NY Times Slurs American-Born Children Of Foreign Nationals As "Anchor Babies"

http://mediamatters.org/research/201106070015

9 hours and 7 minutes ago — 83 Comments

In an article on New York businesses that cater to new immigrant women from China who have recently given birth, The New York Times used the term "anchor babies" in referring to women who "come to the United States to give birth so that the children would be American citizens." The term "anchor babies" has been identified, among other things, as "derogatory," "racist," "ugly," and "derisive"; moreover, data show "anchor babies" to be a myth.

no mention of this alleged slur.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=222x105703

As relevant, the 2-page article says:

'The centers largely fly below the radar of English-language authorities — they advertise online or in Chinese-language publications. They make up such a niche market that city and state authorities did not know they even existed. Jeffrey Hammond, a spokesman for the state Health Department, said that as long as the centers were not offering medical services, they would not require a license. A spokeswoman for the city Health Department said that it had no information on the centers.

But they made a brief appearance in the news when, in March, officials in San Gabriel, Calif., shut down what they said was a home for women who had come to the United States to give birth so that the children would be American citizens — so-called anchor babies.

It’s unclear whether New York’s confinement centers cater to that market. Generally they practice a “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy regarding their clients’ origins. Both Ms. Lu’s center and the ones run by Annie Gao, another Flushing confinement entrepreneur, give a Beijing phone number on their Web sites. Ms. Gao, when pressed on what kind of clients her center drew — older or younger, local or tourist — said: “I’ve never noticed any tendency. When a woman comes to me, I only see a mother. It’s a mother and a baby, and that’s all that matters.” (She, like the other women interviewed, spoke in Mandarin Chinese.)'

catering to visiting Chinese women has already been uncovered. (Not the ones referred to in this NY article. There is a difference between a "new immigrant" and a visitor.)

http://articles.latimes.com/2011/mar/25/local/la-me-birthing-center-20110325

Inside they were maternity centers for Chinese women willing to pay handsomely to travel here to give birth to American citizens.

Southern California has become a hub of so-called birthing tourism. Operators of such centers tend to try to blend in, attracting as little attention as possible.

But on quiet, residential Palm Avenue, neighbors had noticed an unusual number of pregnant women going in and out, and some complained about noise.

On March 8, code enforcement officials shut down three identical four-bedroom townhouses functioning as an unlicensed birthing center.

Derogatory maybe

but the rest ... derogatory, racist utly derisive ... thats BS

Unfortunatly theres too many people in the world today that thrive on making everything into a PC issue.

Deal with things that matter to citizens of this country.

so that the baby would be a U.S. citizen (and later could sponsor its parents citizenship), what is wrong with a term like "anchor baby" to refer to this situation?


http://articles.latimes.com/2011/mar/25/local/la-me-bir...

Inside they were maternity centers for Chinese women willing to pay handsomely to travel here to give birth to American citizens.

Southern California has become a hub of so-called birthing tourism. Operators of such centers tend to try to blend in, attracting as little attention as possible.

But on quiet, residential Palm Avenue, neighbors had noticed an unusual number of pregnant women going in and out, and some complained about noise.

On March 8, code enforcement officials shut down three identical four-bedroom townhouses functioning as an unlicensed birthing center.

And as to the 'centers' discussed in this NYT article, the births occurred elsewhere. They are not 'birthing' centers.

Poster referred to use of the term as a 'slur,' and apparently media matters thought so.

"It’s unclear whether New York’s confinement centers cater to that market."

http://articles.latimes.com/2011/mar/25/local/la-me-bir...

Inside they were maternity centers for Chinese women willing to pay handsomely to travel here to give birth to American citizens.

Southern California has become a hub of so-called birthing tourism. Operators of such centers tend to try to blend in, attracting as little attention as possible.

But on quiet, residential Palm Avenue, neighbors had noticed an unusual number of pregnant women going in and out, and some complained about noise.

On March 8, code enforcement officials shut down three identical four-bedroom townhouses functioning as an unlicensed birthing center.

babies born elsewhere (in NYC etc.)

Want readers to understand, pnw.