Podcast: Immigration Is a Polarizing Topic in American Politics. A New Book Looks at How It Got That Way

Killing the American Dream: How Anti-Immigration Extremists are Destroying the Nation (Photo: via Pilar Marrero)

“The last 25 years stand out as a period in U.S. history where politicians have killed the possibility of real reform,” asserts Pilar Marrero, frequent Fi2W contributor and senior political writer for La Opinión, the Spanish-language newspaper in Los Angeles.

In this podcast Marrero discusses her new book Killing the American Dream: How Anti-Immigration Extremists are Destroying the Nation with Fi2W executive producer John Rudolph.

Listen to the podcast:

Cynical politicians she says have taken the issue of immigration, which used to be discussed humanely by both Democrats and Republicans, and used it to scare voters. Through the “politics of convenience,” says Marrero, politicians have taken us to a point where nativist policies could seriously hurt not just undocumented workers but the economy of the entire country.

“We are a country of immigrants that has opened its arms to immigrants from all over the world,” says Marrero. “And at the same time it has had a complex relationship with those immigrants.”

“In the proud history of the United States there’s always a difference between previous immigrants who are always seen as good and contributing to the country and the present day immigrants, or whatever time it was, that were considered bad.”

Fi2W is supported by the New York Community Trust and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation with additional support from the Ralph E. Odgen Foundation and the Sirus Fund.

AboutFeet in Two Worlds
Feet in 2 Worlds (Fi2W) is an independent media outlet, journalism training program, and launchpad for emerging immigrant journalists and media makers of color. Our work brings positive and meaningful change to America's newsrooms and has a broader impact on how immigration is reported and the ethnic and racial composition of news organizations.