Two weeks have passed since an immigration forum at a Bettendorf church ignited what has been a wrenching controversy in our community.
Attended by the Republican Party candidates for Iowas open 2nd District congressional seat, and sponsored by a teen Republican club, the event featured speakers who conjured up some of the worst stereotypes about immigrants.
It also featured offensive remarks from a right-wing activist who called for curbs on all immigration in the United States. He complained the political left is antithetical to white American values and that even immigrants who contribute to the economy and who vote Republican still would dramatically alter the U.S. and change the quality and texture of our lives. At the end of his comments, there was applause.
To be clear, we deplore the views of Nick Fuentes and those like him. We do not yearn for a white monoculture. We believe the diversity of the Quad-Cities broadens our experience and deepens our understanding of our common humanity; it celebrates the differences that remind us that this country is knit from a multi-dimensional fabric but is still one.
The day after the forum, the congressional candidates swiftly distanced themselves from Fuentes. Former U.S. Rep. Bobby Schilling and Mariannette Miller-Meeks said they do not approve of his views. (As this newspaper reported, it actually was a Schilling staffer who invited the activist. He said the former congressman did not know about his actions. The staffer is no longer with the campaign.)
Others, including the pastor at the church, were critical of the activists comments.
However, the anger that followed the forum was not directed at Fuentes alone. The claim that all Americans are victims of people who are in the country illegally also drew outrage.
People who objected to the forum responded with a protest at the church last weekend. It was peaceful. Some in the community, even those sympathetic to their cause, did not like the idea it was held during the churchs Sunday service. We were not comfortable with the idea, either, though the timing was intended to make a point.
It is clear to anyone who pays attention to our countrys political dialogue that immigration is one of the most divisive subjects in American life.
There are clear and honest differences about how this country should enforce its immigration laws; how we secure our borders and deal with the millions of undocumented immigrants who already are in the country; how we honor our tradition as a welcoming country and extend a compassionate hand to people who, through no fault of their own, are trying to escape desperate circumstances. But we also know that underlying these differences is a racial element that cannot be ignored.
Provocateurs and race-baiters, such as the people who are distributing the National Alliance flyers we have seen across the Quad-Cities, are seeking to turn us against one another.
We should not let it happen. We should be aware also that as we enter the 2020 election season, we are doubly at risk of this kind of divisiveness.
We understand there will be honest arguments about immigration policy, but we should also affirm we are a welcoming community that believes in our common humanity.
We think our federal government could help immeasurably with these differences if it could find a solution to the immigration issue. There was a glimmer of hope in 2013, when a compromise bill in the U.S. Senate promised tough border security and created an eventual pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who were not violent and who paid their taxes and a fine.
The legislation didnt make it past the Senate, and since then, the divisions have only become worse. We are hopeful that lawmakers on both sides will come together and find a solution. This may be the most difficult issue for Washington, D.C., to resolve, but we also believe that finding a compromise would yield significant dividends.
In the meantime, we believe Quad-Citians must recognize in each other our common goodness, our common worth, and reject the voices that seek to divide us.
