Los Angeles Times
LOS ANGELES -- They have been part of the Southern California landscape for almost four decades: immigrant laborers waiting for work on sidewalks and street corners, swarming drivers as they pull up, ready to move furniture, paint walls, pull weeds, do whatever needs doing.
But now, as a housing boom has increased the demand for inexpensive labor, and as the workers have become more organized, the sites where they gather have become a battleground in the debate over illegal immigration.
Cities around the country are struggling to cope with the sheer numbers of day laborers, or ''jornaleros." Critics say the sites not only encourage people to come to the United States illegally, but also create traffic jams and are eyesores. Supporters say the workers simply are trying to make a living and are crucial to local economies.
Posted by Richard at October 31, 2005