We had sad news from Augustine on Friday. One of his crew, someone who has been working hard to support himself and his family, someone who has been here for more than a decade, was picked up and is being deported. Augustine and his crew help us maintain our yard, and they maintain most of our neighbors' yards, too. They are reliable, hard workers who do something most people in our country would not do to earn a living (especially given the minimal amount most people are willing to pay) - hard work, year round, even in 110+ degree heat. They have been helping us maintain our yard for more than 15 years.
Now, I know I’ve got it good. Much better than most people, but I’d still like to share something about all this deportation stuff that maybe not everyone sees.
Yesterday at the gym, I noticed there were mostly middle aged white people working out. I was thinking: We all have a fairly good, easy life — especially when compared to the underclass community of recent immigrants. It also felt like a peek into the future we could have if the deportations and immigrant phobia continues in our country — except that we middle aged white people would be much worse off. Immigrants do so much for our country and our community. They bring energy, a desire to make a new life and brighter future for themselves and their families. They’re willing to put up with a lot, and work especially hard to make a good life.
Our country has been taking these hard working people for granted for too long. For as long as our country has had immigrants, we’ve tended to blame them for our country's flaws - for our own flaws. But we need them. They are the lifeblood of our country; they are the America of the future. We should not be afraid that the future will be different from our past. It always is. We need to embrace the future, even the inevitable difference it brings, and we need to treat our immigrants, all those who come here seeking a brighter future, with the dignity and respect they have earned. We need to embrace them - not harass or ignore them.
Our country depends on immigrants. Without them, many vital industries in our country will be facing worker shortages and we'll all be facing rising costs. (Actually, we should face the ugly truth that we have always owed them more than just respect and dignity — we owe them a living wage and the future that comes with paying taxes as an American worker.)
But, to many, the scapegoat rhetoric - blaming illegal immigrants - feels good. Well, not to me. I see people who belong here - who have earned our respect and fair treatment.
The Trump administration’s official position is that only those who have committed a crime are being swept up and deported. But incidental crimes such as using a false identity (typically a social security number) to obtain work also qualifies for deportation. So, it is nearly impossible for anyone who is here without legal immigration status to have a clean record. Effectively, we put a target on anyone who is here illegally and ICE is rounding them up and processing them for deportation. It’s especially devastating to families with mixed status — children who were born here to parents who are not legal immigrants — families who are now more part of our country than the one the parents were born into.
Immigration reform is long overdue. This mass deportation and "build the wall" approach is not a valid answer. Reject the rhetoric — respect the people who come here seeking what our country stands for — the land of opportunity.
I know most people who read this site are already thinking much the same way I am. And this is not the first time I’ve felt this way. I’ve worried since the election that a lot of good people would be hurt by our new president. I’ve been especially concerned for Augustine because I know him, I know he has two beautiful daughters, we’ve met his family when they came to our house for Halloween. I have watched Augustine and his crew, and worked side-by-side with them from time to time. They are good at what they do, and they do not ask for much in return (although we always give them more than they ask, it still feels like we have received something worth much more to us). But I know he is not unusual. People like Augustine and his crew are all around us. They are doing jobs well, working hard, not asking for anything they have not earned.
These are hard working, honest, and generous people. We should embrace them wholeheartedly as the future of our country. I am ashamed of what our country is doing, but I am also ashamed that we have not done more to make them feel safe and welcome before this started.
This is a wake-up call. It is a horrible thing to have happening. We cannot let this continue. Our voices need to be much louder to drown out the angry rhetoric — immigrants can no longer be treated as second-class, as scapegoats.