Think of the Poconos of Northeastern Pennsylvania and you probably think of forests thick with hemlock, spruce and deer, ski slopes, golf courses and honeymoon hotels with heart-shaped bathtubs. To which you can now add sweatshops where illegal immigrants toil.
The arrest of 81 alleged illegals in an early-morning raid by federal immigration agents at Iridium Industries in East Stroudsburg on June 19 has led to revelations that not only was it widely known that the company was well aware that most of its workers were illegals, but as many as 30 other area companies are now under investigation for doing the same thing.
This, I believe, is what is known as an open secret.
And further evidence that the Poconos, which is near and dear to my heart, has become just another place with runaway development, staggering numbers of home foreclosures, grinding poverty, soaring crime, failing schools, a stressed out infrastructure and a magnet for businesses that know they can get away with pretty much anything.
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