The U.S. Presidential election is animated again by the controversy of immigration. I counted them and there were eight examples in the Harris v. Trump debate where Trump diverted the topic to immigration and how the influx of "others" is destroying our country. Trump's victory returned the vilification of immigrants to center stage, including threats of deportations across the country. The 2017 film, Human Flow, is a compelling depiction of the mass migrations taking place throughout the world. Filmed during Trump's first term, it is a reminder of why threats and walls are inadequate in a time when so many are seeking refuge from political, economic, and social crisis.
The response to immigration fear-mongering includes declarations that the U.S. is a nation of immigrants and that immigrants are generally quite successful in pursuing their dreams and building a life in their adopted country. However, declaring transition to U.S. citizenship and seeking the American dream does little to quiet the opponents who, descended from immigrants themselves, believe that their welfare is being undermined by other immigrants seeking to take their place.
Steve Mintz of Inside Higher Education raised the question of how to portray the immigrant experience in a recent essay that may help. He used as one of his examples the Tenement Museum of New York City. I've been there and viewed the tiny apartments where families were crammed into small spaces yet made their way eventually to a better life. The images one gains are of resilience, persistence, and heroism. Portrayals such as these are not incorrect but allowing them to be used as justification for how immigrants have been treated over time and around the world today is inhumane. Even worse, demeaning immigrants as criminals and the worst of humanity, as Trump has done, goes beyond all limits of empathy and compassion.
Two books, both titled Welcoming the Stranger, delve into the faith-based and political views of immigration. The Soernes & Yang book summarizes the Christian view while the Soltes & Stern book covers the three Abrahamic faiths of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam as well as provides examples of welcoming strangers around the world. Understanding the perspectives summarized in these two books is critical to moving forward with any kind of solution to immigration policy and practice in the U.S.
As one of the U.S. sanctuary cities, Chicago, Illinois, has seen over 40,000 refugees and immigrants from Venezuela and elsewhere arrive seeking a new life. The documentary Desdo Cero: The Migrant Journey in Chicago is an excellent summary of what happened. The film candidly portrays both the strain and the accommodation of Chicago and surrounding suburbs as compassionate citizens attempted to help immigrants bussed to the area by Governor Abbott of Texas in a political stunt during the winter of 2024.
Some university student governments pushed their administrations to adopt a "Sanctuary Campus" status. ICE arrests and threats of deportation for international students who express pro-Palestinian perspectives caused one immigrant youth advocacy group, United We Dream, to use similar language used by the Education Department to describe the desired experience of Jewish students on campuses - that immigrants students must be accorded assurance of security and access to the full benefit of the college experience.
Related to understanding immigration from the U.S. southern border, over 1 million internationals are studying in the U.S. at present; perceptions and the reality of hostility toward them influences their decision making in a variety of ways. During the Trump presidential years, higher education struggled to maintain an image as a welcoming place for students who wanted to study in the U.S. We are back again to images and strategies that could influence if international students come to the U.S. for study and for practical training after receiving their degrees, a vital pipeline to advance research and innovation in the U.S.A.
As Parag Khanna so ably documented in Move, migration has been occurring for millennia and is accelerating in the modern age due to environmental, economic, political and other turmoil. Thinking carefully about how immigration is portrayed and how politicians, activists, educators, and others should respond is key if the U.S. and other countries around the world are to be able to quell the controversies that are tearing communities apart.
