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• Open Letter

Listen up

 I bid you farewell

with this food for thought

These are my reflections, addressed to valley residents, on what I have learned through out the course. It highlights the key points that I would like my readers to consider in order developing a fuller, more complex understanding of migration across our Arizona borders. This is my evaluation of two different messages; it comes in the form of a comparison of the message of Mexican Consul Flores verses that of a Border Patrol Agent and a proponent of prop 200.

Consul Flores’ message serves as a practical solution to community problems because it encourages the legitimization of working conditions, and advances the cause of human rights. Generally, his approach suggests, as a most efficient means for addressing undocumented laborers, an advocacy method, which implicitly takes root in pursuit of improving the quality of life for both American and migrant communities. Additionally, the theme of advocacy reappears in his presentation via support for employers attempting to lower labor costs by relying on day laborers as a constant source of employment. He describes the two driving forces influencing Mexican immigration: labor market shortages and a complex network of family relations.

            Consul Flores cited several staggering statistics and facts, substantiated by reputable agencies, which provided new insight to immigration issues. These concepts are refreshing in the face of our bombardment of anti-immigrant rhetoric. The P.B.S. special, “The New Americas” suggested that, collectively, immigrants earn $240 billion a year, pay $90 billion a year in taxes, and yet only claim $5 billion. Because undocumented immigrants annually contribute at least $300 billion to the U.S. gross national product, it is obvious how, without the contribution of immigrant labor, the output of goods and services in the U.S. would likely be close to $1 trillion smaller than it is today. According to the Urban Institute undocumented workers was that “overall, immigrants in the United States pay $35 billion more in taxes every year than they use in government services. In a related discussion, his concluding remark concerning the repercussions of outgoing drew attention to outgoing Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan testimony before Congress that immigration offers a viable solution to the threat that labor shortages propose to our continuous economic growth and prosperity.

            The border patrol deputy exemplified an all American, flag-waving guy interested only in the United States common welfare and serving his country by protecting it from undocumented Mexicans. The agent described the threatening corollary of Mexican migrants crossing into America, while illustrating the effectiveness of border patrol agents in capturing and expatriating undocumented peoples back to Mexico.

            This procedure is an extremely well-funded, hi-tech operation making immoderate use of all kinds of audio and visual surveillance equipment along with a myriad of other tracking and honing devices. In listening to this litany of protective-measures utilized by the border patrol, it became evident that the hide-behind-a-bush tactics employed by Mexican migrants is archaically outmoded and ineffective compared to the equipment used against them. It is only because of the immense numbers of Mexican’s crossing into America over such expansive territories that these migrants are even able to penetrate such defenses.

            Subsequent to the agent’s presentation, some people will conclude that the U.S. border patrol has done an excellent job of disguising their guard work at the border as legitimate national security and that, when thoroughly evaluated, its contents emerge to be nothing more than an attempt to conceal hateful prejudice and a public mockery.

The female spokesperson for the coalition in support of proposition 200 epitomized the prototypical anti-immigrant proponent: white, affluent, self righteous post-menopausal female not fluent in Spanish desperately combating the flow of undocumented Mexican workers from Mexico into the U.S.  Although highly motivated and acquainted with anti-immigrant statistics and speechifying, her presentation turns up small-minded, biased, and illogical. It seems that the current political climate in Arizona lays emphasis on only the negative issues of undocumented workers. Critic’s like her embody the type of resistant and intolerant mind-set responsible for anti-immigrant legislation. They see the great diversity present among migrants as threatening to their ‘American culture’ and are subsequently confused about the appropriate methods for dealing with such issues.

This type vigilant opposition to immigration issues is a conundrum to many because it addresses only one component of undocumented work in America and hammers away at a futile cause. In suggesting that Americans, and, more specifically, native Arizonans, need only be concerned with the prevention and expatriation of undocumented workers, she neglects the real issues at play, which are centered on the Mexican government as well as the rules, regulations, economic implications, and consequences of free trade agreements such as are stipulated by NAFTA.