A right to live in a peaceful place, a right to get asylum and a right to live without discrimination or prejudice. These are few of the basic human rights we are taught when we were still living in our younger years. As citizens of the world, we indeed need to create a better place away from negativity.
US President Donald Trump is eager to scrap the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals known as DACA, a federal government program established by former US President Barrack Obama to give temporary right to children brought in the US illegally. With this program, they are required to accomplish some tasks in order to be a full legitimate citizens of the United States when a certain time comes (Walters, 2017).
So, what does Trump wants in his rhetoric on immigrants?
In a March 2019 speech, Trump criticized the Democrats for the Immigration policies, saying that, “murderers and drug traffickers and drugs and drug cartels pouring into our country, that’s what I’m concerned about and the democrats will do whatever they do if they get into power and won’t have a damn thing to do with whether or not we approve our national emergency.”
He mostly classify these accusations to those immigrants hailing from the south border, Mexico, where he plans on building a steel wall to prevent people from entering the US territory.
The next US Presidential elections will be on November 2020 hence, Trump’s clock is ticking. This is not a surprising statement for someone like Donald Trump who will also be running as President again. If we are going to look back on his previous years as president, how is he in the eyes of his constituents during those times? Looking back, this tactic was also his way during his campaign. A political nomad, who suddenly rose to fame and became known for his hate-speeches.
The Trump immigrant rhetoric is simple and harsh. For common Americans, it is something very simple to understand. As he continues to target the American working class, the masses, there is a possibility that this rhetoric would be patronized again.
In November 14, 2019 article by Time Magazine, the DACA program could be under threat as the deliberation are currently being held. Should the DACA program be forfeited, this will leave approximately 700,000 immigrants have an uncertain future in the United States with a possibility of deportation.
So what is needed to be done?
First, clearly there is discrimination present with the rhetoric delivered by Trump. It is something to be taken seriously as this rhetoric could be a tactic on enticing his audience that he is a leader worth voting for. One main reason of this kind of rhetoric is to polarize its citizens by dividing their views and political philosophies. The far-right leader Trump will make sure not to miss a chance in this season as the US 2020 elections will be coming soon.
Second, it is best to review the immigration policies that would not harm any particular race, religion, ethnicity, etc. I find DACA as a helpful tool to remedy the illegally migrant children who are brought by their parents on the first place. I foresee that if this kind of Trump rhetoric continues and it influences more people to feel hate towards the innocent immigrants, the civil society, particularly those groups who express support for Children’s Rights will have a hard time dealing and lobbying in protection of their rights.
Third, the 700,000 immigrants under Trump administration’s threat is a big number. No matter what any Republican commentator will say about them, most people who undergone this program and who graduated is now given a privilege to be part of the US electorate. As what the New York Times,stated, “people who are sympathetic to the Dreamers – undocumented immigrants who came to the United States as children – now make up a sizable chunk of the electorate…” they will soon have the power to voice out who could be the best leader to represent them.
References:
Walters, Joanna. 2017. “What Is Daca and Who Are the Dreamers?” The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/sep/04/donald-trump-what-is-daca-dreamers (November 17, 2019).
Arce, Julissa. 2019. “Donald Trump’s Anti-Immigration Rhetoric Is Rooted in Racism.” Time. https://time.com/5645501/trump-anti-immigration-rhetoric-racism/ (November 17, 2019).
Russonello, Giovanni. 2019. “The Supreme Court May Let Trump End DACA. Here’s What the Public Thinks About It.” The New York Times. h ttps://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/15/us/politics/daca-supreme-court-polls.html (November 17, 2019).
Osler, A., & Starkey, H. (2010). Teachers and Human Rights Education. Trentham Books Ltd. Westview House 734 London Road, Oakhill, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST4 5NP, UK.
Cockburn, T. (2007). Partners in Power: a Radically Pluralistic Form of Participative Democracy for Children and Young People. Children & Society, 21(6), 446–457. doi:10.1111/j.1099-0860.2006.00078.x
Reilly, Katie. 2019. “Immigrants Face Uncertainty as Supreme Court Weighs DACA End.” Time. https://time.com/5725846/daca-recipients-supreme-court-arguments/ (November 17, 2019).
“Why Wont America Ratify the UN Convention on Childrens Rights?” 2013. The Economist. https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2013/10/06/why-wont-america-ratify-the-un-convention-on-childrens-rights (November 17, 2019).
PHOTO: Reuter, Dominick. 2016. The Atlantic Donald Trump. Reuters. photograph. https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/09/donald-trumps-cruel-streak/501554/ (November 24, 2019).
Like most issues concerning some kind of a moral dilemma, it is often tempting to immediately form a “right” and “wrong” opinion— and it’s not necessarily a bad thing to do so, after all it’s usually the easiest and most convenient way to go about polarizing issues like immigration in the United States.
If there is something we can infer from his three years in office, Trump’s rhetoric of hate and blatant discrimination towards minorities (and women) is more calculated than it appears to be. Blocking any and all of his administration’s immigrations policies will require changing deep-seated opinions and beliefs which may be harder and harder as the United States becomes more and more polarized.
This blog aims to answer the question: Is Trump taking advantage of the citizen’s hidden fear of immigrants to gain more popularity throughout his presidential term? There are many people saying that Trump is becoming more like an authoritarian figure. Trump is so power-hungry that he preys on the citizen’s minds through issues like immigration through building the Great Steel Wall, on the border of Mexico and the US. If the wall ends up being built, what will happen to DACA, the organization to protect immigrants in the US? If DACA is gone, then 700,000 immigrants will have no future and live in fear of being deported back to the country they came from.
In the upcoming 2020 election, Trump will use his biased beliefs about the problems of immigration to win the votes of many American citizens. However, Trump’s election might be tougher than 2016, because many of the children from the last generation of immigrants are adults now and they will have a say in his election. The author of this blog aims to talk about how DACA is in jeopardy of being eliminated, and how that will affect the 700,000 immigrants in the US so far.
I commend this post for drawing attention to casualties of populist rhetoric. How populism affects traditionally marginalized groups such as women and children through immigrant policies are a much needed topic of discussion.
Since the article also draws attention to the context of populist rhetoric (namely the upcoming elections), it would benefit from a discussion of the performative aspects of populism. Moffit and Tormey in “Rethinking Populism: Politics, mediation and political style” discuss about populism as a political style. They emphasize the differences between technocrats and populists through their use of good or bad manners, through their reliance on expertise or the will of the people and finally, through their emphasis on stability or crisis. Trump’s portrayal of immigrants as crisis follows the play described by Moffit and Tormey to the letter. By playing up the dangers of immigrants as well as their number (I believe the word “caravan” was mentioned), Trump creates an immigration crisis.
This article could be enriched through a discussion of polarization as well. Van Dijk discusses the discourse pattern of polarization in which a person will positively describe his In-Group (“Us”) and negatively describe an Out-Group (“Them”). In this case, Trump’s portrayal of immigrants as murderers and drug traffickers follows this pattern. He also links democrats, another member of the Out-Group, to these undesirable elements, thereby portraying them similarly negatively.
You have written a very informative and relevant issue since the next presidential election of the United State is just around the corner. Donald Trump’s plan on scrapping the DACA is definitely troubling and alarming, I also agree to most of your suggestions. Clearly, I agreed the most on your suggestion regarding the set of new policies in protecting these poor children or maybe an independent body to ensure the rights of these children/immigrants. After all, United States is the land of milk and honey, and every people deserve to live in an environment full of opportunities.
You well wrote this blog and had many good points. I think I’m at a 50/50 stance with this. I do not agree with illegal immigration, because I believe everyone should come into our wonderful country fairly just like others had. When it comes to children being brought to the United States by their parents though I do have some empathy, because they had no real choice. I believe they should be able to be put into the foster system till 18 and become a legal citizen and after any high criminal activity they should be deported after their second offence. If Trump does try to stop DACA it helps the child themselves to be protected which my compassionate self loves, but that means more taxes and medical things we have to pay. I really have no say if DACA is taken away because I do feel bad for the kids and their parents wrongful choice, but we also have to keep our country as a priority.