Cross Walk

[EDITOR'S NOTE: When this blogsite was created, it was intended to publish what teens and young adults saw as the latest trends at their schools. We weren't looking to get serious. But all this week, what we're hearing from you is the "trend" of campus walkouts. Okay. If that's what you want to talk about!]

Today, April 5, the United States Senate is in session to decide on an immigration reform bill that will affect an estimated 11 million illegal immigrants, many of whom are from Mexico. Last week, the controversial Senate bill S2454 had teens not up in arms, but on their feet, as thousands of students walked out of their classrooms and took to the streets to protest. There were no walkouts at Travis R.'s Oregon school, due in part to their being on spring break, but this teen still had much to say. "I'm fine admitting that we need the workers from south of the border, but we also need to be able to control our borders." He adds, "And if we need the workers, start a program to speed up immigration and get them legally into the country. That would allow us to control how many immigrants are coming in, and allow for only the amount we need to fill jobs to enter."

Jerry D. from Louisiana has a different perspective. "New Orleans needs all the Mexicans it can get cause they're the ones who are fixing up my teacher's house and the rest of the city after Hurricane Katrina. Illegal or not, I respect these people to the highest degree." There were no walkouts at his ethnically diverse high school, because "we don't care as much as those people in Cali."

Unlike Travis and Jerry, Erin T. from California tells us, "Over 150 students walked out of my high school this week." She notes that "the majority of them only wanted to get out of class and the other ones cannot present a decent argument if their lives depended on it." For Erin, the issue is one of fairness to those "good, honest people have been waiting" to enter the United States legally.

Happy Campers keep cool heads, no matter what the outcome!

Just a reminder that Camp Cool with be taking an all-too-brief Spring Break and will return on Wednesday, April 19th, with something fresh and fun for you! Keep those e-mails coming! We may just publish yours!