Here is a letter I sent to Rep. Stephen Sandstrom, the Utah State Representative who is leading the push for immigration reform here in Utah, much like the highly controversial reform passed in Arizona. I wrote it in July 2010. He has not yet taken the time to respond, while several other representatives that I forwarded the letter to did respond, even though it was originally not addressed to them...
Dear Rep. Sandstrom,
My name is Todd Robinson. I am an undergraduate in history at the
University of Utah and I am also working toward applying to medical
school. I am lucky enough to be married to Evelyn Casillas Robinson, a
first generation citizen of the U.S. whose parents immigrated here from
Mexico. Every day I am grateful that I have the opportunity to be a
part of her family and enjoy the culture of Mexican Americans. I am
writing to you because I recently saw in the Salt Lake Tribune that you
were planning on backing an immigration law much like the one passed in
Arizona. I strongly urge you not to do this. There are several reasons
why such a law is a mistake.
First, I must say that I do not support illegal immigration.
I do not believe that hard-working Americans
should have to pay for social welfare programs that support illegal
immigrants who are not taxpayers themselves. This country is already in
dire straights and the added burden is unwelcome, to say the least.
However, passing this bill would not solve the problem. The law is only
aimed at a symptom of the problem, not the root. Our country has a
long, rich tradition of immigration. Unfortunately, our country also
has a long, dark tradition of de jure and de facto racism. Take for
example, the de facto racism in terms like "spic," "guinea," "mick,"
etc. These terms are offensive and they arose from the fear and hatred
whites had toward the seas of immigrants pouring into Ellis Island in
search of the American dream. They also arose from the competition
between the different groups of immigrants. The prejudice of white
lawmakers led to the passing of racist immigration bills like the
Johnson Reed Act of 1924, an example of de jure segregation. This act
limited immigration from "undesirable" areas of the globe such as
southern and eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, but allowed
unlimited immigration from the "desirable" areas of the globe, mostly
central and northern Europe and England. What was the motivation for
passing such a bill? Whites ("whiteness" had a very different meaning
then, you could have white skin and still not be considered white; for
example, the Irish were not considered "white") at the time feared that
immigrants were taking jobs away from "hard-working American citizens."
The argument has not changed in the 90 years since the passing of the
Johnson Reed Act. In reality, immigrants supply a source of cheap labor
and do not take jobs away from American citizens. When was the last
time you heard of Americans bemoaning the shortage of housekeeping jobs
in America? Or the shortage of landscaping jobs? There has not been a
widespread outcry against immigrants filling these positions. Times are
more difficult now with the state of the economy, but times are
difficult for everyone, immigrants included. They are not nor have they
ever as a general population usurped positions of power or taken jobs
away from American citizens en masse. Labor outsourcing and moving
factories to foreign countries is accomplishing that task. This brings
me to my next point. If we want to attack the root of the problem of
illegal immigration, we need to focus on two aspects. Number one, we
need to reform the nation's archaic immigration laws. Millions of
illegal immigrants from Mexico would be responsible taxpayers if the
immigration laws were changed. People from Mexico and other South and
Central American countries need to be put in a special immigration
category just by virtue of their proximity to the U.S. Of course there
must still be some restriction on the number of people who can
immigrate per year, but the fact of the matter is, we are bleeding
valuable tax dollars trying to enforce an outdated immigration policy
and at the same time we are missing out on millions, if not billions,
of tax dollars from potential citizens who would be paying taxes if
they were granted citizenship. Number two, we need to focus on the
reason why most, if not all, illegal immigrants are here: employment.
Someone is employing people illegally and exploiting not only
the immigrants, but the people of the United States. These business
owners are a huge part of the problem. They are getting cheap, tax-free
labor and they are perpetuating the problem of illegal immigration. If
we in the U.S. still subscribe to the argument (which I hope we do not)
that illegal immigration is taking jobs away from hard-working
Americans, then the businesses who employ illegal immigrants are truly
responsible for the problem. If such businesses did not employ illegal
immigrants then there would be no reason for them to be here in the
first place.
Next, as a plea to the civil rights advocate in all of us,
I urge you not to pass this law because it promotes racial profiling.
This bill gives law enforcement officers a reason to single out anyone
who they feel could be here illegally. It does not take a genius to
predict which ethnic group will be targeted. I grew up in Utah and I
know that the primary group targeted by the already passive racism that
permeates this state is the Hispanics. They will be targeted under this
bill because it is primarily Hispanics who make up the bulk of the
illegal immigrants in this state. But what about the LEGAL immigrants
like my in-laws? What about my brother- and sister-in-laws? What about
their children? What about my wife? Am I to sit back and watch
contentedly while they are lumped into a single group of potential
"illegals" for no reason other than the color of their skin or the fact
that they speak Spanish? I will not. I have studied too much social
history to know that this will not end well in the majority of
instances. Race is a very sensitive issue and this bill will only
exacerbate the problem. I will therefore not stand by while my family
is targeted under this proposed bill, and I urge you to do the same.
This bill is not the way to fix the problem of illegal immigration, it
will only intensify the financial strains on this state, as well as the
racial tensions already present.
Finally, the bill would put Utah in a negative light. Criticism against
Arizona has brought even the wrath of the federal government down upon
itself. No matter what people say about President Obama, he is actually
quite moderate, and for his administration to file suit against Arizona
is a huge indication of the discontent with the law. Not only has
Arizona been labelled racist and backward, now they have to deal with
covering the expenses of a federal lawsuit. I do not want the same to
happen to Utah. I realize now that this country is severely polarized
and there is not much bipartisan cooperation, but I would like to end
that. I want to be a part of the reconciliation of U.S. politics. Your
slogan says "Conservative causes. Traditional values." This is an
American cause because the conservatives, liberals, and the moderates
all see illegal immigration as a problem. Please be a part of a
bipartisan solution, one that will benefit not only the hard-working
immigrants who seek a better life here in the states, but also our nation as a whole, and not just our ego.
Thank you for your time.
