The Golden Door

“Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she with silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!” – Emma Lazarus

There are many in the United States of America that would recognize those enchanting lines that are etched on the pedestal on which stands the statue of liberty. Those somber, melancholy words seem to promise warm, love and most of all a place to call home. With unspoken vehemence they decry discrimination, prejudice and injustice. The beautiful words of Ms. Lazarus now seem to be disappearing in an unprecedented American political regime and its attack on immigrants and migration.

Throughout history, man has travelled from sea to shining sea; he has traversed over vast lands and has subdued the earth, all in name of growth, prosperity and the dream of building a better world for those he loves. Yet, more and more walls—metaphorical or otherwise—are being built to divide human beings from each other. The world looked on during America’s last election and throughout President Trump’s first year of presidency as he repeatedly said “were going to build a wall…a big beautiful wall.” This so-called wall was aimed at keeping out Mexicans, but the world understood the sub-text. The president of ‘the greatest nation on earth’ was saying, “keep your tired, keep your poor, America is an ancient land, its storied pomp is glorious,” and the citizens of the world wept. If Emma Lazarus was alive today, would she be ashamed? Would she still write her famous poem in an attempt to raise money for the statue of liberty’s pedestal?” After all, she was the daughter of Jewish immigrants and her ancestors came to America from Germany. It is important to remember that when history is forgotten, its atrocities are bound repeat themselves.

Immigration, like many others, is a controversial topic. Nevertheless, scarcely in history has there been such solidarity on the issue as to when Executive Order 13769, commonly known as the travel or Muslim ban was enacted on January 27th, 2017. Families were separated; hearts and hopes were broken as people waited at airports for the fabled golden doors to be reopened to them. Nevertheless, in the misery that lasted almost three months there was a sad beauty. This beauty was of a country rallying together to stand for justice, equality and basic human rights. Differences were forgotten, whether they be religious, racial, or geographical. During the travel ban we were all just humans. We were just souls looking for a way home.

There are many sides to immigration. One of those facets is leaving behind your family, your culture and your home. Regardless of the fact that the country might be war-torn or that there is a need for political asylum, leaving your homeland is never easy. There is massive emotional fall-out, especially if family or loved ones are left behind. Another factor to consider is having to build a new life from the ground up. Countless stories can be told through the backdrop of ancestors who migrated to America with barely any money, but by backbreaking work and sheer determination, businesses and empires were cultivated for generations to come. Movies romanticize and water down the conditions under which many immigrants—legal or illegal—live, but the heart breaking truth is that the migration process is never an easy one.

The problems of immigration are not unique to America. Across the globe, many countries are facing the same difficulties. In Europe, for example, the forming of the EU and the Schengen Area has led to large numbers of individuals relocating from one country to the next. As this occurs people are beginning to fear for their jobs and their cultural identity. In regards to the country of Guyana, the issue of brain-drain is propagated by the fact that there are more Guyanese people living outside the country than within. Simply put, immigration is a complicated topic that must be given more serious attention.

Stop and think for a moment, what would America, what would the world look like if the first settlers in America were met with fierce rejection by the Native Americans? What if they had sought refuge and had met with a travel ban, or a “big beautiful wall”? America, its values and hopes are built on the backs of immigrants. Immigration is not and should never be a cheap topic to use as political fodder. It is the hope of many of those in the world, and it deserves to be treated as such. The fears surrounding immigration and immigrants are not illegitimate. The downsides to massive influxes of people into a country are real, but they are not enough to justify hate and dissention. Hopefully, one day the world may find an answer to immigration, and I believe it will come from people of different creeds, nations and ethnicities sitting together and discussing the way forward, and not from one man in an oval office.