someone calls out, "Lot of jobs being lost."
NARR
Half a dozen people stood at Fifth Avenue and 37th Street, close to where they believed Calderon was having a lunch meeting. The protestors held up American flags and hand-made posters and passed out flyers. Brooklyn native and city transit worker Tommy McNally organized the protest. McNally believes Calderon exports his labor problems as he explained to one woman passing by.
PROTEST AMBI 01: Sound of cars, exchange between protestor and pedestrian
TIME: (22)
MCNALLY: Well there's a lot of corruption in his country and that leads to unemployment and that leads to illegal immigration. So
Pedestrian: OK.
His name is Felipe Calderon. And nobody ever talks about him but he's one of the main problems of this illegal immigration problem.
Pedestrian: Yeah, I never heard of him. I'm sorry.
McNally: Yeah he's having lunch down the block. That's why we're here.
Pedestrian: Has he seen your signs?
McNally: Um, I don't know. I think he went in the side entrance.
During the demonstration, few people engaged the protestors. Some took flyers. Some muttered their disagreement. Others mocked them. Some Hispanics who passed by ducked their heads and walked faster. Meanwhile, the protestors complimented each other's slogans.
PROTEST AMBI 02: exchange from protestors about their signs
TIME: (09)
Protestor reads a sign, "Felipe Calderon fix your country and problem solved."
Another person laughs and, "That's a good one."
Woman: When everybody gets here, we're thinking about walking over to the Mexican Embassy.
Later, in front of the Mexican consulate's closed gates, the group finally drew a strong reaction to their otherwise quiet protest. A man in a passing minivan shouted in Spanish Long Live Mexico, provoking an angry response from one of the protestors.
SOUND: street ambi fades up. Car drives by. Someone yells Viva Mexico and someone shouts go home.
NARR
New York is home for about half a million Mexicans,
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like Lino Romero. He's playing the accordion while he waits for the train. He sings with his band on the subway for $50 a day.
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Romero, like many other immigrants, thought the state visit served little purpose. He says Calderon simply was following the example of his predecessors.
Sound: music fades, voice in Spanish first, then voiceover
ACT: LINO ROMERO 01
TIME : (13)
Almost every year the president comes here to visit the U.S. but it doesn't help because nothing changes. What's the difference? What benefit is there if the president comes?
Sound: voice in Spanish
NARR
For now, American attention is focused on its next president with the U.S. presidential campaign in full force.
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With that in mind, observers questioned the timing of Calderon's trip and doubted it would bring any meaningful immigration reform in 2008.
Sound: music fades up, then down for SOC
SOC: This is Laura Isensee, Columbia Radio News.
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