The Complexities of Immigration Require Citizens to Unite Against Divisive Politics
By Julia Roig, Founder, The Horizons Project, and Evan Wang, Tufts Daily Contributor
We Must Reimagine Political Leadership on Immigration Policy
By Julia Roig – Founder, The Horizons Project
Immigration is a political “wicked” problem all over the world. Why wicked? Because migration is intertwined with so many other issues: the increase of violent conflict, deep economic disparities, a disrupted global supply chain, rising autocratic oppression, and climate-induced natural disasters. All of these feed into the underlying causes of mass migration and none of them have an easy fix. What should citizens be demanding from our leaders given the complexity of what we’re facing?
Toxic Othering and Dehumanization Should Not Be Tolerated
At its heart, immigration policy is a story of belonging — who belongs and who doesn’t within a construct of national borders. Sadly, many leaders employ a political strategy of stoking fear with dangerous, dehumanizing language towards those who have fled their countries looking for refuge. The rise of far-right populism and authoritarianism throughout Europe and the U.S. is fueled by an “us versus them” rhetoric, with a political strategy to stay in power by placing blame on immigrants for grievances and economic discontent. We need leaders who stand up against this blatant tactic and rehumanize the policy debate in order to stop using the plight of millions of people for political gain.
To solve this wicked problem, leaders should deploy facts: highlighting labor shortages, noting that immigrants are some of the hardest working most productive members of society, and emphasizing the special history of our nation built on immigrants. But none of these facts address the emotional turmoil many people feel. Immigration is an emotional issue as much as a rational policy debate, and our political leaders must become more sophisticated listeners and storytellers to tap into the emotional zeitgeist of the country and not assume factual arguments will build public support for policy solutions.
Coming Together as a Global Community
Many of our current policies have been focused on stopping the flow of people coming to the U.S., securing the border, and sending people back to their countries of origin. These are band-aid solutions that do not address the underlying causes of why people are leaving in the first place, focus sufficient investments in legal pathways and infrastructure to process immigrants, or connect them to industries in need of workers. Leaders need to publicly own up to the complexity of the issue, demonstrate political courage to have hard conversations, and not devolve into band-aid solutions for political expediency.
Immigration flows are a global issue, and U.S. leaders must not become so insularly focused that they do not consider the perspectives and learnings from other parts of the world. There is an opportunity for the U.S. to lead on more humanitarian-oriented immigration policies and incorporate them into domestic policies the experiences and lessons from other countries.
The Importance of Recognizing the Issue of Immigration
By Evan Wang – Tufts Daily Contributor
From Poland to France, Canada to Mexico, immigration has become one of the defining marks of modern politics, and it is no different here in the United States. Across the world, millions of people are on the move, trying to find a better life for themselves. America has become the premier destination for many of these immigrants due to its boundless opportunities. I agree with Ms. Roig, that mass migration is a problem involving many moving parts, from climate change to economic crises to violent conflict, and cannot be solved easily. It is necessary for the electorate, and especially our politicians, to realize that these are tough and often unpleasant issues to deal with. Yet this is a serious problem that requires our attention now.
While looking at a public policy debate, it is important to recognize the hard facts, as well as the public emotions across our nation. Poll after poll shows American’s perception has decisively turned against immigration. From the Rio Grande to New York, Americans are unable to keep up with the socioeconomic changes and public policy challenges that mass migration has brought. Yet, research shows that immigrants are less likely to commit crimes, more likely to take low-paying jobs Americans are unwilling to take, and within one or two generations are a net economic benefit to local communities. Most Americans seem unaware or object to these points and we need to try to understand why that is the case.
Democrats Need to Change Their Strategy on Immigration
It is true that the immigration debate has long been politicized and has become more and more toxic in recent years. However, Democrats seem to be losing that debate. Most polls show that more Americans trust Republicans on the issue of immigration. This is because the mainstream Republicans have successfully tied the issue of immigration to the economy, crime, and illegal asylum. The focus on illegal immigration is particularly harmful in this discussion, given only 23 percent of all immigrants to this nation are illegal migrants. However, the hyper-focus on this group of migrants along with the perceived, and sometimes real, lax attitude Democrats have toward illegal migrants are damaging the chances of an honest discussion of the topic. While as Democrats, many of us scramble to make lofty speeches on long-term solutions, we are losing the debate over the problem of immigration at the present. We often try to wage a campaign using hard facts and scientific studies, but we too often overlook that this is a debate over hearts and minds as well.
The fact that 70 percent of Americans still see immigration with a positive attitude means that, fundamentally, we agree on the benefits of this debate. However, how we reach that important conclusion is still crucial to discuss. While a humanitarian solution is key, America’s institutions must get on board with the process. A humanitarian solution does not mean we need to disregard international systems and American laws. We can still stand against illegal immigration while opening new pathways for legal immigration. We can still aid developing countries to create a solution that does not disregard humanitarian needs, while still working for all Americans.
Stop Playing Politics With Immigration
By Julia Roig – Founder, The Horizons Project
I am glad to see that Mr. Wang and I agree that immigration is a global phenomenon, interconnected with many other issues such as climate, economics, and violent conflict. The entangled nature of this issue, therefore, requires a different kind of attention from our political leaders. We also agree that this is an emotional issue for many people, so facts and statistics are not as compelling as arguments for finding a path forward as a country. I would also concur with his point that large urban centers are having a hard time “keeping up” with the socio-economic impact of the large influx of migrants in addition to border areas. This has a very large impact on the politics in these cities based not just on emotions but on the lived experiences of the people living in those cities.
I was glad to see Mr. Wang recognize that there are many areas of the country in need of workers, requiring coordination between states from a national level. All the arguments he makes point to the need to overhaul our immigration system. Ultimately, this will require an end to playing politics with such an important issue so that we can find real policy solutions and a Congress willing to take action.
Dangerous Rhetoric on Immigration Must Stop
The point I want to insist upon is to be more precise with where to place the onus of responsibility and action. Mr. Wang and I agree that the hyper-focus on illegal immigration is harmful to the policy debate. But the reason we are currently so divided over this issue is because there is a very clear strategy to use immigration as a political project to gain and retain power. I believe it’s important for citizens to stand up to the extremist faction that has taken hold over one of the political parties that is using this issue to divide us and make us fearful, confused, angry, and hopeless that things can change. Recent references to “vermin” and immigrants “poisoning the blood of our country” are dangerous, dehumanizing language that must be called out as unacceptable, no matter our ideological leaning.
During this important election year, it is a time for moral clarity and courage as a country. Citizens need to come together across many lines of difference—including ideological, geographic, religious, and race—to organize together to elect and hold accountable the leaders we deserve. Immigration is just one issue connected to many others, but it is central to how we stand up for our democratic norms and values.
If you enjoyed this article, please make sure to like, comment, and share below. You can read our Republican versus Republican debate here.
Julia Roig
Julia Roig is the Chief Network Weaver of the Horizons Project where she brings over 30 years of experience working internationally for democratic change and peacebuilding. Previously, she served as the president of one of the preeminent democracy-building nonprofits PartnersGlobal. She currently serves as the Board Chair of the Alliance for Peacebuilding. An organizer at heart, Julia is an evangelist for narrative engagement and reparative approaches for social change.
Evan Wang
Evan Wang is an undergraduate student at Tufts University. He is currently studying history and biology.