English Only is a Ruse

In the past several weeks we’ve written quite a bit about our nation’s nativist streak.

Despite our origins as a nation of immigrants, there are elements that, no matter what, just don’t like ‘em. I can’t really explain it, though there seems to be a pretty large element of denial in the whole argument.

Yesterday, the Daily News Journal republished an editorial from the Atlanta Journal Constitution that details the trials and tribulations of a person who has lived in this country as an undocumented immigrant since her childhood.

From the article:

Following a routine traffic stop on campus in late March, Colotl was arrested and sent to a federal detention facility to await deportation. After an outcry by friends and support from faculty members, immigration authorities agreed to defer action on her deportation for a year, giving her time to finish her undergraduate degree. Said college president Daniel Papp, “We are especially thrilled she will be allowed to continue her studies here.”

But that has infuriated some hard-liners. For them, Colotl’s illegal entry is the most salient fact on her resume, her lack of a green card more important than her grade-point average. Her academic achievement, her English skills, her all-American sorority girl status — none of that placates the “WHAT PART OF ILLEGAL DON’T THEY UNDERSTAND?” crowd. As one suburban Atlanta newspaper columnist wrote, “Most citizens don’t care how much ‘potential’ the young lady has.”

The uproar, though ugly, accomplishes something important: It brushes away the layers of pretense, polite subterfuge and politically acceptable criticism. The truth is laid bare: We’re a recession-weary nation wrestling with a bout of brutal, racially tinged nativism — seeking scapegoats for economic failure, unsettled by demographic upheaval, unable to cope with a flatter world.

The United States has a long history of nativist sentiment, but that doesn’t make it right.

The reality that many choose to ignore is that Colotl has been a part of this country since childhood and rather than being a drain on our nation’s resources, as many of the anti-immigrant decriers would claim, is going to school with the aim of being a productive member of society. Just the kind of person we want to send back to a country that they never really knew. (/snark)

It’s easy to understand that people, when faced with all the trials of modern life, will seek a simple answer to their complex questions, but life isn’t that simple. Many of the problems we face in this nation are self-inflicted, brought on by powerful and monied interest groups and a largely disengaged populace.

“An enlightened citizenry is indispensable for the proper functioning of a republic. Self-government is not possible unless the citizens are educated sufficiently to enable them to exercise oversight. It is therefore imperative that the nation see to it that a suitable education be provided for all its citizens.” – Thomas Jefferson

The harsh reality is that the less we, as citizens know about how our government actually functions, the more likely our government will move in directions that don’t serve our interests. The even harsher reality is that scapegoating “immigrants” neither addresses the problems nor moves the conversation in a positive direction.

The truth is that English Only, Anti-Immigration laws, and other nativist ideas and rhetoric ultimately amount to nothing more than a cynical ruse played on the emotions of the American people. These policies neither make the country safer, nor address the root problems that stoke these fears. They are a distraction from policies that actually would resolve many of the issues that people face in this country.

It’s way past time that we stopped allowing ourselves to be distracted and start dealing with our problems head on.

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In other news, Rep. Joe Carr’s resolution commending Arizona’s new immigration lawis set to hit the House floor today.

Tags: Atlanta Journal Constitution, Daily News Journal, english only, Joe Carr