When Immigrants Vote Conservative
What happened outside U.S. Vice President’s house on Christmas Eve indicates that although the year was 2022, some politicians still adhere to last century’s thinking.
Immigrants were off loaded outside Kamala Harris’ house to imply that they are her problem, and her party’s in particular. It is a myopic view because newer immigrants cut both ways. They can vote Democrat or Republican.
Newer, because U.S. is a settler country, like Canada, New Zealand, Australia and South Africa. How immigrants arrived in the U.S. varies. Not everyone arrived on board the Mayflower. Most flew in from around the world with fat bank accounts and educational qualifications. Others crossed land borders. That’s why men like Donald Trump advocated a wall.
Why Vote Conservative
Newer immigrants are not homogeneous, the same way Irish, English, German, Italian immigrants of old, were not. Immigrants leave home for a variety of reasons. Some leave never to go back because they were oppressed as a class. Others go to America to perpetuate the advantage of being a certain class, usually the economic class.
Belief systems. Working class or privileged class, immigrants agree on certain values. Religion for example. They might also agree on what ought to be such as, the status of women or how kids should be raised.
Immigrants might love the freedom America offers, like walking around town with no chaperones, wearing clothes that accommodate the weather, and not religious or cultural norms, but that freedom might push them towards the Conservative Party, if they feel it is extreme.
Conservative parties might be attractive because they are big on core values and newer immigrants might relate that. Newer immigrants might also be big on profit, and not on workers’ rights. They can also vote for liberal parties like the Democratic Party in the U.S.
The point is: the immigrant vote cannot be taken for granted, because it is not homogeneous.
By: Nonqaba waka Msimang.
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