Independence Day is marked by patriotic displays of parades and festivities to honor our nation. We celebrate what American colonists did by joining together to fight against the injustices of their government. We recall that people, who strived together to solve serious problems in American history, created our nation.
Since the attacks on September 11, 2001, top political officials have argued that immigrant groups pose threats to America. These arguments have influenced my thinking, especially on a holiday that salutes rights and freedoms. The injustices against immigrants put my sense of security at risk as a citizen. I was an immigrant to this land; I believed that I belonged here. I have come to fear, however, that my naturalization certificate does not provide me the same security as a native born American.
I have only to watch the news videos to see everyday people fleeing from wars and the repressive regimes of their homelands. In their homelands, water supplies are cut, food-producing soil is left untilled while instead IED (improvised explosive device) bombs are planted into the ground, and citizens find themselves on the wrong side of the people in power. Stripped of the essentials of life and any semblance of safety, citizens grab their meager belongings and start on uncertain paths away from chaos. I worry that countries that can help turn their backs on these everyday people driven by hopelessness.
When people seek safety in America, proponents of immigrants cite various reasons to take them in. New arrivals are willing to take work needs to be done, such as harvesting crops, washing dishes in restaurants, laboring on construction sites and working in meatpacking plants, all at low pay. They argue that American born workers don’t want the same available low paying jobs. For some potential American workers, sadly, being addicted to narcotic drugs keeps them out of the job market.
Critics use the same work characteristics of the new arrivals to keep them out. They argue that newcomers are unmotivated to work. They blame the new arrivals for taking jobs they believe are intended for American born workers. If the critics would accept any new arrivals, they believe only highly skilled workers should be allowed in. Both the proponents and the critics, ironically, point to the new arrivals’ work characteristics. We are a stuck society, with two opposing views on immigration and no solutions. Perhaps by reframing the issue in a third way we can identify workable solutions.
Senator Corey Booker’s interpretation of the Justice Department’s position on “law and order” may be a place to start. He stated that the current Justice Department is targeting the poor and minority groups — essentially attacking the vulnerable. Immigrants, consequently, are viewed as the enemy. What if they are not the enemy? How can we determine what is really happening in society?
A broader context is needed to understand the pattern of behavior that makes the new arrivals likely targets. The broader context can be viewed by using a wider lens to observe groups functioning within society. Groups like conservative voters and like-minded lawmakers often join forces to willfully identify a vulnerable group as the problem and they justify dehumanizing the branded group. The new arrivals are degraded with punishing laws, which restrict their civil rights and liberties. The attacks on new arrivals, however, are not based on their work characteristics.
I believe that the lawmakers’ focus is misdirected away from real problems. Think about it; what equitable policies are being discussed to aid the millions of displaced people? What policies are being considered to bring peace to war ravaged places to make them safe for their own citizens? Some “policy makers” who are opposed to the new arrivals pay no attention to these real problems; instead they use knee jerk reactions to target the new arrivals.
We celebrate Independence Day to honor the colonists who emigrated from Great Britain and fought against the injustices of their government. On this holiday, let us reflect on the actions we citizens can take to hold our lawmakers accountable for solving the real problems of immigration. Real problems are being ignored while new arrivals are being falsely attacked. Let’s put a stop to this unfair situation. New arrivals are everyday people who seek out living in a free land in exchange for working hard, abiding by its laws, paying taxes and being recognized for who they are — good residents. Only by working together, as American colonists did before us, can we be a nation that wins against social injustices.
Mary Greenberg, Ph.D., serves on the State of Kansas Holocaust Commission. Her speaking engagements on preventing anti-Semitism, and the link between anti-Semitism and leadership are based on her research that advances the study of the Jewish people in the Diaspora.
