Our immigration issues are hardly a new phenomenon…
These are from the 1800s, with the Irish and Italians but especially the Chinese as popular targets (leading to the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act, which wasn’t repealed until 1943).
If the US really wants to limit immigration, we need a new set of immigration laws. Our current immigration laws date back to about 1986 under Reagan, who was a big big fan of immigration (Reagan quotes available upon request).
For many years, our immigration law and policy was designed to spit in the eye of Fidel Castro by treating everyone who set foot on Florida as an asylum seeker. This helped earn votes from a swing demographic in a swing state.
I agree, we need immigration reform. The solution is better laws, not ongoing indefinite declarations of emergency. Both Bush and Obama sought to overhaul our immigration laws; Congress rejected it. In Feb 2024, a bipartisan group of Senators proposed an immigration overhaul, but tRump ordered his minions to prevent the issue even from being brought up for debate. https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/senate-bill/4361
The American people want immigration reform. tRump wants a stick to beat on democrats with. SAD!!
Good point. Maybe I should've said he'll want to be considered as the most positively influential, non-religious... He just wants to be remembered BIGLY!
EDIT - i had to edit my initial response yet again...
This is an example of the history Trump, DeSantis, and other MAGA politicians don't want future generations to learn. It's more important than ever that we make sure it isn't erased from the books and isn't forgotten.
Yes ..and then the irish and italians were assimilated into American society with bribes of food, jobs and nice clothing and better living conditions...later when the American white folks wanted to pit them against the other poor people who were Black...to help voting against them as they were becoming too involved with politics. This was done under the guise of good Christian love.
@JaggedLittlePill True. The timing of the Immigration and Nationality Act (which eased limitations on the numbers of Chinese allowed to immigrate per year) was suspect, too—coming after the Civil Rights Act that made racial segregation illegal.
@bijouxbroussard Really?? I did not know that. I wonder how many had at least some African genetics in them?? I guess the one drop rule didn't apply if they did. Has anyone ever tried to figure that out??
@sarabee1995 Before DNA testing was available there was no way to know (in spite of the term) if one literally had a drop of black blood. Often it was a matter of knowing the person’s family; a black grandparent or great-grandparent. There has been speculation about Abraham Lincoln having had Melungeon roots, but it was never proven. They could possibly test actor Tom Hanks—he’s actually a descendant of the family of Lincoln’s mother, Nancy Hanks.
@Zaphod42 That’s always puzzled me—to my eyes the Irish don’t look any different from the English (forgive me if that somehow offends anyone). And the English indisputably identify as "white". When I was a kid, Mexicans, East Indians and Arab people were all classified as "Caucasian".
And some of them had skin the same color as mine, some even darker. 🤔
@bijouxbroussard I don’t get any of it. My ancestry is English, Irish, Scottish, German, French and Norwegian…there is no part of my heritage that hasn’t done horrible things to some other part of it, and just about all of them have been unwelcome in America at some point or another 🤷♂
@DearAmbellina2113 WASPs (White Anglo-Saxon Protestants) the make-up of the Mayflower. And they’ve reconciled with the Irish—23 of our presidents have had some Irish ancestry—including #44 and #46.
@bijouxbroussard The Chinese have "colonized" every continent and and usually retained their culture and succeeded.. They have to be doinfg something right. Maybe people should learn from them?😷
@whowasthatmaskedman There are specific reasons. But it makes a huge difference when one chooses to immigrate, as opposed to being brought by someone else, separated from anyone with a common culture, forbidden to speak one’s language, name changed and children stolen.
@bijouxbroussard I completely agree..But thats a very different question. The one thing I might add to your point is, that at this distance in time, it is hardly the fault of the "forced immigrant" that they have not Integrated into their new country. It is the fault of those who refuse to accept then as part of that society..😷
