The Pipedream Of Immigration Reform
The fight and struggle of the marginalized
Since as long as I can remember I have been hearing politicians deliver the false promises of immigration reform. The most sincere pitch of recent memory was that of Barack Obama.
I even have to admit that I got caught up in the moment of his campaign promises and actually thought that he would make good on what he said.
Yet, the years have turned to decades and despite the half-hearted promises of every administration since the 1970s, immigration reform is no closer to becoming a reality than is universal healthcare.
And recently, when I heard some commentary on the NBC affiliate, Telemundo, about the rising number of Latino voters, and how this rising percentage of the voting population is going to be responsible for what they now call the “inevitable immigration reform,” I feel the need to place these assurances under the microscope of reality and personal experience.
Just like with universal healthcare, every major civilized nation has long ago adapted to the realities of a global population that is both diverse and multi-national.
Thereby, adopting immigration policies that are open and inclusive so that hard working people can migrate from one nation to another in pursuit of better opportunities.
A pursuit that is as old as mankind itself. Yet, despite this multi-generational trend of more open borders for immigration and commerce, the U.S. refuses to repair and adapt itself to the realities of a diverse, global population and economy.
And rather than believe the corporate media pundits and their encouragement for us to hope rather than act, I’m inclined to arrive at an understanding as to why the corporate power establishment in this country refuses to act. Afterall, it’s better for us to know than it is for us to wonder.
In the United States of America, politicians serve the fictitious personhoods and interests of corporations long before they ever get to the individual needs or demands of the people who actually live and breathe.
So, in order to understand why immigration reform has only ever been a pipe dream, we need to comprehend the multi-faceted ways in which corporate interests would be harmed by said reforms.
The obvious consequences of a functional immigration system that doesn’t discriminate is first and foremost a more diversified populace. A reality that makes corporations and the politicians who serve their interests very uncomfortable.
The more diversified a population the more liberal a population. And, obviously, the more diverse a population the more demanding a population becomes.
For decades now the corporate owned Republican and Democratic parties have been able to beat back the tides of reform and change on any number of valuable and needed issues by endlessly equivocating, or by outright denying our shared humanity.
The media outlets are essentially the sock-puppets of corporate propaganda who are experts at distracting us from the real issues that demand our attention.
Essentially, corporate interests don’t profit from “universal” anything. Whether it be healthcare, criminal justice, education, or sound immigration policy. Universality on any of these issues would effectively deteriorate their profit margins. It has never been about improving the quality of your life, my life, or their lives.
It’s about corporate profits, the ones and the zeros of their balance sheets. And as for the growing Latino vote, allow me to point out exhibits A, B, and C—Ted Crus, Marco Rubio and Susana Martinez.
Just because someone is Latino or Hispanic doesn’t necessarily mean that they identify with immigrant rights and the need for immigration reform. The aforementioned politicians are proof positive of this.
Because despite their last names, their native languages, or the fact that their own parents and grandparents were once immigrants who suffered some of the same injustices that immigrants today suffer, they don’t care.
They don’t care because suffering is not transferable and now that they are successfully here, present and accounted for, they aren’t interested in extending the olive branch of good will to others who are less fortunate and willing to work hard for a better life.
It is true that the U.S. was initially built by immigrants, but it was never built for immigrants. It was built so that a select few could incorporate themselves into these immortal entities of corporate impunity and profit, so as to live these magnificent lives as billionaires while standing on the heads, hearts and backs of the tired and huddled masses that literally built this nation.
A nation that is not structured or permitted to adhere to concepts like constitutional rights, justice, or human dignity. That is precisely why immigration reform does not happen.
What most Americans fail to acknowledge when they talk about “the invasion of immigrants,” or “Border Crisis,” or the preposterous notion of “White Genocide,” is that the reason that this crisis even exists is in large part because of the American foreign and economic policies that have systematically attacked these smaller Latino nations for decades.
One of the silent or barely audible, whispered truths that is never touched upon by mainstream media is that America has created the very suffering that now creeps across its southern border.
Rather than propagate truths, the media instead focuses on presenting Mexicans and Central Americans as these dirty, criminal-minded, lazy, corrupt, potential “terrorists” and foreigners that don’t deserve constitutional protections or rights.
They aren’t worthy of admission, unless of course, they are willing to do the jobs that most Americans aren’t willing to do, for a fraction of the wage, remain absolutely silent about the injustices that they face and promise never to push for equal rights or citizenship.
What the corporate establishment of America wants is a new categorization and color of slave, and immigration reform would essentially take that off the table.
It is important to remember that the corporate benefactors and true power dynamic of this nation has never acquiesced anything as a result of us just asking for it.
Real progress has always come from the living and breathing people of this nation resolutely demanding from the power establishment that either our demands be met or their profit margins will face the wraith of our collective dissent.
Always it has been a fight and struggle of the marginalized and exploited against the privileged, where the victor is the most resolute of the two.
Thank you for reading today’s publication from MYLIFEplus25. Remember to check out my podcast available on all major streaming platforms and follow me on Facebook and Instagram @mylifeplus25 and twitter @lifeplus25.
Look out for next week’s publication: The Myth Of The Superpredators.