THIS IS WHAT I'VE BEEN TELLING THEM.
Banning people from certain countries from immigrating, or stopping people of certain ethnic backgrounds as suspicious by possible association is NOTHING NEW in the history of the United States. Consider the story of the Hungarians who came to the United States before World War I. My Hungarian ancestor was certain that once he left Hungary he was not going back to work there. Certain also that he and his sons would have to leave agricultural work and prepare for industry or have skills, he is said to have had the foresight to provide them some education prior to immigration. They sacrificed, sold everything, worked long and hard, and had to give up on any notions they long held on to about coming from nobility or working for nobility.
My ancestor wasted no time once he got to the United States in declaring his intent to become a citizen. He was already in midlife, had seen the death of his first wife, had remarried, and was the father of many children. After five years of working at any kind of work he could get, while not a citizen, becoming a member of a church and community, making friends and networking as much as he could, and staying in the same town (where he and his sons advertised their desire for work in the gazetteer), he wasted no time in filing for his second papers. Seven years after arriving in the U.S., give or take a few months, he was declared a citizen. His wife and minor children also became citizens so they did not have to apply when they became 18. His older children who immigrated did their own citizenship the same way. Luckily, all well before World War I broke out in Europe.
Many Hungarians did not really want to give up on Hungary or could not because of family farms and other obligations there, and they went back and forth, earning income here, becoming seasonal workers, often spending summers there working the land. Those who did not become citizens because they felt unsure, found themselves in "the pickle" when this World War broke out. THE UNITED STATES SUSPENDED ALL REQUESTS FOR CITIZENSHIP considering Hungarians, and many other ethnic groups from various countries to be, potentially, consorting with the enemy. If you look at newspapers from that era of immigration, the war, and afterwards, you will find these people referred to as "foreigners." You will see headlines also and lists, naming the "foreigners" who had completed their citizenship.
Without any of the methods we have today, our government could not so easily look into each and every individual's worthiness or desire to be considered exceptional. Today the large numbers of people seeing citizenship or entering and remaining in the United States to work makes it difficult even with these methods, which are also thought to be privacy invading.
Although the way the Executive Order has been played out isn't good, and clearly the ways and means needed to be directed in more detail, for instance that those already here with Green Cards and incoming, should be allowed in, though personally I think a brief discussion with each person by immigration as they come in again is hardly discrimination or harassment, and the news services are having a lot of business detailing each case, the fact is my most politically correct friends keep welcoming immigrants and talking against discrimination, but have never been gang raped, had their daughter's sex trafficked, witnessed horrific atrocities, and have no fear of being ROUNDED UP BY ISIS, lined up and shot in the head or beheaded. I dare say that EUROPE, where wars have been played out and where terrorism has been much worse than events, other than 9/11 here which did have a terrible effect on American Moral, have played out, ARE NOT THAT CONFIDENT. My politically correct friends are NOT AFRAID.
WHY NOT?
BECAUSE THEY ARE USED TO AND EXPECT our GOVERNMENT TO PROTECT US, the citizens!
Some of these people are also ANTI GUN/WEAPONRY. They do not think they need to protect themselves from a more personal situation they might encounter in their lives.
THAT IS PRIVILEGE!
I sometimes wish they had, as I have, gone to hear people who lived through the Nazi concentration camps speak. It happened fast. People didn't believe the rumors. Vast numbers were rounded up and taken to their deaths.
That is why my position is in the middle. WE DO NEED OUR GOVERNMENT'S PROTECTION. WE DO NEED TO ACCEPT THAT THIS IS SO. We are dependent on our spy agencies and our military and our police to keep us safe, especially when we refuse to own or use guns or other weapons ourselves. And, we do need to honor citizens first, and those who obeyed our immigration laws to enter our country next. Illegal immigrants are always taking their chances, but want to think it is unfair if they get caught. How do you get caught? By being criminal!
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