The first website I have chosen is the Boston Globe website which provides a pro- Latino immigration perspective. The webpage shows a 2008 election campaign video from John McCain, Senior United States senator and Republican nominee for President from Arizona. The video specifically focuses on the issue of Latino immigration into the United States and is accompanied by an article which analyses McCain’s position on the issue and the way in which he presents this.
The video content and McCain’s argument appear clearly pro-immigration. He emphasises the benefits of Latino immigration, giving examples of the great things that Hispanics have done for America, such as fighting in the Vietnam and Iraq wars. He follows this by stating “So let's from time to time remember that these are God's children. They must come into the country legally, but they have enriched our culture and our nation as every generation of immigrants before them". This emphasizes the constitutional values – such as equality and freedom – which Latino American’s should be entitled in a country founded upon immigration.
Although the video is very pro- Latino immigration, we have to remember that it is a campaign video, clearly aimed at the Latino-American population of voters, taking a more Democratic stance. The article picks up on this, stating that “It doesn't include the "secure our borders first" line that has become a crucial part of McCain's latest formulation on immigration reform: he would seek a version of his previous bill -- which included a temporary-worker program and a legalization process - but recognizes that establishing a secure border would be necessary to gather the political will to do so.” From this we can see that McCain’s position on Latino immigration is more complex. However, the campaign video does praise Latino-American’s and promotes equality, giving a pro-immigration perspective.
For a website dealing with anti- Latino immigration I have chosen a video clip from Fox News posted on YouTube which shows Jan Brewer, current Governor of Arizona and member of the Republican Party, signing the Support Our Law Enforcement and Safe Neighborhoods Act, or SB 1070 Bill – a Bill which has been described as the ‘strictest anti-illegal immigration measure in decades’ and requires ‘aliens’ to have and carry in their possession at all times their registration documentation.
Brewer states before signing the Bill that it is “another step forward in protecting the state of Arizona” and that it is “a tool for our state to use as we work to solve a crisis that we did not create and the Federal Government has refused to fix. The crisis caused by illegal immigration.” She also states that the Bill “strengthens the laws of our state. It protects all of us… and it does so while ensuring that the Constitutional rights of all in Arizona remain solid, stable and steadfast.”
Here Brewer clearly perceives illegal Latino immigration as a major threat to the USA, and in particular to the state of Arizona, calling it a ‘crisis’. She also suggests that the Bill ensures the ‘Constitutional rights of all’ – but does that include legal Latino immigrants? Although the clip, along with the Bill, focus specifically on illegal immigration into Arizona, the signing of this Bill sparked a debate not only in the video clip, but major debates and controversy in the USA and the rest of the world concerning the impact it would have on Latino-Americans and legal Latino immigration, with some critics arguing that it is ‘racist’. The clip therefore provides an interesting anti-illegal immigration perspective which resulted in many debates about Latino immigration into the United States.
It is interesting to compare these videos in relation to political party. While both McCain and Brewer are Republican Party members they take very different positions when it comes to the topic of Latino immigration – both legal and illegal. While McCain takes a more positive stance on legal Latino immigration and a less radical stance on illegal Latino immigration, Brewer is the opposite.
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