The recent Presidential campaigns painted a horrible picture of what minorities have meant to the United States – particularly of the role of the Mexican community – as the whole world watched. From the moment he announced his candidacy, now President-Elect Donald Trump made his position clear as to the role of immigrants in the United States. Now, experts say, it is time to get up and fight against those labels intelligently and peacefully.
“We could not disagree more with what he has said, his words about Mexico, the wall, and everything else. We have to be conscientious and think clearly about the future of this country and the future of our beloved Mexico,” assured Enrique Morones, founder of San Diego non-profit Border Angels.
Programs and plans that promote Mexican culture and traditions have become critically important given the attacks that have made news around the world. “That’s why it is more important than ever to support projects such as Balboa Park’s Casa de Mexico to promote the image of who we really are and that we are proud to be Mexican,” added Morones. “What Donald Trump did was seen by the whole world. Unless we respond with something positive, people are going to think ‘no wonder they voted for a wall’. We have to defend ourselves.”
As protests against the President-elect continue throughout the U.S., the world economies await with uncertainty, and Donald Trump prepares for the transition. The Latino community and other minorities are worried about who Trump will name to his Cabinet. So far, people such as Sarah Palin are on the future President’s short list.
“This cannot be. If he is really going to do what he said when he was with President Obama, and what he said during his victory speech, talking about bringing the people together, this is not how you do that,” expressed Enrique Morones. “He can’t have these kinds of people in his Cabinet. He has a great opportunity to bring the people together and show that what he said was just for the campaign; but I know that’s how he truly is, he has a long history of racism, xenophobia, and sexism. It is an embarrassment.”
Immigrant advocacy groups say that it is time to prepare for the next elections, and strengthen the immigrant community.
During his recent visit to San Diego, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Secretary-General, Angel Gurria, spoke of the need to differentiate between campaign rhetoric and acts of government. He said he would hope that the free-trade agreements that benefit both countries, and the rest of the world, would not be undone. He also spoke to the San Diego Latino community about the importance of preparing for the coming years. “The message for Mexican people in the United States is to better their education, their skills, and come together to voice their concerns, their ambitions more clearly, and make their voices heard in unity and through their vote,” shared Mr. Gurria.
Today, Latinos and immigrant advocates say to prepare for future elections. Young adults, who voted overwhelmingly in favor of Hillary Clinton, hope to spread positive messages throughout the country and to stress the importance of having more candidates to offices such as governor, mayor, and senator who understand American minorities. “Having a Mexican governor sometime in the future would be a good thing. I think some time down the road we will have a Latino President of the United States,” said Enrique Morones.