Confirming that the truly are members of \u201cThe Whiniest Generation,\u201d seven illegal aliens who were given the benefit of deferred action and work authorization under a likely unconstitutional action taken by former President Obama, attempted to hold the entire U.S. government hostage to their demands for permanent amnesty. That demand was just an exercise of bad taste. What landed them in the clink was trespassing, notably refusing to leave the Capitol offices of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-Fla.) on December 15.<\/p>\n
While they had the stage, the seven trespassers decided to milk it for all that it was worth by staging a hunger strike. True to form for members of the Whiniest Generation, they held out for six days. Cesar Chavez \u2013 a political figure whose legacy the illegal alien advocacy movement has misappropriated \u2013 by contrast, mounted a 36-day hunger strike in the 1980s, at age 61.<\/p>\n
As they threw in the towel, the seven DACA trespassers let loose with one final tantrum (in the form of a rambling press release) aimed primarily at Schumer. Belen Sisa, one of the trespassers had this to say: \u201cI am leaving jail to deliver a message to Sen. Schumer.\u201d Why, exactly, she needed to leave jail to deliver a message to Sen. Schumer, or even what that message is, is unclear. Messages are not that hard to deliver these days and since it is unlikely that Schumer has much interest in having a face to face with them, the same message could have been delivered from jail. More likely, she, like her six co-trespassers, just didn\u2019t have the fortitude to stick it out.<\/p>\n
Then Sisa went on to charge, \u201cHe has said repeatedly he stands with Dreamers and that we need a Dream Act by the end of the year. We gave him a chance to put those words into action but he failed us. He let me spend six days behind bars, with no food<\/em> [emphasis added], the risk of ICE involvement increasing every day. It\u2019s unbelievable that the incredible sacrifices we have made are not enough to push Schumer to take more risk himself and rally the necessary votes. My community stood by me, but Chuck Schumer did not.\u201d<\/p>\n Schumer let them spend six days behind bars with no food? First of all, they could have gotten out anytime they wanted. All they had to do was give their names and be fingerprinted and they could have walked out the front door. And the no food part of her gripe: Isn\u2019t going on a hunger strike a personal choice? As for their incredible sacrifices, that\u2019s kind of a judgment call. They did six days; Nelson Mandela sat on Robben Island (South Africa\u2019s equivalent of Alcatraz) for 27 years to confront true injustice.<\/p>\n Another of the self-described martyrs, Cata Santiago, also had some harsh words for Schumer. \u201cTime and time again politicians have failed to stand by our community. Now, at the peak of the Dream Act fight, Chuck Schumer and the Democrats won\u2019t hold their promises to protect us. That\u2019s why, after sacrificing so much in jail for these six days, we are leaving now \u2013 because we need to continue mobilizing.\u201d<\/p>\n Let\u2019s give Cata the benefit of the doubt that they were leaving jail to further their cause, not because martyrdom is too hard. But if they\u2019re waiting for Schumer to keep a promise on immigration, they should take a number and get in line. The man has broken every promise he\u2019s ever made when it comes to immigration. Sorry guys, you\u2019re not special.<\/p>\n Most people respect martyrs, whether they agree with their causes or not. The willingness of people like Mandela, Gandhi, and King to pay a real price for what they believed (it also helped that they had justice on their side) helped sway public opinion. Nobody is going to be impressed by a bunch of whiners who can\u2019t even figure out that they are in the situation they\u2019re in because their own parents put them there.