// July 13th, 2009 // 5 Comments » // Immigration
The immigration rights movement, forced into a defensive posture, is down on its knees begging for crumbs. Pleading to keep only the “good” immigrants in the country, those who will labor with their heads down, without asking for rights. DREAMers are in the business of selling an image as a class of exceptional, pristine high achievers. The language of the DREAM Act demands that those who would benefit from its passage be of “good moral character.”
-Julianne Hing writing for RaceWire.
Here it goes. One of our good allies is pointing out the fallacy of the good immigrant/bad immigrant logic in the DREAM Act.
I won’t agree that it is inherent–just because an act rewards good behavior and hard-work, does not mean it necessary negates anything to the contrary. There is nothing wrong with wanting skilled and educated professionals in this country and making a special category for those students brought here without their consent. So I won’t be apologetic about it and neither should any other student who has overcome the odds and not succumbed to becoming a stereotype.
Truth be told, I feel like we are between victims of trafficking and paperless refugees in this country. If there can be U-visas and T-visas, why not a category for teenagers and young adults brought here without their consent, who now find themselves assimilated with nowhere to go? Why use that against us?
As people of color, it’s a double bind. If we don’t succeed, we are deemed as immigrants who are a burden on the social system. If we do succeed, we are ‘too white and assimilated.’
History lesson. Civil rights for African Americans was not won as a ‘comprehensive package.’ Actually, we are still fighting the war, winning or losing one battle at a time. It’s a perpetual war–the DREAM Act is just one step in the right direction, one victory that we need to sustain momentum for more victories.
But I can’t blame Julianne Hing entirely for her discourse though I do wonder what sort of organizing Racewire is doing to promote citizenship for all immigrants. Unfortunately, this is the kind of commentary we get when we let DC orgs control the messaging for our movement. Why thank the terrorists at DHS for sparing ‘honors students?’ Actually, why even say ‘honors student ______’ is beyond me. Does a non-honors student matter less? Sure, it is offensive to be portrayed as a serf who says ‘yes sire’ to the U.S. government upon getting legalized but I cannot really take issue with Julianne Hing for pointing out how some of our more privileged allies like to talk about us.
Still, clarifications are in order. We DO NOT plead to just keep the ‘good immigrants’ in this country– we never make that distinction. Pardon us, if we don’t have convicted felons coming to us, but to this day, I don’t think we have refused a campaign simply because someone was a C-student. This is about our basic civil rights as people who were brought to this country without consent, without will, without a choice and told to ‘adjust.’ At 18 we realize we are undocumented, we realize there is no line for us. At 21, some of us realize that we ‘age out.’ Then, kids are filing lawsuits to keep their parents here and parents (mine included) are filing lawsuits to keep their children here. It’s a whole lot more complicated than the binary of good immigrant/bad immigrant.
The ‘good moral character’ clause has less to do with the DREAM Act and more to do with the requirements of citizenship as per the retrogressive 1996 law that targets even permanent residents with age-old misdemeanors. Remember perfectly legal till they applied for citizenship? Why is it suddenly the responsibility of underfunded, underprivileged and overworked (without pay) undocumented students to make an all-encompassing argument for immigration reform? Ask the people with lots of money in PR to lead the way.
Last, please don’t put me in the same category as a convicted felon. I am sure that the deportees in Jamaica have their own pain and suffering, but we don’t need to go there to see the devastation of not enacting immigration reform. I see it daily in my own family and community. I see gay students thinking about getting a marriage of convenience to stay in their home; I see some wishing to be victims of abuse so they can get U-visas … I am sure plenty of us do blunts, have DUIs, steal (especially copyright infringement), and I am usually so much more emphatic to racial dimensions. But I will no longer apologize for standing out.
I(we) was cheated by the system. I(we) beat the odds. I(we) survived without killing anyone. I(we) have been working tirelessly without funding, without support to lead this movement. We stand out. We deserve this.
That doesn’t mean anyone deserves it less. But we aren’t talking about a perfect world without arbitrary borders. We are talking about making actual policies.
I hope Julianne Hing and Racewire do put their energy and efforts where their writing is and take the lead on getting immigration overhaul for all. That would be the non-hypocritical thing to do.
