To be a citizen in this country is one of the greatest privileges I have. With my grandfather being in the U.S Navy, my parents were fortunate enough to escape the poor living conditions of the Philippines, immigrate to America and gain citizenship here. I know many immigrants that come to America aren’t as lucky as my family was. The term “undocumented” or “illegal immigrant” itself has such a negative connotation nowadays. These are people who are simply wanting to see what better opportunities lie ahead of them in America and to live that “American Dream.” However, in The criminalization of immigration and the privatization of the immigration detention: implications for justice by Alissa R. Ackerman and Rich Furman, it puts into perspective how much America unrightfully handles these people. Immigration is “problematized,” making innocent people seeking for a better life seem as if they are criminals in this country, but what harm have they done? The United States faces so many issues but focuses on immigrants and criminalizes them, making them socially alienated, harder to get jobs, and make it difficult to have the opportunities they were looking for. Containing them in the prison system makes them seem as if they are truly criminals when in reality they are actual people who have not committed a crime. It makes it seem as if they are equivalent to those who have done wrong, but that is just what the government wants.
Question: How can we change the way people view immigrants?
References:
Ackerman, A. R. and Furman, R. (2013). The Criminalization of Immigration and the Privatization of the Immigration Detention: Implications for Justice. Contemporary Justice Review.
Duttagupta, Ishani. (2017, October 22). Why children of H-1B workers may now have to leave America. Retrieved from https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/nri/returning-to-india/why-children-of-h-1b-workers-may-now-have-to-leave-america/articleshow/61166125.cms?from=mdr (Picture)
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