the list of now

Today I was reading the Providence Journal and caught this excellent article that very astutely reflects and expresses a lot of my feelings about the debate on “Illegal Immigration and the Economy” that is happening right now in RI. It raises the larger questions (involving bigotry) that this topic has brought up here very recently and in my opinion, all over the country for some time right now.

Read the entire article here.

Here are some excerpts:

I wonder if, through a magic wand or an act of Congress, illegals were turned into legals, it would ease the minds of people who are obsessed with this issue, or whether — not in all cases but certainly many — there is a deeper-seated prejudice at work.

The debate raging in Rhode Island over illegal immigration is one of the most distressing episodes I have chronicled in a career of more than 40 years.

And then later:

One reason I get upset by those who obsess about immigrants is that it instinctively offends an idealistic notion I have of America. I continue to be inspired by lines, written by Emma Lazarus you see at the Statue of Liberty:

“Give me your tired, your poor,/ Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,/ The wretched refuse of your teeming shore./ Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,/ I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

Spare me the assertion that your grandparents came here legally. You can hardly compare immigration laws — or ease of entry — now with then. Do you think the undocumented enjoy being illegal? By and large, don’t you think they would have preferred to come on the up and up if that had been doable?

And if you insist that, really, you’d embrace immigrants if they were legal, what are you doing to get Congress to make that a more realistic possibility?

If you are living in RI (or even elsewhere), please read and pass along this article. Its helped me solidify my feelings about this debate, when I’ve been largely shying away from thinking/discussing it for a while because I was having trouble wrapping my brain around more angry sentiments. (This happening after I almost lost my shit thinking/reacting/discussing the recent verdict in an extremely problematic and bigoted trial (arrest, charges, coverage and local attitudes) involving several members of the Narragansett tribe).

I’m putting the rest of my personal commentary under a cut, so you can read more if you want.

What I see happening in RI (and all over) is that there appears to be so much anger and bitterness in the conversation that the actual supposed topic/target (Illegal Immigration hurting the economy) is leeching into a shady area for attacks on IMMIGRANTS (legal or otherwise) period. On non-white Rhode Islanders, period. Its so entrenched with race, class and sometimes even moral issues for people, that it quickly turns personal. And while I think that is understandable at times, for the personal and political to be linked, when people are insisting that it is a simple, black and white issue (like RI Governor Carcieri) it is very dangerous for policy and for practical application that effects ACTUAL human lives.

Right now, people in RI who don’t speak English as a first language are under attack as a byproduct of this debate. People who are working to become citizens or have children who are citizens, people who want to move here (legally), people who are actually legal citizens and have thick accents or are visable “ethnic minorities” in this state… it quickly turns into a list of “others”, people other than WHITE Rhode Islanders. (And then on a national scale, people who are thought of as other than American).

Short of branding every “legal person” who isn’t white on their forehead “Citizen”, I don’t know what would satisfy people on the far-right of this debate – because they want to be able to feel secure and they won’t – EVER – because the fear and insecurity doesn’t come from others it comes from ignorance. I think the reality is that theoretically, want to be able to know by LOOKING. (I mean really, that sounds absurd, but someone please tell me if ANYONE has come up with an ACTUAL solution that will assuage ALL their fears regarding people coming into our country and “taking American jobs and resources”…. while several of the same people are blatantly ignoring that they vote for an administration and support corporations that are outsourcing jobs to other countries with often, NO legal or tax ramifications.) Do people honestly think making invasive, strict laws to protect them from others will help? That our already deeply prejudiced and broken legal and justice system will be able to take on this “problem” fairly?

I also think its funny how many Republicans are FOR giant police, big-brother governments WHEN it comes to policing OTHERS, but not when it comes to asking for your money and your help to actively solve problems or enact policy that is preventative and proactive, instead of the fear-based extremes of pre-emptive OR last-ditch CONTROL crack-down.

I don’t claim to have the answers to problems regarding Illegal Immigration and strain on our economy. I do, however, approach the problem in a radically different way then I have seen it play out recently in the media for the most part, which is 1. That there are no absolutes, when you are talking about human lives and needs, it is never black and white. and 2. THAT WE ARE TALKING ABOUT HUMAN LIVES. Human beings. Just like me. PERIOD. For me to compare myself to anyone in the world and somehow convince myself that they are less human – less deserving of basic human rights than me would be wrong. And if these so-called illegals are not less human and not less deserving of compassion and kindness, then this entire “problem” needs to be approached in policy in a RADICALLY different way then what has been happening. And that would be the beginning. Thats about all I know for sure.