Press Release, National Farm Labor Union American Federation of Labor

COPY NEWS SERVICE 825 Victor Building Washington 1, D. C. National Farm Labor Union AFL Tel. RE. 6613 FOR RELEASE THURSDAY, JANUARY 17, 1952 a. m. and p. m. PAPERS H. L. Mitchell, president of the National Farm Labor Union A. F. of L. charged today that there is a "swarm of lobbyists" on Capitol Hill representing large farm operators of the South and West seeking to prevent the enactment of legislation by Congress to end employment of "wetback" labor from Mexico. The A. F. of L. farm labor union leader issued the following statements "A swarm of lobbyists representing the large-scale farm operators of the South and West are here in Washington this week to prevent the enactment by Congress of effective legislation to end the employment of illegal aliens from Mexico known as "Wetbacks. The reason for the sudden descent on Capitol Hill is a statement President Truman made in reply to a question at his January 3rd. press con- ference. The President indicated that unless Congress passed legislation to stop the employment of nearly one-half wetbacks on farms and in industry, the international agreement between the United States and Mexico, under which nearly 200,000 Mexican nationals were imported legally in 1951, would end on February 11 and not be renewed. Thus, we have the spectacle of briefcase representatives of large com- mercial farmers, the beneficiaries of cheap labor, legally and illegally imported from Mexico, lobbying for legislation allegedly to stop the flood of wetbacks into the United States. The factory-type farmer representatives are supporting a draft of legislation which is full of jokers. They are trying to get the House and Senate Judiciary Committees to favorably report their bill without public hearings. The legislation would amend the immigration law by providing that a person found guilty of transporting, harboring or concealing illegal aliens would be subject, to a fine of $2,000 or 5 years in prison or both. The first joker in it is that it would not penalize a person who knowingly employed an illegal alien. The second joker is that the enforcement of law would be restricted to U. S. officers, either in uniform or properly identified as U. S. officers. Only U. S. uniformed officers or U. S. officers who have presented an identi- fication card to the employer whose premises are to be searched, could make an arrest. (more)