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GOP candidat for senate called racist

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Published: Feb. 25, 2004 at 1:56 PM

CHICAGO, Feb. 25 (UPI) -- Immigrant rights advocates are ripping a pair of provocative campaign ads from Republican U.S. Senate candidate Jim Oberweis as racist and fallacious.

In his ads, Oberweis warns the nation is being overrun by illegal immigrants.

"Illegal aliens are coming here to take American workers' jobs, drive down wages and take advantage of government benefits such as free health care, and you pay," the wealthy dairy operator says in one of the spots.

"How many? Ten thousand illegal aliens a day. Enough to fill Soldier Field every single week." (Soldier Field is the stadium where the Chicago Bears play.)

Advocates for immigrant rights were swift to criticize the ads as racist.

"It is men like this gentleman who continue to project the old Archie Bunker mentality. Those stats are prostituted and fabricated," said state Rep. William Delgado, D-Chicago.

"They're very irresponsible."

Topics: Jim Oberweis
© 2004 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Any reproduction, republication, redistribution and/or modification of any UPI content is expressly prohibited without UPI's prior written consent.

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