Thread: Mexicans discriminate more against Aliens

Friday, 7/30/10

(Note: U.S. District Judge Bolton’s decision in the AZ Law case was prominently featured in Central and South American newspapers and practically dominated press coverage in Mexico. In lieu of repeating these reports, we offer the following op/col by Mexican syndicated writer Sergio Sarmiento, whose works appear in 22 papers. The column is titled as shown below.)

Aliens

A CNN/Opinion Research Corporation revealed some days ago that 55% of U.S. citizens are in favor of Arizona Law SB1070 despite acknowledging that it will generate acts of discrimination. Only 40% oppose it. Many Mexicans have begun to tear their hair due to the law. The truth, nevertheless, is that we Mexicans discriminate more against aliens than do the Americans.

There are few studies about the attitude of Mexicans toward aliens. A poll by the Strategic Communications Cabinet in October 2009 pointed out that 38.1% of Mexicans consider that the number of aliens who live in the country is very high, versus 37.7% who say otherwise. What is surprising is that only 0.5% of the country’s residents were born abroad, a very small number. On the other hand, 12.6% of the population of the U.S. was born outside the country. It seems incredible that someone could suppose that there are too many aliens in Mexico.

If we speak about the rights of immigrants, 65.9% of Mexicans polled think that aliens don’t have any right to criticize what occurs in the country.

Granted that we Mexicans think that we are very tolerant, the minute percentage of the population born in other countries ought to alert us about our error. In Mexico there is an attitude of mistrust which at times becomes an open disdain toward aliens: Americans, Spaniards, Argentines, Chileans, Lebanese, Jews, Africans. We have immigration rules that would be unacceptable in almost any place of the world, such as the one that obligates an immigrant to live economically dependent of their Mexican spouse, instead of promoting their participation in the labor market. Equally discriminatory is the law that places a limit on the number of aliens that a firm may hire. Aliens are also forbidden to buy real estate on the border or on Mexico’s coasts (while Mexicans have invested tens of millions of dollars in U.S. properties.)

Social and racial discrimination is evident in the case of Central American and black immigrants. The difficulties for a technician or alien worker to obtain residence in Mexico are enormous no matter the benefits their work might have. On the other hand, the law provides that the penalty for the loss of employment by an alien is the immediate expulsion from the country, as if losing a job were a crime.

For decades, Mexicans whose father or mother was born outside the country could not be Presidents of the country. Granted that the restrictive legislation we had has been modified to allow for dual citizenship, Mexicans who have it are not allowed to occupy relevant public charges or have certain jobs, such as commercial aircraft pilot. Worst of all is that international studies show that migration, instead of depriving locals from employment, produces economic growth and prosperity for all.

Perhaps one could blame xenophobic attitudes on ignorance. However, what we can’t do is to question the United States about its laws when we have much more restrictive legislation that has resulted in the number of aliens in our country being one of the lowest in the world.

The temporary and partial suspension of some parts of Arizona Law SB1070 will not resolve the problem of the Mexican migrants. The only real solution is very simple. Let us make the necessary in depth economic reforms to allow us to be more productive. One of those reforms is to open our labor market instead of keeping it tied up with laws worse than those of the United States.

http://www.am.com.mx/Columna.aspx?ID=8559

http://m3report.wordpress.com/2010/07/3 ... +Report%29

related thread

http://www.alipac.us/ftopicp-1097523-.html#1097523