| Group of Ticos Living in Arizona |
I read an article in the Sunday issue of La Nación about the way ticos living in Arizona, as well as other U.S. states, are perceiving the new immigration law. The perception is that this law has unleashed a backlash of anger and hatred towards Latin American people in general, regardless of whether they are in the U.S. legally or illegally. They are fearful for their loved ones. They are fearful that their children will be picked up by law enforcement simply due to the fact that they “look Latino” and therefore could be illegal. They are fearful of being detained and harassed simply because they choose to safeguard their “green cards” at home rather than carry them on their persons at the risk of loss. The prevailing line of conservative thought which suggests that “if you’re illegal you have no rights” is simply wrong and promotes the feeling by many that Latinos within U.S. borders are generally inferior and don’t belong. It is fomenting a brand of hatred that hearkens back to the days of Jim Crow. This law sends the wrong message and is the wrong way to combat border problems. The Obama administration is dead-on right to fight Arizona or any other state that tries to enact such a potentially damaging law. It is a human rights issue. Folks supporting passage of Arizona-style laws need to take a long look in the mirror. Maybe you can see traits of your ancestors, who also came to this country as immigrants, perhaps even illegally. They faced ignorant oppression and discrimination of the same kind that is now being directed towards Latinos. Immigration policy is a delicate issue in a land of immigrants, in the home of the free. It may not be popular and may even be dangerous to do so, but the minority that is against this law should stand firm. The fact that the “majority” supports it doesn’t matter. In Nazi Germany, the majority supported Hitler, but that didn’t make him any less evil. This issue has the potential of tearing the country apart. This modern wave of immigrants of Latino origin, some even from Costa Rica, should be made to feel every bit as welcome as you would have wanted your white ancestors to feel when they arrived to Ellis Island.
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