Race & Racism:1970 and Beyond
Racial Profiling
Mexican Americans and illegal immigrant can be perceived as synonymous. Once again Americans would immediately put “I’m not racist,” in front of the idea that immigrants, mainly Mexicans, should be deported because they take our jobs and corrupt our country. When in actuality Mexicans, whether they are illegal or legal immigrants or even Mexican Americans, provide places around the country with a slew of jobs and indeed help the economy; Mexican immigrants are not “corrupting” the nation any more than any other ethnicity is accused of doing the same. More importantly, Mexican- Americans has probably been the greatest victim of racial profiling along with Arabs. Racial profiling has haunted Mexican immigrants and Mexican Americans for many years, but it has in no way deteriorated. However, in the post 9-11 world, Americans have even gone so far as to blame the Mexican immigrants for the terrorist attacks. In June 2004 the US Customs and Border Patrol “made sweeps of immigrant neighborhoods across Southern California, many of them quite far from the border and inhabited mainly by American citizens of Mexican descent. They check people for papers and hustled those they suspected of being unauthorized immigrants off to detention and possible deportation” (Spickard, 438). The officials conducting the sweeps were simply basing their search off of those who appeared to look like a Mexican immigrant. It was simply a factor of race. If the government and the country wants to claim that racism has ceased to exist then it would have been wise to conduct these sweeps all across the Southern California neighborhoods of all different backgrounds or not to conduct these sweeps whatsoever. “There is no question that the raids spread fear and panic throughout the community. People were afraid to go to work, send their children to school and even visit the doctor…patients were afraid to leave their homes to pick up their diabetes medication(Jim Mangia, Spickard, 438). Other cases of racial profiling towards Mexican immigrants and Mexican Americans include Proposition 200. The Proposition, passed by an Arizona electorate, required “proof of citizenship and photo ID for voting. Its aim was ostensibly to keep illegal immigrants from voting” (Spickard, 440). However, this is in violation of the Voting Rights Act established in 1965 by president Lyndon Johnson. The act prohibited any voting qualifications or requirements for voting. In the years 1999 and 2000 it has been reported that police departments in Orange County, CA detained and turned over illegal immigrants to the border patrol. The patrol constrained over 4000 suspected illegal immigrants; they gave them to the border patrol who then deported them back to their respective countries. Mexican- Americans were appalled by these actions observing that they were the only ethnicity and people for that matter that the police department were checking for papers. The Orange County government went further with its racial profiling and racist action to obtain local police officers to do the same across the country. “They simply targeted Mexicans, and Mexican Americans reacted with fear, depression, and anger” (Spickard, 441).
Securing the Border
The greatest dispute among Americans and Mexican immigrants is the border and whether the Border Control should continue to be so hash and blunt in their actions seeing as it will be perpetually be a problem of security. One side of the argument is illegal immigrants take the job positions that would otherwise go to citizens of the United states, therefore ruining the US economy. Others argue that without these immigrants those jobs would be idly left there, and immigrants boost the economy by creating jobs and filling other positions. Other Americans focus their worries on immigration on the drug trafficking that comes along with the illegal aliens. “U.S. border officials estimate that seventy-five percent of all cocaine shipments entering the United States cross Mexico's border with the United States” (Mexican-U.S. Border Relations: Opportunities and Obstacles). Citizens and government officials of the United States believe that the war on drugs is a greater struggle and a greater concern than trying to regulate drugs in America and drugs coming from the Mexican border. Security such as Border Patrol and Mintumen have increased over the years in an effort to reduce the number of illegal aliens that cross the border, yet it is essentially not worth it.
In Almost All Aliens, Spickard points out one of the biggest hypocrisies in American history. He points out that during the Cold war, Americans and other powers were so adamant about the Berlin Wall and how it represented injustice in Berlin. It separated the city in two and prohibited people from pursuing lives the better lives that they dreamt about. “We celebrated when the wall came down and encouraged them to flood across the border” (Spickard, 442). However, Americans have had countless protests and rallies, and factions in an effort to stop people from coming over a wall that prevents them from pursuing the better lives which they dreamt about. With those beliefs, Americans have just defined democracy.
“The rhetoric about fortifying the border may help the careers of some American politicians, and it may feel satisfying to White racists who want to cent without having to own their racism, but it will not stop immigration from our southern neighbors. It may kill some border crossers, but it will not solve any problem” (Spickard, 438).
Citations
19 Sept. 2007. Blogger News Network. 13 May 2009 <http://www.bloggernews.net/110305>.
Weblog post. IsabelleCarbonell. 23 Jan. 2008. 12 May 2009 <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHGSyZbjYhc>.
"Enforcing the Law." Cartoon. The Humble Voter. 25 May 2007. 13 May 2009 <http://ahedlund.blogspot.com/2007_05_01_archive.html>.
