Many wish to pursue the American Dream and end their suffering when living in their home country. However, President Trump has been relentless in not letting the caravan come to the US that easily and has ordered military troops to the border. In addition, Trump has threatened to cut aid off from the Central American nations. Some have accused Trump may be trying to rally his voter base ahead of the midterm elections when he says he is sending these troops, but others have said it provides a more effective way of enforcing the law of the land.
The US needs to act fast as the caravan has already reached Mexico City and the group intends to walk the entire trek undeterred. The caravan has more than 5,000 people as many plan to seek asylum in the US for the violence that they are escaping.
In my opinion, President Trump is making a big mistake in forcing a mass deportation of Central American migrants and cutting off aid to their nations. He has stated that it is important to keep those seeking asylum out. I believe that Trump would just exacerbate the problem by cutting off aid and forcing more deportations as it will only come back to bite him, because more will probably come as a result of these policies.
Do you believe that President Trump is doing the right thing in enforcing the immigration laws or is he actually the wrong thing?
Is America solely responsible to what happens to the caravan? Or can it also be Mexico’s, Honduras’, El Salvador’s, or Guatemala’s?
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5 comments:
I think that allowing the refugees to request asylum in the United States, even if they don't get it, would be the right thing to do, considering it would have to be done anyway if the migrants wanted to enter the United States. However, sending troops to the border is clearly a political stunt, given that the midterms are tomorrow and the caravan is weeks away from coming to the U.S.-Mexico border. It will definitely rile up and maybe mobilize the base to vote (although they would not be voting for him, of course, and he would have to hope the enthusiasm builds for the party as a whole).
The ball is currently in Mexico's court regarding the caravan. They have been more welcoming than President Trump's rhetoric, promising to offer temporary work permits and health benefits. I think the U.S.'s response to the migrants, especially contrasted with Mexico's current situation, will reinforce what we have learned from the Trump presidency so far: he wants strong borders and will try to enforce them.
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Given the convenient timing of the caravan, it seems to me that this is politically motivated. It'st’s a lose-lose decision for the current government. If you let the people in with this much publicity, you’re essentially saying border policies don’t matter, and it could increase mass migration. If you stop them, chances are it will lead to a violent clash involving women and children.
While I can understand the desire for these refugees to search for a brighter future for their children, it's important to recognize the difficulty in assimilating 5,000 individuals into a foreign nation. Upon further research, I found that the caravan is part of a tradition of mass migrations, often organized by advocacy groups meant to provide safety in numbers to migrants, who face many threats to their safety along the perilous migrant trail. Many say they are fleeing economic distress and violence in their homelands. These caravans have passed by unnoticed in the past, but current caravan is the largest to date and has definitely sparked some national debate.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/20/world/americas/migrants-caravan-mexico.html
I personally believe that the act that President Trump is taking is not whether it is right or wrong. I strongly support immigration, but with limitation. A limitation on how many immigrants should come monthly. One can see the caravans as an act of protest towards president Trump's policies. president Trump is simply replying to their movement, which I see no wrong in doing so. Given that he is acting upon his ideals, and the president he portrays to the public. I do not necessarily agree with his actions, but I respect it. If it were the case that the immigrants were to return which is not easy. I believe everyone is at fault, and if it were the case we all must act upon it.
I think due to conditions in Mexico, many of the immigrants mean well by coming to America to escape the harsh living conditions. The Mexican Drug War has been a persisting problem for many years, and many innocent people have suffered from it.
However, As mentioned above it's very difficult to allow so many people to pass through at once. While Trump has been strongly criticized off his racist ideas, I don't think this decision was driven from these beliefs. It would be hard for not only the immigrants to adjust to American life but tough on our nation as well. However, I do think that Trump's current proposition to revamp the asylum system (https://www.wsj.com/articles/trump-to-sign-immigration-directive-revamping-asylum-system-1541629100). I think if he wants to deal with illegal immigration, he should focus on enforcing stronger policies regarding social security or identity fraud. These are main methods illegal immigrants utilize to cross the border.
I agree with my other classmates that this is a very difficult situation. If Trump lets these immigrants in, it would only show the rest of the world that mass migration is acceptable and anyone who comes with a massive group has a chance at getting in. This means the United States will have to reface this issue. At the same time, if the military stops them, there is a chance that it will turn violent. This will also go against the idea that the United States is an asylum for people, a place where they can pursue the "American Dream" and start a new, better life. I think Mexico has done a pretty good job of letting the caravan in, but I don't think the countries surrounding have the infrastructure and money to let all of these immigrants in. This would even be hard for the U.S. to accommodate the caravan.
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