Immigration forum sparks heated debate

Passions erupted during last week's Speak Up Forum. Civility broke down at times with audience members speaking out of turn and raising their voices to panelists and each other.

Graduate assistant Stephanie Lounsbury coordinated the Speak Up Forum after the Cultural Center received racist leaflets claiming immigration is destroying America.

"Our intention is to have intellectual discourse about immigration," said Lounsbury in a previous interview. "I know I have a lot to learn."

Last Wednesday, a panel of local politicians, community members and professors addressed immigration issues. Each expressed passionate views on illegal immigration to a full house at the Hatch Ballroom. The audience bristled with tension but each view was given full attention.

It's hard to listen to people who have an opposing view, according to the moderator professor Suzanne McCorkle. She asked the audience to engage themselves in all the ideas presented, "Your job is to digest the ideas, and to make up your own mind."

Canyon County Commissioner Robert Vasquez, spoke against illegal immigration. The issue, said Vasquez, is not immigration but disregard for U.S. laws. Vasquez maintained his position had nothing to do with racism it was about legality.

Canyon County has experienced the negative effects from the presence of illegal aliens in the from of increased crime, health threats, and decline of wages, according to Vasquez.

Mexicans need to work for change in their own country, said Vasquez.

Sociology professor Martin Orr spoke about the causes of mass immigration. The rich benefit from keeping a poor workforce without rights, he said.

Corporate and federal interests desire to normalize cheap labor, "That way the federal government won't have to harass the employers of super-exploited labor," said Orr.

People migrate in mass to flee poverty and starvation, "For our species migration is a bad sign," said Orr.

Relations between Mexico and America have played a large part in the increasing poverty in Mexico. Orr pointed to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) as part of the problem, "[Mexico's] minimum wage is down 23 percent since NAFTA," said Orr.

The debate over immigration has been sidelined as a conservative issue and mainstream America is not engaged, "Outside of this room this has been a debate largely within the right," said Orr.

Monica Price
News Editor

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