Session 14 Update Immigration and its effect on Poverty

Immigration seems to play a much larger role in our economy than I previously was aware of.  The irony of the fact that this country was founded on immigration and improved by their labor is that now, many of us refer to immigration as a cause of poverty instead of a side effect of it.  In the film depiction of Siler City, NC, both white and black culture have had to adjust to no longer being the simple majority and instead having to carve out a smaller piece of the social pie.  The view from the white perspective seems to be one of fear of the loss of values and American traditions.  Overcrowding in schools, loss of control of the economic markets, and perhaps even fear of having to acknowledge another prevalent language.  The white relationship with blacks was one of financial control and a subservient society willing to accept the Christian based rules of engagement when justifying the unequal treatment.  The white relationship to the Hispanic or Latino is vastly different as the Latino seems to be rapidly dominating the other cultures and generally defiant as he refuses to adapt the white culture, customs, and languages.  The booming Hispanic population in Siler City is representative of the changing social environments of many other larger cities and I believe the film used Siler City as a sample of the larger population.  The Hispanic workforce has a significant positive impact on the local and regional economies while a relative negative impact on education, crime and community.  The collective black view of the Hispanic culture seems to be one of competition.  Where at one time, most of the service jobs or undesirable positions were reserved and expected to be filled by black people in that city.  Despite the negative considerations to the non-glamorous job descriptions, those jobs still provided some economic and social stability within the black community.  With the widespread illegal immigration issue that has become prevalent in the city, employers can offer less money to illegal immigrants and therefore not have to hire legal ones for the same non glamorous positions.  Without an opportunity for regress, the displaced black worker may eyeball the Hispanic as the villain in the unemployment and instability of their neighborhoods.  I see a different vantage point.  The villain in this is clearly not the Hispanic people, whether illegal or legal workers.  When they are illegally employed, the employer can underpay them, refuse to pay overtime and take advantage of their cheap labor.  The industries that employ the illegal workers are the villains.  Another caveat is that the governments who allow the employment of the illegal workers fail to enforce laws already established to prevent such conditions, they too become villains.  So it seems that all three groups in the sample are struggling to deal with the new face of their social structure.  However, identifying the true culprits of the negative aspects and forcing them to be accountable is a great step towards addressing the issues.  Once again, greedy, profit driven capitalistic corporations are the evils that are causing the ripple effects in Siler City and across the nation.  Simply put, the illegal aliens’ justification for trying to get here is work.  It appears all too easy to control the invitation and then lessen the blow to the social considerations.  Lastly, immigration is not wrong in and of itself.  The very idea of immigration is what has helped this country to flourish and be one of the strongest countries in the world.  Evil corporations use media driven distractions to keep the public focused on the wrong issues while they pad their coiffures and enjoy their spoils.  Isn’t it time for a revolution?