It's true that MAGA people don't talk that much about the fact that unregulated immigration depresses wages for people who are already here. But Democrats don't talk about it either. I lived in Houston in the early aughties, in the aftermath of a huge wave of immigration from Mexico. People who had grown up in Houston said that it used to be a medium-sized city until three million people moved there. Some of these native Houstonians, Hispanic and Anglo, could no longer work as sheet-rock hangers, for example, because Mexican workers underbid them. (Mexican workers were also very skilled and hard-working, let's not forget. It's not just that they work for less; they do really good work.) Because they could no longer make a good living as working class people, they had to move from more centrally located, traditionally working class neighborhoods to more remote suburbs and commute further to work. While I was living there, the same thing happened to me and my partner: we could no longer afford the rent in our centrally located house, so we had to move further out.
Not only did unlimited immigration depress wages in Houston; it also made working conditions worse for people. I worked at a plant nursery as a sales person and laborer for a while. Legally, we were supposed to have two fifteen minute breaks, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, in addition to lunch. But nobody took these breaks even though the work was often physically demanding. I asked the owner if I could take these breaks, and she said yes, but nobody else did, and they resented the fact that I did. Why? Because about half the workers were undocumented and felt insecure as a result. They weren't going to demand any rights. The general atmosphere of work in Houston was that workers were scared and didn't ask for much. This extended even to professional jobs like teaching, which I also did in Houston. The pay was low even for teachers, and you weren't supposed to expect good working conditions or benefits.
In the 1990s, Democrats used to talk about this problem: that unlimited immigration was depressing working class wages and working conditions. But for some reason they stopped talking about this sometime in the aughties, perhaps because they hoped these immigrants would become Democrats if naturalized. I'm not really sure why. When I talk to other left-wing people about this problem, they dismiss me as racist and xenophobic. Even if I bring up the Marxist idea of the "reserve army of labor"--what Marx called the enormous number of under- and unemployed people-- and the ways in which this army depresses wages for the employed, Democrats these days are not buying it.
But there is no reason to assume that immigrants will vote Democratic if they become citizens. Many Hispanic immigrants are quite conservative socially. One immigrant whom I tutored became a close friend. She married an American, became a citizen...and voted for Trump.
The Left really made a mistake when it stopped talking about the ways in which unlimited immigration harms American citizens economically. It may be the case that overall, immigration improves our economy by staffing jobs that Americans supposedly don't want, such as nursing home jobs, child care jobs, etc. But maybe Americans of whatever ethnicity would want those jobs more if they paid better. The real off-limits topic in this country is that wages are just too low for many, many people. And immigration is part of that. That's one reason Republicans have never really wanted to address the problem even though they like to yell about it: capital loves cheap labor.
Loved the kitty meme.
It's true that MAGA people don't talk that much about the fact that unregulated immigration depresses wages for people who are already here. But Democrats don't talk about it either. I lived in Houston in the early aughties, in the aftermath of a huge wave of immigration from Mexico. People who had grown up in Houston said that it used to be a medium-sized city until three million people moved there. Some of these native Houstonians, Hispanic and Anglo, could no longer work as sheet-rock hangers, for example, because Mexican workers underbid them. (Mexican workers were also very skilled and hard-working, let's not forget. It's not just that they work for less; they do really good work.) Because they could no longer make a good living as working class people, they had to move from more centrally located, traditionally working class neighborhoods to more remote suburbs and commute further to work. While I was living there, the same thing happened to me and my partner: we could no longer afford the rent in our centrally located house, so we had to move further out.
Not only did unlimited immigration depress wages in Houston; it also made working conditions worse for people. I worked at a plant nursery as a sales person and laborer for a while. Legally, we were supposed to have two fifteen minute breaks, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, in addition to lunch. But nobody took these breaks even though the work was often physically demanding. I asked the owner if I could take these breaks, and she said yes, but nobody else did, and they resented the fact that I did. Why? Because about half the workers were undocumented and felt insecure as a result. They weren't going to demand any rights. The general atmosphere of work in Houston was that workers were scared and didn't ask for much. This extended even to professional jobs like teaching, which I also did in Houston. The pay was low even for teachers, and you weren't supposed to expect good working conditions or benefits.
In the 1990s, Democrats used to talk about this problem: that unlimited immigration was depressing working class wages and working conditions. But for some reason they stopped talking about this sometime in the aughties, perhaps because they hoped these immigrants would become Democrats if naturalized. I'm not really sure why. When I talk to other left-wing people about this problem, they dismiss me as racist and xenophobic. Even if I bring up the Marxist idea of the "reserve army of labor"--what Marx called the enormous number of under- and unemployed people-- and the ways in which this army depresses wages for the employed, Democrats these days are not buying it.
But there is no reason to assume that immigrants will vote Democratic if they become citizens. Many Hispanic immigrants are quite conservative socially. One immigrant whom I tutored became a close friend. She married an American, became a citizen...and voted for Trump.
The Left really made a mistake when it stopped talking about the ways in which unlimited immigration harms American citizens economically. It may be the case that overall, immigration improves our economy by staffing jobs that Americans supposedly don't want, such as nursing home jobs, child care jobs, etc. But maybe Americans of whatever ethnicity would want those jobs more if they paid better. The real off-limits topic in this country is that wages are just too low for many, many people. And immigration is part of that. That's one reason Republicans have never really wanted to address the problem even though they like to yell about it: capital loves cheap labor.