Racial Prejudice & The DA

Does anyone feel as if one of the main reasons that the bigots who are against the DA insist on perpetuating their opposing stance is because they feel that "illegal immigrants" are mostly Hispanic?

I read this article just now: http://azstarnet.com/news/local/arti...cc4c002e0.html and as much as it had good intentions, does it not misrepresent Dreamers by insisting that they're mostly from South America? We have Dreamers from all over the globe but the general public seems to believe that we're all border-fence-hoppers from Mexico.

Have you not read the comment threads on these articles? People no longer care for this difference because...there's not a difference.

"Border-fence-hoppers from 'Mexico'" and "visa overstayers" don't have permission to be here. Both are equally illegal in this country. And I'm glad that the citizens are becoming informed and realizing that an "illegal" can look and be from anywhere. Its opposition certainly has a racial undertone, but it doesn't derive from you walking over a desert or thru an airport terminal. It derives from most immigrants not being "White". So if you aren't it, then you are just as undeserving. Even if you attend MIT.

There is definitely an unspoken racism involved. Nobody will admit it, but it's true.

Racists will diss Obama, but they will say it's because he's a Democrat or he's a bad president. They won't admit it's because he's black.

Same with the immigration issue. They don't want foreigners, but they won't say it. They'll say "they broke the law".

Border-fence hoppers, from Mexico, are from North America.

Hence my point regarding not being a "fence-hopper" from Mexico. I think this person believes that coming thru an airport makes her more deserving of being a DA recipient; which it doesn't. I hope people get the irony of my previous post, but it may be too suble for some...

I do believe that they feel that "illegal immigrants" are mostly Hispanic, but since they're what you said, bigots, then I doubt that that's a main reason for being against the DA, and also doubt that they would make a conscience exception, say, towards an illegal asian just because he isn't hispanic. But their shhh never makes any sense, they're closed minded and stubborn as f*ck, and there's no changing the way they think, so why waste your energy on that group of people for? Do you feel Hispanics are to blame for you not being legal yet?

Do you feel that DA would have a better chance to pass if it were multi-racial?

I don't think DA not being accepted is as much of a problem as CIR.

It may upset you that they don't include Asians, Blacks, Whites (from other countries) in there..but regardless, stereotypes are stereotypes. There are plenty of "illegal" races in the country, although MANY are of Mexican decent (North, not South America).

I don't recall stating anywhere that visa overstays are more worthy than illegal entries. My point was that regardless of the fact that stereotypes exist in this world, it'd be more helpful if journalists whom we are allies with would stop portraying DREAMers are consisting of mostly Hispanics and illegal entry immigrants. Where did you get the idea that I was implying that the former is more deserving? Do you like blatantly assuming things?

Yes, I do feel that the DREAM Act would pass if it were multi-racial; however, not in a sense that the presence of other races would make it more worthy, but that the idea of people in our situation not being strictly a South American ordeal would sugar coat it into acceptance. I'm going to say that almost every article commentary I read, it's usually people talking about South Americans waving Mexican flags, and by instilling this image into the minds of others, they have successfully played on the usual "White prejudice" against "Mexicans".

Let me ask you this: would it hurt to include all other races in this issue or do you rather it be strictly a Hispanic issue? Also, many are of Mexican decent, but many are also significant portions of the undocumented population that are not from Mexico or South America at all. Almost half of the University of California undocumented immigrant student body is from Asia, so where's the harm in asking our issue to be properly presented instead of it being portrayed as mainly Mexicans sneaking into the US? I think it would do more good than any harm for the demographics to be properly articulated...

Again, I don't recall hinting at any point that Hispanics are to blame for the DREAM Act or any form of earned amnesty not passing; I also don't recall saying that any race is more deserving than the other. However, I was merely saying that it's a salient fact that modern society has an outstanding prejudice against Mexicans and South American people. Do you not agree? There are also prejudices against the Jews, African-Americans, Asian people, etc...

In this issue, I think the popular belief is that most undocumented immigrants are just simply uneducated people from South of the border who entered illegally and wish to suck tax money. Of course you cannot sway the minds of those who are strictly against immigration reform, but there are always the misinformed general public (who are also not impervious to prejudice) who may simply be against the DREAM Act due to this warped image of people in our situation.

I think you're contradicting yourself in some of those things. Why would South Americans wave mexican flags? I don't see that happening EVER unless there's a connection somewhere.

To me it really sounds like you're the prejudicial. You're saying that the DA should be better portrayed (rightly so) as a multi-racial issue and that you feel it would pass would it be done so. You're saying detractors of the Dream Act are against it because they're misinformed and they're prejudicial or believe the stereotypes; but yet you are informed and supposedly not prejudicial, and somehow still feel like the bill would pass if it were better represented as multiracial issue. I don't understand.

I don't want to assume anything, but based on what you said, you too have some stereotypes you have not reconcile with. I am south american, and I don't take offense. I know everyone is prejudicial to some degree, but I don't think just because asians are viewed as smart people, this bill would have passed. People come from all walks of life, we are as diverse as they come and no nationality is one or the same.

Again, more words being put into one's mouth. I don't recall saying anywhere that Asian people are viewed as "smart people". If you're talking about my mentioning that a majority of undocumented immigrant students at the UC system are Asian, then that was merely a point I used to show not that Asians are superior intellectually but rather that there are a significant number of other races that are also undocumented. What I don't understand is where you got the idea that I hinted anywhere that one race is superior to another.

With regards to your belief that I myself am prejudiced by pointing out that perhaps the bill would have an easier time as a multiracial issue, I was merely stating the obvious fact that a majority of naive everyday people who are opposed to this bill may simple be against it because they are prejudiced towards people from below the border (their main weapon being photos of people waving Mexican flags [of course, this is not to say that all people from below the border are Mexican.. yes I know...]).

There is no contradiction when I say that perhaps dispelling the illusion that this is an issue solely relevant to Hispanic people would better help pass the bill. I'm starting to understand that it is difficult to express my sentiment without sounding like a bigot myself. For some odd reason, the only way I can explain it would be with a horrible would-be analogy... I can add high-calorie dressing to a low calorie salad or just convince my mind that it's for the better that I eat a bland meal (both methods end up with one eating the salad anyways...). Adding a high-calorie dressing would be the equivalent of what most of your interpretations of what I was saying would be... I did not mean that adding other races to the issue will make people more willing to support the bill due to the positive attributes of the other races; rather, I was implying that it seems most of the opponents are directly prejudiced against Hispanic people, so by making it blatantly obvious that this is not a Hispanic-only issue, their prejudiced reasons for opposing the bill would not be a valid reason to be vehemently opposed to the bill.

This is not to say that people don't have other reasons for opposing; in the beginning of this topic I mentioned that this was really for the average person who may or not be politically inclined to take any action, but by swaying the general public, we indirectly sway politicians, no? In addition, you people are right that regardless of race, perhaps there is no real benefit to convincing people that this is not a single-race issue.

Thanks for reading, and sorry for my horrible explanation of what I meant (the salad thing is stupid). I didn't mean that the other race's attributes and characteristics will make the DREAM Act more favorable, but rather that some of the general public whose only reason for opposing such Acts is due to racial prejudice may be swayed to think again if they knew that we undocumented immigrants are not just of one color.