The Many Views of Immigration

This weekend's readings showed a number of different viewpoints regaurding immigration. It is easy to understand both sides of the immigration argument, but one article in particular, Lecture on International Flow of Humanity, had many different views than different views than I. The following statement stood out very strongly to me:
"The willingness of rich countries to welcome migrants, and the way that they treat them, will be a measure of their commitment to human equality and human dignity." (Annan 146)
This author turned immigration into an issue of racism and acceptance.The point was also made that this was a new concept of "global citizenship" ( Annan 146). This author acts as if people against immigration are ignorant to the positives of immigration. I agree with these statements, but at the same time I do not feel that they outweigh the many negatives that an abundance of immigration can have. America was built on immigration, but then again at one time or another, so were many other countires. Some places in the world, such as China, are so overpopulated that there are even laws regaurding the number of children they can have. If an economy cannot even support the amount of people it has in the present, then it is unlikely that it can support an abundance of illegal immigrants.

So I wonder how I would feel if I wanted to immigrate to a new country due to a crash in economy, or an unfair government? Deep down inside I know that I would want to find a better life for myself. It surprised me greatly that Mexico actually issued out a pamphlet on how to illegally immigrate across the border. I never knew that this was something that the Mexican government actually wanted. This pamphlet gives information such as the "dangers in crossing high risk zones" and how to "beware of human traffickers". This alone shows how common illegal immigration is in the United States. I agree in what Linda Chavez's point that the United States is actually the one being taken advantage of. Occurances such as this pamphlet make me see her point.

This Weekends Readings

I thought “America’s Mixed Messages to Foreigners at the Gate” and Guide for the Mexican Migrant were very interesting to read. In “America’s Mixed Messages to Foreigners at the Gate”, Ruben Navarrette, Jr. explains how illegal immigrants are getting mixed messages from the United States regarding illegal immigration. I, personally, did not realize so many hidden messages could be obtained from the actions and values of our country. The pamphlet, Guide for the Mexican Migrant, I feel is a step in the right direction to educate citizens that are considering migrating to the United States. Although this pamphlet was written for citizens in Mexico, I think Americans can also learn from the pamphlet. It is overwhelming to read about the risks and dangers these immigrants subject themselves to in order to come to the United States. Then, on top of that, they face discrimination and unfair working conditions here. I feel this is why immigration is such a difficult issue today.

Mixed Messages on Immigration

Of all that we were assigned to read over the weekend, Ruben Navarrette, Jr.'s article "America's Mixed Messages to Foreigners at the Gate" impacted me the most on pages 148-150. The article was basically dicussing the mixed signals we give illegal immigrants. It used the example, that English only laws say to immigrants, "In the United States we speak English and we demand the same of you. Don't expect us to cater to you in your native tongue." But then we turn right back around and have biligual classrooms, ballots, menus, and etc. We give the contradictory message of "dont bother learning English. Keep your native tongue." What I loved about this article is how true it was. The immigrants arent only being exploited and harrassed because they came into a country that didnt want them here in the first place. The come to a country that is sending contradictory signals. As much as we say, "down with illegal immigration", we are the ones holding on to it. We are not willing to turn down cheap labor and even cheaper goods if it means exploiting and mistreating a group of people. The honesty of Navarrette is what i loved the most...

To be for illegal immigration, or not to be.....that is the question.

I beleive that Ruben Navarrette is right. America sends so many mixed messgaes to immigrants. Many people are staunchly against illegal immigration yet their actions seem to support it. And like I've said many times before, I think that the American people are ignorant of the issues facing us today. Take for example immigration. People don't realize that the reason things are so cheap is because of illegal immigrants. Most immigrants are willing to take jobs that many Americans themselves will not take. And they're willing to take them at dirt -cheap pay. So the immigrants definately draw the short end of the stick here. Now a days, there is all this talk about ways to prevent illegal immigration by extending the wall along the border and increasing its security. (I don't know about you, but honestly....building a wall. I think it sounds a little medieval and majorly out-dated. It's not like we're in a Simpsons movie and by putting a wall infront of us we won't know how to get around it.) The truth of the matter is that the wall has proven to be innefective. Some say that the wall is working, and that places that used to be high traffic areas for crossing have decreased and are now under control. What's really happening is that the wall has just shifted everything. So now regions along the border that never used to be popular sites for crossing over have become the most popular site for crossing over. Overall the wall has done very little to stop immigration. If people want to cross they're going to find a way to cross. Putting a wall infront of them is not going to stop them. It's just like putting a fence in your yard to prevent people from climbing over. If people really believe in ending illegal immigration then they should find some self-discipline from within and restrain from buying cheap products and hiring cheap labor. But from what I've seen, greed seems to dominate over all the senses and impaires judgement. People are going to say they're opposed to illegal immigration as they buy their cheap fruit that illegal immigrants have picked.

Thoughts on this Weeks Readings

After going through the assigned readings for this weak, I honestly don't know how I feel about immigration. I'm definately not against them coming into our country, illegal or not they're contributing to our economy, and most likely they're native country's economy while taking up jobs that most American workers porbably wouldn't take.
I think it's sad that the Mexican Minitry of Foreign Relations felt the need to issue a pamphlet guiding their citizens to cross the Mexican-American border illegally. It's good that they're addressing the issue instead of looking the other way, but sad that fatality rates are so high and that pathways are so dangerous that the need for such a pamphlet exists. It may seem like these things are common sense to some, but it's not like everyone goes illegally crossing borders everyday now, and I'm sure there were many issues that come up that never previously occured to the immigrants.
After reading "When Guest Workers Opt Not to Go Home" I'm not sure how I feel about a guest worker plan. In a way I feel like we have no other choice if we want to have any control over the people coming in and out of the country but after observing the Germany/Turkish example it doesn't appear that this method was successful. It should be pointed out that Germany spent no money or any effort in assimilating the Turks and other immigrants into German society whereas in order to gain American citizenship immigrants must possess a thorough knowledge of American History and government. In the end I think this is our only option but whether the large influx of permanent immigrants benefits us overall is yet to be determined.

Mexican

The Guide for the Mexican Migrant was pretty exciting...at least compared to the other things we read. I think it's kind of funny but really weird that the Mexican Government feels the need to publish such a pamphlet. Is it really that hard to figure out how dangerous it is to cross rivers at night or two wander around in the desert during the super hot day? I think the pamphlet would have been more useful and way more exciting if it exaggerated everything enough to scare prospective migrants. Something like 'If you try to cross the river at night, alligators and hippopotamus will eat you and your children and during the day, mega-hawks in the desert will try to peck your eyes out.'

Advice for the Crossing Migrant

The excerpt from the Guide for the Mexican Migrant was almost comical. I kept smiling as I was reading it, because a lot of the advice seemed like common sense. For example, the parts about wet clothing weighing more and walking during less heat-intense times. In addition, there were those two cartoons that were supposed to illustrate some of the advice. However, I can see why Mexico's Ministry of Foreign Relations would issue such a pamphlet. The stream of illegal immigrants attempting to cross into U.S. borders is constantly increasing along with the number of fatalities. Many of them are making these very same mistakes the pamphlet is advising against. Then, there are the ones that are falling victim to the coyotes, human traffickers. If you want all the nitty gritty details, read The Devil's Highway. It's a great book and is truly eye-opening. There are several parts in the book that are so vividly disturbing. For example, the author describes how the migrants recycle their urine, because they do not have water. After so many times, the urine turns pitch black from all the toxins and whatever else! Can you imagine?