President Trump was recently discussing an immigration plan, which would benefit and protect immigrants from many different countries, with members of Congress. According to the NYTimes article, President Trump responded to this plan by "demanding to know at a White House meeting why he should accept immigrants from 's**thole countries' rather than people from places like Norway." It was also stated in the article that President Trump, once informed that Haitians were a part of the immigration plan, "asked whether they could be left out of the plan, asking, 'Why do we want people from Haiti here?'" Supporters of Trump explained that he was focusing on the American people, and that he wants immigrants who are educated and highly skilled, which will help support the economy. Those who oppose, not only think that the country needs both educated and uneducated immigrants, but also that his word choice was unacceptable and racist.
I am appalled by Trump's words. Despite his beliefs regarding immigration, the way in which he phrased his statements and questions are repulsive. Even though Trump officially has the ability to speak freely, it is unacceptable for the President to be using such vulgar and racists words.
Discussion Questions:
1. Do you think Trump's words are acceptable?
2. Putting aside Trump's statement, what is your view on immigration?
3. If you believe in limiting immigration, what should it be based on? For example, skilled versus unskilled? Country of origin? Religion?
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4 comments:
I do not think Trump’s words are acceptable because a president should not be swearing, as well as not be putting down other nations. I do think immigration should be limited, however, not on the same criteria as Trump wants. I believe that immigration should be capped for a country of origin based off of the number of immigrants let in the prior year. Say 1,000 immigrants from Sweden came, you would allow 1,050 the next year. So, the prior year’s number of immigrants from the country should be increased proportionally. So, I believe that immigration should be capped based on the country of origin, and no matter the religion, whether the person is skilled or unskilled, or any other biased criteria.
Raj Shah, a White House deputy press secretary, claims that the more recent comments are just Trump fighting for the American people, even if other politicians might choose to fight for foreign countries. He also claims that “Like other nations that have merit-based immigration, President Trump is fighting for permanent solutions that make our country stronger by welcoming those who can contribute to our society, grow our economy and assimilate into our great nation.” I personally don't think this is how anyone should go about fighting for the American people. Even if you do not support immigration, claiming that all people from one nation deserve to come into our country overall people from another is a pretty blatant form of discrimination. There are still smart, skilled individuals from nations like Haiti that could aid our country in many ways, and it is possible that there could be people from Norway who don't deserve to enter our country. No matter what, claiming any one group of people is better than another is completely wrong, and in no way can be justified as fighting for the American people, as it goes against many of the ideals of our nation.
Trump's words are in no way acceptable and are inexcusable. Since the very beginning of his campaign, Trump has publicly stated vulgar and racist remarks regarding minority groups so in reality, this came as no surprise to me. I am more so concerned about how many Americans continue to support this man and justify his words/actions... I really just cannot comprehend how anyone ever allowed this inexperienced hateful person to run the country? As a daughter to parents who entered this country as immigrants, immigration tends to be a touchy subject for individuals like me. Although, from first-hand experience I can confirm that the large majority of immigrants do not come to America in order to commit crimes but rather to build a better future for themselves and their families. My mother came to this country as a teen mom and worked non-stop in order to provide for me, eventually she became a US citizen. While I understand the need for an immigration reform, I think this entire nation needs to educate themselves on immigration/immigrants and take on a different perspective. Immigrants are still PEOPLE with families, with a life to live. It is wrong to label them with all the negative stereotypes we have created for them.
There are plenty of immigrants from these "shithole" countries and would have no problems calling it as such. After all, they came to America to leave that "shithole." The important thing to note in Trump's statement was not his bad language. It was how he said "Why." Why do the people from these less fortunate countries need to have another level of justification to explain there reason for coming here as opposed to an immigrant from Norway? If they really are from "shitholes," isn't there a greater obligation to provide assistance? With this statement it seems like Trump believes that there are individuals who deserve the chance to be American and there are many more that don't, and your birthplace is that deciding factor. The media is quick to jump on his foul language, but don't realize his statement's underlying cruel racism and ideals of white supremacy. In this instance he isn't only talking about illegal immigrants either. He is attacking those who have underwent the legal process of becoming citizens, and demanding an extra reason for their presence if they were not from a country that was "right," or in this case, what he likes.
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