Is immigration at its most critical in America?
When Donald Trump campaigned for the office of the presidency, he did so on the promise to rid the United States of illegal immigrants (amongst other things) from several Middle Eastern and African countries, as well as, South America. He also promised that Mexico would build a wall to keep South Americans from crossing the Mexican/American border. In assuming his position as President, he decided to follow through on this great promise in an effort to prove to his base that he was a man of his word. Within the first couple of months of his presidency, to this present time, Trump has reeked havoc in the lives of many who have spent the better part of their life making America their home, while not being able to attain legal citizenship, and others who have aspirations for a better life by trying to come to America.
We have seen families torn a part. Homes being raided by ICE where mothers and fathers have been sent back to countries that they left as a child. Children separated from their parents at the border and kept in cages. Young babies and children left to fend for themselves, while many in America are quick to say that it is the fault of their parents for bringing them on such a treacherous journey knowing what was waiting for them at the borders.
“To those fleeing persecution, terror & war, Canadians will welcome you, regardless of your faith. Diversity is our strength #WelcomeToCanada.”
When many Europeans escaped the persecution of their home countries to come to the Americas, were they sent home by those who inhabited this continent before them? Were any of them called out for the savagery which they carried out against the natives of this continent? Did they not come to these very same countries and make it their homes? Has America not advertised itself as the "land of the free and the home of the brave"? Is America not a country that was built by many who they now turn away? While it seems that the descendants of many of these immigrants have forgotten what America meant to their ancestors, we still see many flocking to its borders. America like those before them, is their glimmer of hope, the opportunity for them and their children to have a better life and better opportunities than they would have being in their own home countries.
When the DREAM Act (Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors), was first proposed in 2001, it was done with the hope that it would have given a path to full citizenship for those brought to the US illegally as children. By the time President Obama took office, and Congress failed to pass the measure, DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival Program) was instituted. In their refusal to grant the necessary relief to many of these minors and their families through the Dream Act, Congress was setting the stage for what we see happening in America today, children dying or being ripped from the arms of their parents at the border and kept in cages. So how is the world reacting to all this?
In an effort to give some measure of relief and hope to many families seeking refuge, we have seen the Prime Minister of Canada and the President of France open their doors for many families coming from African and Middle Eastern Countries. We have seen the UN with their Global Compact for Migration (https://refugeesmigrants.un.org/migration-compact) attempt to find a "common approach to international migration in all its dimensions." In a tweet that seem to warm the hearts of many around the world, Trudeau stated that, "To those fleeing persecution, terror & war, Canadians will welcome you, regardless of your faith. Diversity is our strength #WelcomeToCanada." If only America, would be so welcoming!
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