Last week, 2,500 Denver students participated in a walkout to support immigrant rights. Knowing that they would be academically punished with unexcused absences, these teenagers still chose to participate.
Unfortunately, most of Colorado’s response to the students was one of disapproval and annoyance, equivalent to the old adage, “children should be seen and not heard.”
The protesters were accused of neglecting their scholarly duties and using the march as an excuse to skip school. I’m not denying this might have influenced some students, but I believe that the majority participated because they genuinely care.
I myself joined a walkout three years ago at Fairview. Several hundred students left class to attend an outdoor peace rally to protest the Iraq war. The rally was genuine, and my decision to participate was not about leaving class. Rather, it was about my firmly held anti-war convictions (perhaps influenced by a slight rebellious streak that relished the idea of civil disobedience).
It saddens me that my generation is perceived as a generation of ignorant slackers whose brains have been addled by MTV and myspace.com. We can be a very idealistic and compassionate bunch, and when we sense injustice, we speak up.
This is particularly true when the injustices hit close to home. The Denver protesters were predominantly Latino, and some, while legal citizens themselves, have parents or other family members who are in the country illegally. The threat of having Mom or Dad deported is a fear that these teenagers must live with daily. Others, while not personally affected by immigration issues, still hold firm beliefs that the United States ought to welcome new immigrants and grant amnesty to those who are already here.
I and many of my peers have come to similar conclusions on the issue. While we don’t support the practice of entering the country illegally, the fact is that our immigration system is flawed. But the solution is not, as Rep. Tom Tancredo says, to build a wall around the nation. I won’t support turning the United States into a Trojan citadel until I see Greek triremes on the horizon.
I believe that the answer is to make more citizenship slots available each year and create temporary visas for those who wish to work in the country without the legal hassle of becoming a full citizen. But until all of the issues are resolved, it is ungracious and cruel to deport men and women who have made a new life within our borders simply because of the way they arrived.
There are many who disagree with that, and I understand their concerns. Granting amnesty may seem to some a way of “rewarding” lawbreaking and misbehavior, but I believe that the ends justify the means in this situation.
When a person is so desperate to create a better livelihood for themselves and their family he is willing to become an undocumented, underpaid worker in a foreign country, that person deserves our mercy and compassion. Instead of deportation, wouldn’t it be much more gracious to offer amnesty and visas to illegal immigrants found in the U.S.?
All of the other young people I have spoken to are well aware of the economic issues surrounding immigration, and we appear to be much less concerned with losing jobs to immigrants than our adult counterparts. The majority of illegal aliens in our country are working important positions that most citizens look down upon: unskilled construction labor, agricultural work, dishwashing, and household help.
It is absurd to believe that U.S. workers would be willing to fill these positions. Most of my peers are college-bound, and none of us plan on working these jobs.
If there are people who are willing to work hard and perform the thankless but necessary tasks, why wouldn’t we allow them to do so, regardless of their legal status?
These are certainly not the views of all young Coloradans, but the point is that we as a group do care. We are intelligent and able to create well-informed opinions, and not only on the topic of immigration reform.
Youth is not synonymous with ignorance. Today’s teenagers have a voice, if only society would hear us.
Emily Spearman (emily@thespearmans.com) is a senior at Fairview High School in Boulder.
