DOMESTIC POLITICS WITH GLOBAL CONSEQUENCES: INTERNATIONAL IMPLICATIONS OF ANTI‐IMMIGRANT FERVOR

Abstract

The passage of SB 1070 in Arizona has had short‐term and will have long‐term effects on America’s international standing and its security interests—particularly by reinforcing negative images of the United States. The historical experiences of Mexican immigrants and the Mexican government’s response are most relevant for assessing the international impact of SB 1070. Despite a difficult history over the last 40 years, Mexican leaders have continued to recognize their responsibility toward their citizens in the United States. In addition to pragmatic concerns, SB 1070 raises moral issues, and the faith community should denounce anti‐immigrant violence, irresponsible rhetoric, and unjust immigration policies.

Keywords:

• North America
• Latin America
• Christianity
• Immigration
• Public Opinion
• Security
• Civil Society
• Law
• Politics
• History

Notes

1. Stephen Lemons, “Felipe Calderón Correct in His Address to Congress, Despite Detractors,” Phoenix New Times, May 21, 2010; Brian Knowlton, “Calderón Calls for Restoring Assault Weapons Ban,” New York Times, May 20, 2010. Other foreign leaders have also criticized the law, including Guatemalan President Álvaro Colom. See “International Community Decries New Immigration Legislation,” Americas Quarterly, April 27, 2010.

2. “Obama Denounces SB 1070 After Meeting Calderón,” Arizona Daily Star, May 20, 2010.

3. “Larry King Live,” CNN, July 29, 2010, full transcript available, http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1007/29/lkl.01.html (accessed October 4, 2010).

4. Arizona Ecumenical Council to Governor Jan Brewer, July 2010, http://www.aecunity.net/TheIssues/Immigration/SB1070/tabid/47358/Default.aspx (accessed October 4, 2010).

5. This essay served as the basis of a presentation I made on the panel, “Immigration and US Security,” November 3, 2010, Washington, DC. The panel was the third in a 3‐panel series on “Immigration Reform: Advancing Human Dignity & Responsibility.” The series was hosted by Nyack College DC Campus, and was sponsored by the Institute for Public Service and Policy Development, the Institute for Global Engagement, the Center for Public Justice, the National Association of Evangelicals, and the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference.

6. Herring, From Colony to Superpower, 355–7.

7. Balderrama and Rodríguez, Decade of Betrayal; Garcia, Operation Wetback.

8. Monroy, Rebirth: Mexican Los Angeles, 39.

9. González Navarro, Los extranjeros en México; Alanis Enciso, Que se quedan allá; Cardoso, Mexican Emigration to the United States; Sanchez, Becoming Mexican American; Gutierrez, Walls and Mirrors.

10. Cohen, Braceros.

11. Mexicans were exempted from quotas put in place in 1921 and 1924 Immigration Restriction Acts.

12. Ono and Sloop, Shifting Borders; Danelo, The Border.

13. Traci Carl, “Mexico Blasts US Immigration Policies,” The Washington Post, September 2, 2007.

14. Ibid.

15. Domínguez and Fernández de Castro, The United States and Mexico; Raat, Mexico and the United States; Weintraub, Unequal Partners.

16. “Soft power” focuses on avoiding unilateral, often military solutions that have been employed regularly in Latin America. Its proponents focus on collaborative and non‐military means to seek cooperation and goodwill for American policies. These often include humanitarian efforts such as those employed in Haiti after the last major earthquake. See Nye, Soft Power.

17. Pike, FDR’s Good Neighbor Policy; Irwin Gellman, Good Neighbor Diplomacy.

18. Smith, Talons of the Eagle; Grandin, Empire’s Workshop; Schoultz, Beneath the United States.

19. As cited in Longley, In the Eagle’s Shadow, 362–3.

20. “Illegal Immigrant Deaths Set Record in Arizona,” National Public Radio, October 6, 2010. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=130369998 (accessed October 8, 2010).

21. Sabrina Tavernise, “2 Pennsylvania Men Guilty in 2008 Killing of Mexican,” New York Times, October 14, 2010.

22. Michael Rubinkam, “2 Convicted in Fatal Hate Crime,” Associated Press, October 15, 2010.