Yay or Nay on Guest worker programs

America’s past precedent regarding the acceptance of newcomers is one that should be encouraging to the large numbers of Latino immigrants. With a tendency to assimilate rather quickly, most immigration populations spend a number of years working the bottom rung of the ladder, then slowly matriculate up through the levels of social stratification. The only distinguishment that can be made is that there are more Latinos coming into the country illegally than there ever were immigrants of other nationalities. Bush’s idea of seasonal work visas seems to be very good in some areas and not so strong in others. A positive is that it gives immigrants a legal way to stay here, make money, and then return to Mexico (or their other country of origin) to support their families and fuel the their home country’s economy. A con to this arrangement is that workers are often forced to live in substandard conditions and harassed or bullied by the leaders of their work groups or the farmers. An easy solution is not available, but through our Spring Break adventures, and the efforts of all of the other groups working for the welfare and fair treatment of immigrants, we will discover new ways to make the transitions easier and the working environments more positive.