Racial Inequality and the Such...
During lunch break today, I discovered a fascinating article about immigration and racism written by the Applied Research Center recently. Written by Andre Banks, it is titled, "The Price of the Ticket." Interested parties will find it here: www.arc.org. Maybe I can work for this organization someday. I love how they really engage racial inequality. Comments and critism are appreciated. Below is my reply:
Dear Andre Banks,
I found your article, “The Price of the Ticket,” very interesting but I would have liked more elaboration about what a “broad program of racial justice” looks like in immigrant advocacy. While some have criticized comments such as yours as limited by a “Black-White binary” in which racial inequality is narrowed in scope by the history of slavery, I believe your line of questioning is important, and I support the notion of a broader program of racial justice. Where we disagree is about how to get there.
The stakes of protest are clear for immigrants: it is a fight against incrimination and for economic opportunity. Deservedly so, immigrants are essential to our economy, and utilize few social services. But for Black Americans, what is at stake in the immigration policy and protest? If anything, enabling immigrants to enter the legal job market may have a disparate impact on the Black community. As you indicated, “Black popular opinion is at least seriously concerned about, and at worst flatly opposed to, the legalization of millions of undocumented immigrants.” This is justifiably so, considering the competition that legal immigrants would create for lower-class black Americans, and later, middle-class Americans as a whole.
On another point, I think that even “sensible Black people” disagree about immigration as much as they disagree about the function of race in society. To be sure, being Black matters, but just as sure is that being Brown or Yellow matters - and matters differently. To conjure one of the most devastating American oppressions of a racial minority (considering Native American genocide) is no mild point. But an understanding of racial inequality necessitates a more thorough evaluation of how different minority groups have shaped current American political, economic, and racial realities.
Further, immigrant protest is not “passive acceptance” of anti-black history. Many of the people marching and organizing the protest are working from a racial consciousness, but it is a consciousness different from yours and mine. At its most basic, many immigrants do not see this as a racial issue, but as a matter of citizenship and access to economic opportunity. The difference between their native land and America is that even a low-wage job without benefits provides more for their families and life chances than staying in a still-more oppressive situation.
Of course, you and I agree that the current immigration protest provides for a wonderful opportunity to engage in a larger racial project. As such, it is up to us - you, a Black American and me, a Brown American - to articulate that message. With gratitude, I appreciate your article and the opportunity to challenge your ideas. Hopefully, I will find an equally engaged response. Together, perhaps there is a chance for us to find a way for Brown and Black Americans to find a common racial consciousness that speaks to both of our histories.
So, if you support immigrant economic opportunity and basic human rights then join in the protest. But do not demand that the racial dynamics involved must be understood through a Black-White history of oppression and privilege. Instead, take a proactive role in rearticulating the common interests of both groups. Today’s racial consciousness demands careful reasoning and clarity because many racial minorities - including many Black Americans - will simply not see the direct link between slavery and current American policy debate. Others will tragically disagree that race matters altogether. Finally, while there is certainly an essential connection between slavery and immigration, do not blame immigrants for speaking to a narrative that they have based on their own lived reality, and political memory.
Sincerely,
Juan Carlos Ibarra
Dear Andre Banks,
I found your article, “The Price of the Ticket,” very interesting but I would have liked more elaboration about what a “broad program of racial justice” looks like in immigrant advocacy. While some have criticized comments such as yours as limited by a “Black-White binary” in which racial inequality is narrowed in scope by the history of slavery, I believe your line of questioning is important, and I support the notion of a broader program of racial justice. Where we disagree is about how to get there.
The stakes of protest are clear for immigrants: it is a fight against incrimination and for economic opportunity. Deservedly so, immigrants are essential to our economy, and utilize few social services. But for Black Americans, what is at stake in the immigration policy and protest? If anything, enabling immigrants to enter the legal job market may have a disparate impact on the Black community. As you indicated, “Black popular opinion is at least seriously concerned about, and at worst flatly opposed to, the legalization of millions of undocumented immigrants.” This is justifiably so, considering the competition that legal immigrants would create for lower-class black Americans, and later, middle-class Americans as a whole.
On another point, I think that even “sensible Black people” disagree about immigration as much as they disagree about the function of race in society. To be sure, being Black matters, but just as sure is that being Brown or Yellow matters - and matters differently. To conjure one of the most devastating American oppressions of a racial minority (considering Native American genocide) is no mild point. But an understanding of racial inequality necessitates a more thorough evaluation of how different minority groups have shaped current American political, economic, and racial realities.
Further, immigrant protest is not “passive acceptance” of anti-black history. Many of the people marching and organizing the protest are working from a racial consciousness, but it is a consciousness different from yours and mine. At its most basic, many immigrants do not see this as a racial issue, but as a matter of citizenship and access to economic opportunity. The difference between their native land and America is that even a low-wage job without benefits provides more for their families and life chances than staying in a still-more oppressive situation.
Of course, you and I agree that the current immigration protest provides for a wonderful opportunity to engage in a larger racial project. As such, it is up to us - you, a Black American and me, a Brown American - to articulate that message. With gratitude, I appreciate your article and the opportunity to challenge your ideas. Hopefully, I will find an equally engaged response. Together, perhaps there is a chance for us to find a way for Brown and Black Americans to find a common racial consciousness that speaks to both of our histories.
So, if you support immigrant economic opportunity and basic human rights then join in the protest. But do not demand that the racial dynamics involved must be understood through a Black-White history of oppression and privilege. Instead, take a proactive role in rearticulating the common interests of both groups. Today’s racial consciousness demands careful reasoning and clarity because many racial minorities - including many Black Americans - will simply not see the direct link between slavery and current American policy debate. Others will tragically disagree that race matters altogether. Finally, while there is certainly an essential connection between slavery and immigration, do not blame immigrants for speaking to a narrative that they have based on their own lived reality, and political memory.
Sincerely,
Juan Carlos Ibarra