ASSIMILATION AND IMMIGRATION

AN OBSERVATION

            Ronald Reagan upon leaving office opined that a country that closes its boarders to immigration ceases to be a world power.

 The wisdom of Ronald Reagan is profound when you consider that the average intelligent quotient (IQ) of anyone that is multi-lingual is 15 points higher than the average population.  Languages like Chinese and Japanese with 100’s of symbols also when learning another language are more likely to out-perform students that speak only one language. Those willing to immigrate and leave everything behind, to flee violence and seek asylum should be welcomed.  Some immigrants struggle, however I have found they are willing to work hard to succeed. It is my opinion that anyone residing in the United States for a period of 10 years and has not been arrested and convicted of a felony should be eligible for a green card, and also eligible to take a test to obtain citizenship the test should contain minimum English proficiency, which would allow them to be a productive citizen.  Dreamers should also be eligible for a green card and be eligible for citizenship after 10 years in the U.S. and taking the citizenship test.

 I am 75. My relatives on my fathers’ side lived in long island in the 1600’s. I grew up in a community that had restrictive covenants, Lakewood, Ca., which had covenants against sales of houses to other than whites up until the late 50’s.  This had the effect of my coming in contact with only whites.  State College was the first time I was even in contact with and interacting with anyone other than Lilly whites. Even then, I can remember classes of all whites.  I had lived in the Middle East (Iran and Saudi Arabia) for four years.  While in Iran, I learned enough Farsi to get around without a problem, in Tehran. My time in Iran gave me personal experience, as I learned what it was to be different in a society where the local population was 98% Muslim.  Iran is a traditional crossroads of multiple societies over the centuries.  I observed multiple social and religious institutions living in harmony.  Iran has taken the best of the prior conqueror’s social constructs. Iran is a multi-ethnic and multi-cultural country.  I leaned in basic Sociology that for an individual to fully culturalize, it might take about 20 years or a generation.  The initial benefit of immigrant labor is their work ethic.  Clinton removed the ability of non-citizens to receive any federal assistance.  Some individuals, afraid immigrants will take away their way of life, live in the same house in white only neighborhoods, out of fear.   

Our family has always been Republican.  Bob Packwood was my Grandmother’s brother (my mom’s cousin). As you can see, I have formed my opinions. I do this with a background to be able to comment on how it was when I was living in various places.  I have seen the changes in Orange County, Ca.  My brother has not changed.  In my opinion, he not as open to diversity as I am. Our Mother a PhD, had one of her degrees in Sociology so my brother has no excuse for his attitudes toward refugees. I have traveled through Europe on 3 occasions, 1 months each, with a Eurorail Pass.  Spent 3 weeks in Seoul Korea, and traveled through Egypt, Pakistan, India, Thailand, and Japan.  Since leaving home, I have lived in less diverse neighborhoods like Newberry Park, Ca. and Littleton, Co. and more diverse neighborhoods like Cerritos, Ca. and Vista, Ca and foreign cities like Tehran, Iran and Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia, so I prefer the diverse experience to the less diverse. Due to my background I welcome diversity.  Diversity can be utilized to build by using the best of a cultural aspects and incorporate them into a richer society as Iran has done over the eons. 

If you embrace diversity, you will have the ability to understanding cultural differences this will provide a secure feeling to offset the fear of the “other” and eventually may be able to get along with everyone.  Sometime it takes eons.  If change is coming it is best to understand and embrace it, or change your environment if you are resistant to that change.  It is irrational to think a country based on immigration, with its inherent benefits of creating a more intelligent society, is shunned by anyone.  Is it due to the inherent insecurity of the ignorant and what I consider culturally deficient individuals?  It is my belief that education is the key to a society which can operate without the fear of the ‘‘other” or someone unlike yourself. 

Once upon a time the Republican party embraced immigration, as you can see by the attitude of Ronald Reagan toward immigration.  Reagan knew that cheap labor helped the farm economy and made crops cheap enough to export.  It was a win-win as these are temporary work that has little success in employees’ locals. It was once that workers were bussed from Mexico and returned when the crops were picked as guest workers.  The workers did not want to live here, because their families were in Mexico.  That was the past.  In my opinion, without immigration, the United States is in a race to the bottom.  No one in these United States should fear immigration. After all, we are all immigrants or descended from immigrants.

 History has shown an initial animosity toward immigrants, even though ultimately, these peoples became productive citizens.  The examples are numerous, take the Italians fleeing Mussolini, the Irish due to the potato famine, the Chinese  (building America with the western leg of the Transcontinental Railroad).  These immigrants were all initially taken advantage of by their hard work ethic (they were taken advantage of until the unions began to level out the employment playing field.

The race to the bottom manifests itself with the lack of emphasis on education.  Every high school student should be able to pass the citizenship test prior to graduation.  Besides STEM students should also be taught Civics, Ethics and Logic and Art.  These skills help to determine real from fake and provides for independent and critical thinking.

My personal preference is always diversity over exclusion.  Religion must never be used as a barrier to immigration. Religious freedom is at the foundation of the United States Constitution, when it bars all laws from “respecting an establishment of religion”, and “the free exercise thereof” The Constitution does not mention God, Jesus Christ, or Christianity. Federal  laws state that no religious test may be applied to any individual to hold any federal office.  The founding fathers were not all Christians, as some would have you to believe. Some were Deists and Thomas Paine wrote that the bible was the “pretended word of God” in his book The Age of Reason.