Recently, I visited several Central American nations. Of those places, I have never seen crushing poverty like I saw in Belize and Honduras. Juxtaposed between beautiful beaches and the manicured lawns of resorts catering to Americans, Canadians, and Europeans were hovels and shacks. In the areas where tourists congregated there was a heavy security presence, and warnings about leaving certain areas. At one restaurant, away from the tourist areas, there were bars on the inside and outside of the windows. The doors were locked while we were dining, and only unlocked when we were leaving.
Is it any wonder that people living under these conditions are leaving to come to America? My all-too-brief visits to both of these places and discussions with other travelers left me feeling disgusted with my fellow countrymen. It left me wondering if we deserve the America we proclaim to love. So many of my fellow citizens seem to despise the very things than make our nation strong, like diversity and mix of cultures.
Some of my fellow travelers refused to leave the safety of the resort areas. One family we shared a vehicle with seemed clueless about what they were seeing, showing more sympathy for the stray dogs they were seeing instead of the children being forced to stand in the middle of the road to stop traffic so that the adults could then try and sell their wares to the tourists attempting to pass by.
Then there were the conversations we shared over meals. We heard subtle but recognizable racism, and allusions to how the people living in the third-world countries we were visiting were lesser beings than we Americans. Never once did these American tourists seem to think about how the people they were meeting have the same hopes and dreams that they do.
This all leads to the arguments we hear for building a wall on our southern border. Every single argument for this stupid wall is about racism. If it were about breaking the law, then why are we not seeing the employers hiring undocumented immigrants being prosecuted? Why are we not hearing of a no-tolerance campaign for these employers?
If we really wanted to fix our immigration system we could, and it would not involve a wall. It would change the very nature of how we treat our southern border. For example, it should allow for seasonal immigration for migrant farm workers on a scale that is not supported today, and would allow for a path to residency and even citizenship, if so desired.
It is estimated that at least 6 out of 10 of our country’s farm workers are undocumented. Many of these undocumented farm workers would like to change their immigration status and obtain citizenship, but a pathway to citizenship is almost impossible. With the current structure of the legal system, it’s very difficult to become a legal U.S. resident even with a family member that’s a U.S. citizen or permanent legal resident. Without family in the U.S., it’s nearly impossible. The only ways to get permanent residency in the U.S. are to have an immediate family member sponsor you, to get an employment-based visa requiring high levels of education, to have a case of prosecution in your homeland that is recognized by the U.S. government, or to be a genius, extremely rich, or a star athlete or artist.
The problem is the systemic racism within our current system, along with fears drummed up by the conservative media machine that immigrants will only vote for Democrats.
Conservatives: tone down the racism, enact policies that help the average person, and maybe new immigrants to this country would vote for you. Saying racist things, cutting taxes for the rich, cutting education funding, and taking away health care, among other things, will never win over any newcomers to this nation.