A sign appeared in the window of a local insurance agency recently. It reads “Deport Aliens Now.” This made the news when someone apparently took offense at this and threw a brick through his window. They had the man who put the sign in the window and footage of the sign on the local news this morning. He sounded somewhat reasonable, actually, talking about how he disapproves of illegal immigrants, but does business internationally. I suspect his fears about the vaccination rates of illegal immigrants are overblown, but he did admit that there’s a place for legal immigrants in American society.
Here’s the problem I have with this guy, though. His sign didn’t call for deporting illegal immigrants or make any mention of them. It called for deporting all aliens. I’m strongly tempted to write a letter to him and perhaps fight a little ignorance. You see, based on the sign, I gather he’s unware that legal immigrants to the US are also technically called “resident aliens”. He may also be unware that, before a legal immigrant can become a US citizen, he or she must live in the US for seven years, if memory serves. A child who comes to the US legally cannot become a citizen until he or she turns 18. If he want the US to “Deport Aliens Now” as his sign suggests, he’s calling for deporting legal and illegal immigrants alike.
I’m not an alien any more. I haven’t been one for nearly 20 years. I have been considering changing insurance agencies, however, and I go to other businesses in his town. I won’t be going to his. While he says he has no problem with legal immigrants, only illegal ones, his ill-considered sign doesn’t make that distinction. For the record, I’m not the one who threw a brick through his window, nor do I advocate doing so. Property damage is easily enough to repair. A check of the phone book indicates his insurance agency has two offices. I would strongly advocate not doing business with them, and I won’t do business with them myself. Damage to property is easy to repair. Damage to reputation, however, is a different matter.
He wants aliens to be deported and went out of his way to way to make that clear. While he did distinguish between legal and illegal aliens when called on his behaviour, this former legal alien will not be doing business with him, and I hope my fellow current, former, and descendents of aliens do the same. The town he posted this sign in has too many vacant store fronts; it’s a shame to see the number of businesses which have gone under. Still, I won’t be upset if I drive past one day and see that his is one of them.
So do you think the guy who put a brick through his window was a “legal” alien, an “illegal” alien, an alien from another planet or just some wingnut who was looking for any reason to feel offended?
The point is, I think most rational people would come to the conclusion (right or wrong) that this guy meant “illegal” aliens. Of course, most rational people who run a business know enough not to alienate potential customers.
So I think there is probably plenty of stupidy to go around for both sides.
As an alien, I find the sign both ignorant and stupid – though I wouldn’t have thrown a brick through the window. But I suspect that it’s the level that a lot of the debate about immigration has dropped to. And I don’t see Congress improving matters as it should.
The brick thrower probably would have gotten a more positive response if he put a poster next to that one on that outside that says “Support Predators Today” with this picture underneath it.
True story: in the college campus, I saw two friends with back T-shirts, one said “I’m not an Alien, I’m a human being” pro-immigration t-shirt, his anglo friend had… an Alienware computer T-shirt.
I do think it was a coincidence, but I thoght it was funny to wonder who would be deported.
Nah, I was thinking of wearing it on the flight back into the U.S. I doubt anyone where I am taking off would care (or I can just wear something over it before departure), and hey, it might be worth taking a bit longer to go through Immigration on arrival just to see the reactions.
