The American Way is the "Just" Way: Let's Help Immigrants

 Thesis: Immigrants coming over from other countries should not be turned away because they are just escaping dire situations, want a better life, and it is the American way.

    First, while immigrants are seen as outsiders or even worse, terrorists, more often than not that is not the case. Immigrants coming to the United States are just seeking a safe haven. In the article, "Tackling the Global Refugee Crisis: Sharing, not Shirking Responsibility" Salil Shetty writes about how Immigrants who escape war, bombs, and unlivable circumstances now have to be subjected to harsher conditions elsewhere (Shetty). Shetty provides a solution to Immigration problems in the format of countries sharing responsibility for Immigrants based on wealth, the unemployment rate, and population in a country (Shetty). These solutions would help not just people in America but other countries as well because everyone would be helping in maintaining immigrant ratios. Single mothers with kids won't have to be sent back, and those escaping wars can find the safe haven they deserve. 

        Secondly, most immigrants just want a better life. This is implied but needs to be further discussed because when some Americans think of Immigrants coming to the U.S they think of terrorists. They think differently. They think jobs are being taken away and benefits that don't belong to them. In the article, "Stop Immigration Processing as Leverage against Sanctuaries?" by Kent Lundgren he states, "Across the country, local governments are declaring themselves so-called "sanctuaries" for deportable aliens. They refuse to cooperate with immigration enforcement" (Lundgren). He goes on to claim that these local governments are helping criminals and allowing local benefits to be used by them illegally. Sanctuary cities are cities where some laws try to help undocumented aliens by not aiding in their deportation or arrest. As Lundgren groups all immigrants together the truth is that most come to America for a better life not to harm anyone or take away benefits. The article, "Frequently Requested Statistics on Immigrants and Immigration in the United States," by Jeanne Batalova states, "In 2019, 33 percent (12.9 million) of the 39.5 million immigrants ages 25 and older had a bachelor's degree or higher, similar to U.S.-born adults (see Figure 3).

Notably, 48 percent of immigrants who entered the country between 2014 and 2019 held bachelor’s degrees or higher, compared to 33 percent of the U.S.-born and overall immigrant populations" (Batalova). College degrees don't equal crime. They show hard work, dedication to wanting to better one's circumstances and to gain knowledge. Immigrants who come to America will naturally need help when they first come, but through determination and resourcefulness, they can rise up and give back to the community. 

    In conclusion, while democracy, freedom, and doing the right thing have not always been the American way, it is now. It is the American dream - that anyone who works hard and lives a just life deserves to be here. In her article, "Convicted to the Gospel" Darlene Nicgorski writes, "We placed refugees in communities of faith where people met them as real people and learned why they had fled. We defied U.S. immigration laws in order to protect life" (Nicgorski). Americans must continue to be the change that we want. The change that we project to the world. By helping Immigrants we continue to show other countries that democratic living, compassion, and peace are not just words or ideas. They are a way of life. The "Just" way of life. 

Works Cited

Batalova, Jeanne. “Frequently Requested Statistics on Immigrants and Immigration in the United States.” Migrationpolicy.org, 11 Feb. 2021, https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/frequently-requested-statistics-immigrants-and-immigration-united-states-2020.

Lundgren, Kent. “Stop Immigration Processing as Leverage against Sanctuaries?” CIS.org, 3 Feb. 2017, https://cis.org/Lundgren/Stop-Immigration-Processing-Leverage-Against-Sanctuaries.

Nicgorski, Darlene. “Convicted of the Gospel.” Sojourners, 2016, https://sojo.net/magazine/septemberoctober-2016/convicted-gospel.

Shetty, Salil. “Tackling the Global Refugee Crisis: Sharing, Not Shirking Responsibility.” Amnesty International, 11 Oct. 2021, https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/campaigns/2016/10/tackling-the-global-refugee-crisis-sharing-responsibility/.

-Angel Hunter

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Thesis: Immigration has become increasingly difficult in the U.S. because of political ideologies stemming from restrictive policies and perceived dangers.

 

Immigration has long been a front seat issue in American politics, whether it be from the willingness to let refugees pursue the American dream or the opposite end of the spectrum’s wish to close the borders through strict vetting procedures. Either argument has voiced valid concerns, most recently within the past presidencies, but a discouraging amount has grown to heighten the idea that the borders should be closed in a somewhat discriminatory manner. The influx of refugees from areas like the Middle East and Mexico have triggered a frightening response of backlash from conservatives. Many Americans have lost sight of what the foundation of this country was built on… Immigrants. It is important to upkeep the values that built this country and that includes opening borders through the proper methods.

 

The debate from the opposing side is centered around the belief that large amounts of migrants to the United States bring drugs, criminals and in some cases terrorism. A noteworthy example of this belief being propagated is evident with the former president, Donald Trump, who has notoriously expressed his opinions on immigrants from Mexico stating in a speech, “When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best,” he goes on to say “They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists.” He finishes up this stating “And some, I assume, are good people.” The danger within this quote is that it spreads a bigoted mindset to people who are unsure or uniformed of those who are migrating to the United States. This article is not about the former president, but rather the rationale and cause of the difficulty in immigrating to the U.S. An important theme to explore is the validity behind the fears of people who oppose immigration. A 2018 study from the CATO Institute revealed that 532 per 100,000 of legal migrants (756 per 100,000 for illegal migrants) coming into the U.S. through Texas are indeed criminals (Nowrasteh 2020). This statistic represents a small number of individuals but says so much. The current state of mind regarding immigration is almost completely unfounded and requires immediate attention. 

 

Immigration is the light in the darkness for some individuals and should be viewed more as a saving grace than as an invasion from “illegal aliens”. Many migrants are escaping from dangers present in their own country and are seeking to better their lives. Some immigrants risk everything while escaping only to be greeted by discrimination, strenuous requirements to enter the country, and the high risk of being deported. The climate around immigration as a whole needs to be deescalated, there are many policies that work against immigrants which desperately need review. For example, the process of obtaining a citizenship should undergo a firm screening but should never take hundreds of dollars and years to be considered. According to the article “How Long Does It Take to Get U.S. Citizenship After You Apply?” the average waiting time for becoming a citizen is nearly 1.5 years which creates more problems for people who are coming from dire situations. Another policy that works against immigrants is Executive Order 13767, which holds funds from sanctuary cities. These cities provide undocumented immigrants a haven from ICE, and many depend on these cities during the processing time of their citizenship application. If the mindset that people fleeing persecution, rampant crime or war are only coming to the U.S. to spread evil, then the very foundation of America has failed.

 

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Nowrasteh, A. (2020, October 13). Cato.org. Retrieved March 26, 2022, from https://www.cato.org/blog/new-research-illegal-immigration-crime-0 

 

Petts, J. (2020, August 28). How long does it take to get U.S. citizenship? How long does it take to get U.S. citizenship? | ImmigrationHelp.org. Retrieved March 26, 2022, from https://www.immigrationhelp.org/learning-center/how-long-does-it-take-to-get-u-s-citizenship-after-you-apply 

 

Scott, E. (2019, October 2). Analysis | trump's most insulting - and violent - language is often reserved for immigrants. The Washington Post. Retrieved March 26, 2022, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2019/10/02/trumps-most-insulting-violent-language-is-often-reserved-immigrants/ 

 

                                                                                           - Bryson Guillen