Reject GOP’s anti-immigrant RAISE Act

After the hateful rallies of white nationalists in Charlottesville, Va., and elsewhere, President Donald Trump‘s failure to name and denounce white supremacy has come under scrutiny by fellow politicians, the public and the media. Unfortunately, much less attention has been paid to Trump’s recent endorsement of the RAISE Act, which would amplify the use of racism and discrimination in U.S. immigration law.

The Reforming American Immigration for Strong Employment Act (RAISE), introduced by U.S. Sens. Tom Cotton (R, Ark.) and David Perdue (R, Ga.), would restrict family reunification, eliminate the Diversity Visa program, and cut the annual refugee acceptance rate by more than half. Although the policy would not limit the number of employment- based visas issued annually, it would replace the current system with a points-based immigration policy, which discriminates on the basis of education, age, income and English-language fluency.

Anti-immigrant politics have been central to Trump’s political career. He kicked off his presidential campaign by maligning Mexican immigrants as “rapists,” drug-runners and criminals. One of his first acts as president was to impose what he called a “Muslim ban.” He has continued to rage against undocumented immigration by intensifying deportations and pardoning former Phoenix Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who was convicted of illegally targeting Latinos.

He has ignored reputable studies showing that the main reason for the large number of undocumented immigrants in the U.S. is the lack of legal routes to entry and work in the United States. While the demand for immigrant workers remains high, the U.S. lawfully admits far fewer people per capita than other immigrant-receiving countries, such as Canada. The U.S. would have to admit 3 million people as lawful permanent residents (or “green card” holders) each year to match Canada’s record.

The RAISE Act, which Trump endorses, will further limit the ability of people to immigrate and settle in the United States and predictably increase undocumented immigration. This proposed legislation would limit the number of green cards issued for legal permanent residency by 50 percent and impose new qualification restrictions (such as fluency in English).

It would severely reduce quotas for people under both the family reunification and refugee programs. People trying to reunite with their families, flee life-threatening situations, or find new livelihoods would be forced to enter the U.S. without state sanction or overstay their visas. So why would the Republicans and Trump support a bill that will assuredly raise undocumented immigration?

Tellingly, the RAISE Act does not limit the issuing of temporary guest worker visas (e.g. H-1B, H-2A, H-2B). It seems that the Republicans’ and Trump’s strategy is to move people out of categories that gives them rights and a path to citizenship (like a “green card” does), and shunt them into temporary work programs where they lack such rights and pathways. Employers prefer hiring workers under these temporary visas because it gives them greater power over their workforce — these workers can be paid less and made to work in substandard conditions. The same goes for forcing people to work without lawful immigration status.

This is a lose-lose situation for all workers. Wages go down and dangerous working conditions go up — all because the government decided to deny immigrant workers permanent residency rights. This is the part of “illegal” we all need to understand.

There is another solution: increase the number of permanent residents the U.S. admits. This would give immigrants the rights they need to not be treated as cheapened and vulnerable workers by employers. This would be a win-win situation for all workers.

Let us reject the RAISE Act, the “Muslim ban,” and the terrorizing immigration enforcement practices as a concrete step in condemning white nationalism.

Nandita Sharma is a University of Hawaii associate professor of sociology; Nathalie Rita is a Ph.D. student at UH. They submitted this on behalf of Hawaii J20+, a grassroots organization dedicated to preserving constitutional principles and community values.