Worst Idea Ever?

Senator Marco Rubio appeared to publicly comment on the remarks of Fox News host Bob Beckel, who suggested a restriction on student visas for Muslim students. Instead of disagreeing with this ridiculous suggestion, Rubio acknowledged that he could see the point in the idea.

As the article points out, neither of the suspected Boston bombers came to the United States on student visas, so I find it a little confusing that student visas would somehow come into question. As of this point, no international students here on visas who also happen to practice Islam have been implicated. It seems extreme to suddenly want to restrict all Muslim student visas.

Moreover, this reminds me of the restrictions on "good" and "bad" immigrants that happened early on during the Industrial Revolution. Most Americans will now acknowledge that this was wrong, so why is it suddenly okay to profile students of Muslim origins?

My most immediate concern is for the Muslim citizens, students, tourists, and other visitors or residents already in the United States. Already subjected to intense profiling, the Boston bombing has brought an innocent group of people under intense and unfair scrutiny once again. Yes, there are Islamic terrorists out in the world - along with terrorists from every other social group on the planet. It is amazingly unfair for the actions of two evil people to change the way Americans look at a group of people, most of whom have zero interest in creating terror in the United States. Creating restrictions like this will hurt the Muslim people already in the United States, citizens and visitors alike, and violates their right to freedom of religion.

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Consequences of Boston

Now that it has been established that the Boston bombing suspects were immigrants from Russia, a negative light has been unfairly cast upon immigrants around the country. Articles like the one linked below detail how the Tsarnaevs became US citizens.

It is unfair to question immigration just because of the actions of two evil people. A lot of the worst terrorists and murderers in the history of the United States were born and raised here as American citizens. No one harped on anyone else's rights to American citizenship after Oklahoma City or Newtown - how is it fair to question people's citizenship now?

Articles like the one below make the immigration process seem extremely simple, almost designed to let anyone in. That is so far from the truth, and it's ridiculous to paint immigration in such a simplified light. The Tsarnaev brothers are two in a group of millions of immigrants who spend years of their lives applying for visas, asylum, citizenship tests, and so on. It is unfair to pin the hopes and dreams of millions of people on the actions of these two brothers.

Almost everyone who works to become a US citizen wants to be here for the right reasons. The vast majority of those seeking residence in the United States are not and never will be terrorists, and it is unfair to call immigration into question just because of the Tsarnaev brothers..

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Week 3

Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas, executive director of the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health, wrote a piece this week for the Huffington Post about immigrant couples. This Valentines Day article relates the story of Maria, a woman from Mexico now living in Texas. Her family was deported several years ago, and her husband later died attempting to cross back into the United States. Maria then left her son in Mexico and returned to Texas, hoping to keep her son safe and provide him with a better life.

Gonzalez-Rojas focuses on a similar plight that is now keeping immigrant women apart from their families. She calls for President Obama and the Senate to focus on reworking immigration laws, making it easier for immigrants to come across the border as a family, rather than alone. She claims that the media and policymakers focus on male immigrants, ignoring the contributions of women, and instead must work to keep women safe and protected.

The author also compares same-sex and immigrant couples. Though this comparison was interesting and helped to make Gonzalez-Rojas's argument relatable to more people, she did not flesh it out very much, mentioning the comparison only briefly. I wished that she would have expanded more upon the comparison because it would have provided a worthwhile parallel.

Gonzalez-Rojas makes an interesting argument for the rights of both immigrants and women. Families should have the right to be together, and it makes sense that a parent should not be separated from their children. Gonzalez-Rojas approaches immigration from a different, very emotional angle that should appeal to anyone who values time with their family.

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Most Ignorant Americans

For a more humorous take on the immigration debate, specially relating to Latinos, I found this Huffington Post article that lists the nine worst comments about Latinos made by politicians in 2012. These comments point to a sad state of ignorance throughout the American political system - and also explain why Mitt Romney only got 27% of the Latino vote. After all, this is the man who said he wished he was the son of Mexican immigrants because that would make it easier to win the presidency, completely disregarding the years of hard work it takes for most Mexican-Americans to become citizens. He then went on to say that Obama gave gifts to the Latino community to get their votes. Well, it seems more likely that he just didn't have as many racist gaffes as Romney.

Arizona's own Joe Arpaio also made the cut with the eighth dumbest comment about Latinos. Arpaio, a well-known enemy to undocumented immigrants everywhere, claims that he's "never had any problems with a Latino." Seems likely, right?

This list of the nine dumbest comments about Latinos is funny at face value. It makes you look twice and wonder how someone could possibly make such comments. However, it also points to a fundamental problem in the immigration system in the United States. Even people in the public eye continue to get caught making ignorant, racist remarks. Maybe it's time we started holding our leaders and representatives to a higher standard.

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A simple welcome turns ugly

Earlier this month, three Syrian immigrant families moved to Kaxås, a small village in rural Offerdal, Sweden. Bo Oskarsson, the owner of ICA Ladan, Kaxås's only grocery store, posted a message (seen above) on his store's Facebook page that read, "We welcome all from Syria, and hope you enjoy beautiful Offerdal." He also announced that ICA Ladan would start carrying traditional Syrian products. The short and simple post quickly gained national attention and mixed responses.

Some support the message; a Facebook group in support of ICA Ladan now has over 700 members on Facebook - more than the entire population of Kaxås. Others strongly oppose the message and have left death threats for Oskarsson.

Sweden was once a very homogeneous nation; however, immigration has grown tremendously in recent years, with over 100,000 people immigrating to Sweden in 2009 alone. The majority of these immigrants come from the Middle East or Latin America and settle in the south of Sweden, home to most of the nation's population.

I lived in Kaxås four years ago and was surprised and disappointed by the hateful reactions. At face value, the initial post by Oskarsson is hardly a controversial message and has little to no political agenda. It is a simple welcome to the village's newest residents, who just happen to be from Syria, and it accidentally became an example of the attitudes towards immigration in Sweden, showing the great divide between Swedish citizens.

Sweden still has work to do in order to become truly multicultural. Though there are plenty of Swedes like Oskarsson, who seek to welcome immigrants and help them adjust to life in Sweden, there are still those whose fear of change quickly shifts to hatred. As Sweden continues to welcome thousands of immigrants into the country, the attitude towards immigrants needs to shift as well.

Sources (Swedish language):
ICA Kaxås välkomnar syrier och blev rikskända
Hotad efter välkomsthälsningen