That’s what non-profit groups are promising Spanish-speaking immigrants in Orange County, California. I’m as pro-open-borders as can be, but this is the sort of thing that makes the nativists’ case for them.

Most interesting in the story, however, is the assertion by one activist (tacitly accepted by the writer) that Hispanics — because of a culture of machismo — are reluctant to sign up for state aid. The story itself undermines this claim, by making it clear that the real issue is fear of getting in trouble over one’s immigration status.

Things would go better all around, of course, if these immigrants were able to live outside the shadows, either pursuing citizenship or paying taxes as legal guest workers.

(Also, can anyone at the Los Angeles Times tell me just what the phrase “anti-illegal immigration supporters” means? What a lead sentence! Talk about English as a second language…)

UPDATE: Kaus weighs in: “What’s most amazing about the LAT story is writer Jennifer Delson’s insistence on portraying this as a great thing (”Food Stamp Program Finally Speaks Their Language”). I can’t tell if she’s clueless or consciously propagandizing. …”