Penn students Sigi Enciso, Alba Tuninetti, and Edgar Lopez Ramirez at the Valentine’s Day rally (Sarah Min/DP)

Cancun minus one week and counting. As students head to the south of the border meccas for spring break revelry, they hold nary a thought of those so desperately struggling to head in the opposite direction. Indeed, even in the midst of Witness Week 2007 (Penn’s second annual human rights awareness week), the human rights issues revolving around the US-Mexican border seem far from campus. Maybe part of it has to do with the fact that we’d be hard-pressed to find an undocumented immigrant student among us. Last year, the DP reported that although the University does not consider students’ citizenship status in the application process, the lack of financial aid and work opportunities poses serious obstacles for non-U.S. citizens, especially illegals.

Thus, while most of us leave these complex immigration issues for Washington to deal with, for many Philadelphians, they strike close to home. The Valentine’s Day snowstorm forced many couples to cancel their romantic reservations, but it didn’t deter the hundreds of Philly residents, including several Penn students, who met at Independence Park to mark the one-year anniversary of the 2006 immigrant rally. College sophomore Alba Tuninetti, who attended the rally with members of the Latino Coalition, says, “I don’t agree with how the government has been handling this. I believe it’s a human right to go into a country and live there without the government prosecuting them.”

Sofia Elizondo-Jasso, College senior and president of Mex@Penn, who attended last year’s rally, explains that it’s a complicated issue. “There are both push and pull factors perpetuating the flow of immigrants into the States.” Immigrants are not only seeking to escape desperate conditions in their homeland, but they are also “responding to a labor demand in America that would not otherwise be filled.” Both issues need to be addressed in solving the immigration problem.

What we don’t need are the human rights violations that have accompanied the denial of citizens’ rights to undocumented immigrants. Reflecting on all that has happened since last year’s rally, a New York Times editorial laments how, “hopelessly fixated on toughness, the immigration debate has lost its balance, overlooking the humanity of the immigrant.” Elizondo-Jasso asserts that the goal of these rallies is to raise awareness about the undocumented immigrant’s plight, noting that Mex@Penn members are trying to do their part by working with Casa de los Soles, a nonprofit Mexican community center in South Philly, to tutor children of immigrants. Tuninetti also adds, “What was nice about the rally was that there were other non-Latino groups there. It shows that they care.” She concludes by reminding us, “On a daily basis, we encounter immigrants, probably both legal and illegal. It’s not as far as students think.”

So before we pack our bags and head for warmer shores, let’s take a moment to consider those in Philly who are far from home.

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