Homeland Security Secretary: Illegals Have ‘Earned Right to be Citizens

reply to post by aoxomoxoa


I don't think that those who were turned away knew that illegals were hired instead. Those of us who were aware never said anything because for some, they were afraid of losing their jobs for fear the place might get shut down, and for others , co-workers are sort of like an extended family. We may not always see eye to eye but generally got along quite well. I know it's hard to understand and I can understand your doubts.

You get to know them, meet their families and you don't want to be personally responsible for them being deported. It is a difficult situation. On the one hand I resented fellow citizens being turned away and felt it wasn't right or fair and on the other hand, I didn't want to be resposible directly for having families deported. I have depression and anxiety and that would overwhelm me.

But I do believe that an American citizen should come first and that illegal immigration has gotten way out of hand over the years.

Dont beat yourself up, and I am certainly not judging you by any means.

Realize that when you make sweeping statements about a group of people, positive or negative it is a prejudicial remark. I think what people were most taken aback by were statements like:

Night Star
reply to post by Leonidas

 

...not a single one came from living in a dangerous situation or were starving or anything

and

...learned how decietful they could be and that bothered me a great deal

and

...They saved money here and returned to their own country well off.

...They have scammed the system and told me how I could do the same. Yikes, I could never do that!!!!

...Through their lies they recieved welfare, cheap housing, medical...yet were a two income household and not the one income they claimed. One would work under the table. Their combined incomes were well above the poverty limit.

...These people are NOT poor. We have our own citizens who won't allow their children to play in their own backyards for fear of being shot. We have elderly who are afraid for their lives just walking out in broad daylight. These people are too poor to move to a safe place, especially another country.

When you make a sweeping statement about thousands to millions of people = positive or negative = you are engaging in stereotyping. Stereotyping when it comes to ethnicity is racism.

I know the struggle, I have spent many years in the former Yugoslavia and in Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast and Mali and it can be REALLY tempting to blame a bad situation on a group of people. Ironically it is the most vulnerable in that demographic that need our help the most and why we are there.

The population situation in America is primed for racial and region hatreds. That is when it is up to us to rise above it.

The problem is an economic one, not because one group of people is sneaky, or dishonest or dangerous. We all love our children. They are human beings first.

Dont change how you feel about the immigration sitation when your arguments are based on fact, only when it assumes a group of people act as one based on their ethnic make-up.