Main Street Project calls for civility and respect in immigration debate
January 21, 2008
About immigration
The use of the public’s anxiety to serve a personal and/or political agenda frequently dominates the immigration debate. This leaves us unable to craft a constructive plan to deal with immigration and the overall reform of what is currently a system badly in need of repair.
To have a constructive dialogue about immigration, we should:
1. Keep the discussion civilized and respectful.
2. Avoid rhetoric that promotes aggression, vigilantism or violence, or the scapegoating of any person and/or ethnic group.
3. Use the term "undocumented" rather than "illegal" when referring to persons who reside in the U.S., but don’t have official status within our internal immigration documentation system. The term "illegal" criminalizes immigrants and refugees, many who are fleeing from starvation, war and abject poverty.
An honest discussion about immigration would result in:
- A look at the roots of mass migration to the U.S. including foreign policy and trade agreements that favor multi-national companies and drive the poor to search for survival in other countries.
- The unmasking of the anti-immigrant philosophical architects, a number of whom have connections with organized racist/white supremacist groups – some of whom promote violence.
- A message to Congress to return to the task of immigration reform, to develop a system which recognizes all immigrants’ contributions to our economy and our society, and which rewards hard-working people who pay taxes by giving them a fair path to citizenship and full participation in our society.
- A moratorium on all attempts to enact immigration reform laws at state and municipals levels, rightfully leaving such a critical issue to our national legislative bodies.
Approved January 16, 2008
Main Street Project Board of Directors
Main Street Project
P.O. Box 80066
Minneapolis, MN 55408
t: 612.879.7578
f: 612.879.7567
e: info@mainstreetproject.org
www.mainstreetproject.org
The use of the public’s anxiety to serve a personal and/or political agenda frequently dominates the immigration debate. This leaves us unable to craft a constructive plan to deal with immigration and the overall reform of what is currently a system badly in need of repair.
To have a constructive dialogue about immigration, we should:
1. Keep the discussion civilized and respectful.
2. Avoid rhetoric that promotes aggression, vigilantism or violence, or the scapegoating of any person and/or ethnic group.
3. Use the term "undocumented" rather than "illegal" when referring to persons who reside in the U.S., but don’t have official status within our internal immigration documentation system. The term "illegal" criminalizes immigrants and refugees, many who are fleeing from starvation, war and abject poverty.
An honest discussion about immigration would result in:
- A look at the roots of mass migration to the U.S. including foreign policy and trade agreements that favor multi-national companies and drive the poor to search for survival in other countries.
- The unmasking of the anti-immigrant philosophical architects, a number of whom have connections with organized racist/white supremacist groups – some of whom promote violence.
- A message to Congress to return to the task of immigration reform, to develop a system which recognizes all immigrants’ contributions to our economy and our society, and which rewards hard-working people who pay taxes by giving them a fair path to citizenship and full participation in our society.
- A moratorium on all attempts to enact immigration reform laws at state and municipals levels, rightfully leaving such a critical issue to our national legislative bodies.
Approved January 16, 2008
Main Street Project Board of Directors
Main Street Project
P.O. Box 80066
Minneapolis, MN 55408
t: 612.879.7578
f: 612.879.7567
e: info@mainstreetproject.org
www.mainstreetproject.org
