Terrible Tancredo

In an outstanding display of the xenophobia and racism we've come to expect from proponents of harsher immigration policies, the Congressional Immigration Reform Caucus, headed by the ever-terrifying Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., has issued a response to President Bush's lukewarm attempt at making everyone happy, aka "Comprehensive Immigration Reform." Bush's tepid reform policy proposes upping border patrol, "expedited removal" of so-called "illegals," cracking down on those who employ illegal immigrants and outlining a temporary worker program.\nNot satisfied with Bush's version of nationalist paranoia, the caucus is calling for "reforms" so offensive they make the president look like a Mexican sympathizer. It takes just one look at the caucus' agenda on its Web site to see that these people have some scary preconceptions about humanity. Not only do they hold strong to the normal paranoia that immigrants are taking our jobs and adding disproportionately to U.S. crime rates, but they also go so far as to insinuate a negative impact on American culture from the immigrant presence. (Also check out their Web site for their sad attempts to connect immigrants to environmental degradation. Seriously.) In their most disgusting proposition for preserving the American way, they are demanding an amendment to citizenship requirements to prevent children of illegal immigrants born in America the rights of protection constitutionally guaranteed to them. These people are heartless enough to prevent even babies born within our arbitrary borders from being taken care of on account of their parents' countries of origin. Sick.\nI am disgusted by the continued density of thought perpetuated by a vocal group in this country who fail to question the socially ingrained notion that those from south of the border are not human. It sounds like some of the elected lawmakers need to be reminded that we are a nation of immigrants. There is no trait unique to American culture that has not emerged from immigrant tenacity. The cowboy sense of adventure and manifest destiny, illustrated by John Wayne and the modern businessperson alike, came not from something uniquely American, but from the collective tendency of those who settled here to vigorously pursue self-fulfillment and a better life. The Central American immigrants, who xenophobes like the minutemen claim are degrading American culture, are simply the modern embodiment of the American dream. \nNationality is a construct. There is nothing magical that occurs at birth that makes a person born in America fundamentally different from a person born in Mexico. The differences perceived and propagated by folks such as minutemen, Accuracy in Media and Congressman Tancredo do not legitimately exist outside of their sad, frightened brains. Instead, I maintain that as the "haves" of the world, we have a moral responsibility to care for the "have-nots." To bring anyone who desires to be a part of our economy out of despondency can only be good for everyone involved. Not only that, but treating anyone as subhuman on account of something so arbitrary as place of birth is a national embarrassment. If that is what it means to be an American, count me out.