Results tagged “immigration”

City Paper Round Up

An in depth look at Olney, the forgotten stepchild of Philly neighborhoods.

Most estimates put the number of illegal immigrants in this country at around 5 million. Some view this fact as evidence that illegal immigration is a struggle akin to the civil rights movement of the 1950s. That may sound a bit far-fetched, but in many ways the struggle is similar. We face a public that is in many parts of the nation exceptionally hostile to any illegal immigrants, regardless of their plight. Additionally, the federal government seems to be acting in a way that it deems best for the nation, rather than taking the rampant xenophobia of constituents into account. To look at what is in store for this issue, it may help to review the candidates’—and former candidates’—stances.

The Inquirer has an article about the Philadelphia Community Cats Council, a group of folks trying to manage and reduce the city's huge feral cat population, estimated to be at least 250,000. They do this by trapping feral cats, neutering them, and then returning them where they were found. Both the Daily News and the Inquirer have articles about Sharon Hill native John Patrick Foley and his elevation this weekend to the status of Cardinal...

  • Only a few miles away and only a few hours after the incident described above, an 18-month-old boy was struck in the elbow and the foot by stray bullets during an altercation at Tustin Playground at 60th Street and Lancaster Avenue. The toddler is in stable condition. The intended target of the shooting was also struck and is in critical condition. Meanwhile, two other babies were found dead in the Philadelphia area yesterday - one at a day care center in Wilmington, and the other in a trash bin in Lancaster.
  • A tall, icy glass of our favorite internet junk, just for you.

  • Despite their close relationship, Richard A. Sprague will be allowed to represent Senator Fumo in his upcoming trial for federal fraud and obstruction of justice, a judge ruled yesterday.
  • With unseasonable weather descending upon much of North America, schools getting ready to reconvene, and sports seasons getting exciting, it's a busy time of year for us here in the Ist-A-Verse. Luckily, even with all the things we have to do, we still managed to get together to let you know what we've all been up to.

    Chicagoist is gearing up for this weekend's annual Air & Water Show along the lakefront. In what's becoming an annual tradition around there, staff member Todd McClamroch even got to fly with one of the participants. Chicagoist's decidedly opinionated readership was also appalled that one of their staffers found a popular local brewpub to be a great place to bring a kid. They also think that an unlikely activist for immigration rights should just take her medicine and offered their own suggestions to how the city should capitalize on the local music scene. And everyone thinks that a suggested tax on bottled water is a great idea.

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    Comedian Paul Mecurio

    On the one hand, we can really appreciate that the Office of Homeland Security is doing their best to keep suspected terrorists as far away from us as possible.

    Austinist gets arty with an interactive guide to SXSW, loved some local art galleries and a new art exhibit and lamented the possible loss of "Friday Night Lights" production to New Mexico.

    At the Galactic show on Thursday night, the attitude was "What smoking ban?" New friends became old friends who passed the bowl without thinking about TLA security guards trying to blend in with the crowd in their maroon t-shirts. The room, about three-quarters full, moved intently, sometimes languidly for those with grey beards and wedding rings; more jerkily for those with bare chests and new curly cues.

    - Thanksgiving is coming - which always means travel headaches, but Philadelphians may have more long-lasting travel woes. It has been proposed that the gas tax be raised 12.5 cents a gallon, and, naturally, there's still the ever-looming threat of raising SEPTA fares while cutting their service sometime next year. Clearly, we all need to find jobs where we walk to work. (via)

    - Merecat needs your help - how should he spend his iTunes store credit? (via)

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    LAist tracks an award-winning TV writer who worked on Good Times to a homeless shelter and sees a Little Old Lady get a jaywalking ticket because she can't get across fast enough (in the same post!). Poets invade Metro and an LAist contributor's new book asks WWJB.

    Local bloggers talk about yesterday's immigration demonstration in Love Park:

  • The cabbies weren't the only one's protesting yesterday: several thousand people showed up at Love Park to support immigrant rights. Congress has recently been considering an overhaul of immigration law, and the demonstrators want lawmakers to help the millions of illegal immigrants in the US to settle and work here legally. Immigration is always a touchy subject in America, and particularly in today's climate, but it's hard to disagree with one Nigerian woman quoted in the article above:
    "This country was built by immigrants, Pittsburgh in particular," she said. "This is supposed to be a land of freedom, that's why they came."
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