The duality between being an immigrant or a descendant of immigrants and, at the same time, taking positions against the latinos illegal immigration -or, at least, in favor of a stronger and more exhaustive migratory system regarding security checks for those attempting to enter the United States- is an issue has fueled heated debates in an increasingly polarized context.
«Cubans are really my favorites by a lot. I love Cubans because they all turn into conservative republicans immediately after they get to America. Guys, you are all refugee-immigrants. But the second you get your foot dry, the very second when your foot is dried, you go like ‘ok, the immigration is enough! It’s too many people! We need a system; we need a law!’», said American comedian Andrew Schulz amidst laughter from the audience in one of his performances over 4 years ago.
Latinos against illegal immigration: a superficial discussion.
The superficiality of this discussion -a product of the high sensitivity of the issue and its associated extreme emotions– generally undermines a more faithful understanding of the reality of an event that, almost inadvertently, is usually addressed with deep and dangerous prejudices.
We could cite here all the reasons that cause migratory waves. Lack of economic opportunities, citizen and legal insecurity, limited access to advanced education, deficient public services, etc. But all of them, despite being true and exceedingly important, often seem too sterile. They usually lack the capacity to describe the emotional context under which the migrant acts and makes decisions.
So, latinos against illegal immigration? What could help us better understand this vital and complex issue? Perhaps a story, like those in Hollywood movies. In fact, therein lies the power of the film industry, in the ability to convey emotions through real or fictitious stories. Which, in turn, serve as a pathway to deeper and hitherto unnoticed reflections. Let’s try.
Imagine a shipwreck; let’s recall the movie Titanic.
A seemingly invincible ship suddenly finds itself in a critical and insurmountable situation. In the midst of the crisis, passengers of all social classes rush to the lifeboats. But a new problem arises: there are not enough lifeboats for everyone. Then, in an improvised and very rapid manner, a selection system is set up to determine who has priority access to the scarce lifeboats.
Everything happens very quickly, and there is not much time to think. But, in general terms, it is agreed that priority should be given to women, children, and the elderly. Then, if space permits, men would enter.
However, the natural chaos of the situation plus the widespread fear imposed the «law of the strongest» by way of deeds. Passengers with greater economic resources, who had access to areas of the ship that were exclusive to members of an elevated class, had preferential access to the lifeboats. In this way, some were able to settle during the first minutes of the crisis and sail safely as far away as possible. Meanwhile others fought tooth and nail to overcome the obstacles and board one of the lifeboats.
As time passed and the situation worsened (it was already evident that the ship was going to sink), many, seeing that it was impossible for them to board one of the lifeboats, decided to jump into the water. It was a desperate decision, as the chances of freezing to death in those icy currents were almost absolute. However, the situation warranted taking the risk. The plan was brutal, but simple and intuitive: to jump into the water to swim to a nearby lifeboat and climb aboard.
The outcome of a critical situation.
Many died doing this. Not only did they have to avoid freezing by swimming as fast as possible. They also had to fight in the water against others who, in the same desperate situation, tried to do the same. And, furthermore, if they managed to reach a lifeboat, they had to overcome the resistance of those already on board. Because they judged that an overcrowding of passengers could endanger everyone.
Thus, in an extreme situation, the instinct for survival emerged in many who, in other contexts, would have acted differently because of the moral weight of the decisions they made… and, amidst the chaos, blows were exchanged, shouts were heard in the darkness, and people who were already in the lifeboats, either because they managed to board from the Titanic or because they managed to climb from the cold water, pushed others who were trying to get on board.
Now, with that reference in mind, let’s imagine the latinos illegal immigration.
When a migrant leaves their country, they generally leave behind what they feel is a sinking Titanic. Their departure is not voluntary but rather the product of a critical reality that pushes them to consider options never before contemplated.
When a country is in a crisis like that of the Titanic, those who are the first to plan and execute their departure in an orderly manner, with resources and purchased plane tickets, are, as we saw in the movie, those who have the education and financial resources to do so. Those are the first ones who board the boats and systematically begin their descents into the water. Meanwhile, the feeling of despair grows among those still on the main ship.
Those first evacuees, or rather emigrants, manage, with the limited time elapsed (in the case of the Titanic minutes, in the case of migration months or years), to have a slightly more complete perspective of what they are leaving behind.
Then there are those who, without having the same resources, manage to carry out their departure with great sacrifice and detachment. Perhaps by selling something that was dear to them until then, or by accepting the difficult path of starting from scratch without the possibility of using the tools obtained in their countries (professionals who leave their jobs to engage in previously unthought-of activities). These migrants resemble the passengers in the movie who manage to leave the Titanic by forcibly boarding one of the lifeboats. Their resources are limited, but they meet the basic needs.
Those who only carry an illusion.
Now, finally, there are those who migrate with nothing and see distant countries as unfamiliar as someone looks at lifeboats in the middle of a cold and choppy sea. Those migrants, like most of the passengers on the Titanic, make the decision to jump into the water and swim to one of the lifeboats. Despite the dangers and the advice they receive against it, they do it anyway because their survival instinct demands it. In the water (whether it is a jungle like the Darien or literally a sea like the one that separates Cuba from South Florida), they know that they risk death, but they focus their energies on reaching one of the distant boats.
Many die along the way, many others return to the Titanic to gather new strength and jump again. And others, after struggling in the water, both against the current and with the desperation of others in the same situation, manage to reach one of the boats and overcome the initial resistance of its passengers. Just like the migrant who feels fulfilled and happy to arrive in another country and pass the filter of its border authorities.
Those migrants who managed by whatever means to reach one of the lifeboats may sometimes oppose receiving new migrants in their boat. Because, like the Titanic passengers who survived, they judge that an overcrowding of desperate people, solely by their weight, could endanger the resilience of the vessel that serves as the vehicle for continuing their lives.
Is that way of thinking irrational?
Yes, it may be… but it is no less important because of that. On the contrary, emotions and not reason are the driving forces behind human actions. Reason accompanies emotion, but it is emotion what propels.
When a third party or someone who has not experienced forced migration highlights the inconsistency of those who, being migrants, sometimes turn against the latino «illegal immigration», they point out a certain and evident point. However, generally, they do not understand the emotional context of that reality to which they refer.
The Latino Effect editorial team
