My Two Cents on Society's View of Immigrants

I agree with Mr. Burns that America is a country of immigrants. It is also true that some Americans view immigrants negatively, even going as far as treating them as a subclass of humans. Before I say anything, I want to admit that I am biased; I am Canadian, and as a first generation immigrant, I do feel empathy towards immigrants. Without further ado, here is a short synopsis of my view on society and immigration.

Humans, and animals, tend to feel uncomfortable or even suspicious of foreign entities in their normal habitats.  It is a natural instinct. Thus the attitudes towards immigrants can be linked to a primitive trait. History also tends to prove that foreign involvement does not end well for the old inhabitants, just ask the Mayans or the Aztecs. However, the United States is an exception. American could not have improved so fast without the continual help of immigrants. Technological advances happened thanks to the help of immigrants. America’s culture of freedom was cultivated by immigrants, who were all seeking a better life. Immigrants came to this land, they nurtured it, they raised it, and they settled their family down on it. Immigrants now are still following that idea, chasing their dreams to America.

I cannot speak for all immigrants, but my family came to North America to build a better life. Most immigrants travel away from their home to a foreign land to do the same. They only harbor the best intentions, the greatest hopes, and the greatest fears. It takes a lot to go to a new country where you don’t even know how to say “can you help me.” So thank your ancestors for getting you past the hard part.

Now I will discuss the view on the other side of the fence. The U.S is growing. The population is booming. More people mean more competition for resources, jobs, and a style of life. Over populated places can be dangerous, uncomfortable, and annoying. Because many immigrants have succeeded in catching up to their American Dream, more and more people are waiting to do the same. That is why immigration quotas were established in the early 1900s. This way, the U.S won’t overpopulate as fast as some other countries, like China; however, immigrants are still slowly trickling into the U.S, and current residents of the U.S view the new members of their country as a threat.

Whenever there is a problem, the immigrants are blamed. You hear more often than not people blaming the immigrants for their unemployment. Whenever something goes wrong, there always has to be a scapegoat, and immigrants are the perfect scapegoats: they don’t understand anyways. Immigrants are adding to the population, they are taking jobs, but do the unemployed really want to do the jobs some immigrants have to do to survive? Of course, we cannot just ignore this point. This is why I believe the quota is not a bad idea. I will further research ways that will not harm the livelihoods of U.S citizens, while being fair to incoming immigrants.

Some immigrants become bad, and do bad things. They are exceptions and should be punished by the law; however, do not let them influence your view of all immigrants. Sometimes the way some immigrants act may be foreign, it may even be vulgar (in your eyes), but you have to remember that they were not raised in the same environment as you. Some of them had to really struggle to survive, and their difficult lives have made them less sensitive to the little things. Now that they are already here this country to build their dream, why not lend them a hand instead of looking down on them and trying to punish them. Of course, I am biased, but this is my two cents on society’s view of immigrants.  I hope I said something worthy of contemplation. As Mr. Burns said, if you want to do something (as an U.S citizen), read about the proposed bills, and vote for a representative who remembers their roots, and the purpose of the United States.