The Experts on immigration, a heated topic in today's society.
Why are American immigration policies becoming more anti-immigrant?
Above is my inquiry question. My inquiry question has gone through many changes but I believe that I have finally found the right fit for me. An example of one of my previous inquiry questions is: what makes the United States Immigration system so bad? I have decided to narrow this down because I believe that our immigration policies is the root for our broken and oppressive immigration system.
For my inquiry question I have found three groups of people who would be a perfect fit for my round table. Round tables are essentially a forum in which all the participants have an equal chance to contribute, and I believe that politicians, journalists, and political analysts would be the most important members of my round table.
Politicians
Politicians are the people we put in charge to create these policies. However, there are three types of politicians when it comes to immigration.
The one that thinks there is nothing wrong with our current immigration system
The one that thinks we should overhaul the entire system because our policies are flawed and outdated.
The one that believes we should incriminate those who violate our current immigration system.
Each kind of politician would be beneficial for my research because they can give me insight into what our policymakers are thinking. However, I believe that no matter what side a politician takes they are only doing it because of their party and to get voted into office. Also, personal bias plays a huge role into what bills a politician decides to vote for.
Journalists
Journalists are the people who dedicate their lives to cover current events. They are the people who report when their is a change in policy. For example, when children were being locked away in cages in migrant camps, journalists were the ones responsible for this information to become public knowledge. Journalists have the power to sway public opinion by reporting the news, and whether you want to admit it or not they are powerful people. Journalists also have the ability to interview people who have the ability to create these policies. Most journalists should provide an unbiased account of the news, but that is not always the case.
"The immigration courts now have more than 800,000 pending cases; each one takes an average of 700 days to process." (Shear, 2019).
Above is a quote taken from The New York Times article:"The U.S. Immigration System May Have Reached a Breaking Point". This quote provides an example of what a journalist is capable of doing for my round table
Political Analysts
Political analysts are the people who spend time investigating policies. They are also responsible for analyzing trends in our government and government agencies such as the Department of Homeland Security and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Political analysts should not have any bias.
I believe that the work a political analyst does would be the most beneficial for my inquiry question because they have more information on the current structure of our immigration system and its policies. I also believe that they would provide some historical and contemporary information on why our immigration system got to the point it is at now.