Tell Us How You Teach About Immigration

I have attached a link to an article published about my immigration class that highlights some student perspectives on their experience.

http://www.alma.edu/about/offices/marketing_and_communications/pinecone/...

I used the following text in my college classes and appreciated the author's approach to placing race and ethnicity at the center of the discussion about immigration. A welcome departure from the self-congratulatory, geneological approach many students gravitate toward.

Spickard, _Almost All Aliens: Immigration, Race, and Colonialism in American History and Identity_ (2007)

While the readings would be too advanced for all but the most advanced K-12 students; teachers could draw on some of the books core themes for classroom discussions.

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One of my students, who is mixed race, recently wrote a paper in which he said, tongue-in-cheek, that we should just all get on the boat and go back where we came from. Since he is mixed race, it'd be hard to do for him, as he put it: Split me down the middle. I'm half one (group) and half another. as a descendant from Dutch, German, Irish, Scot, Jewish and English I can agree. While I'd like to visit all those homelands, I think I'll just stay here and watch the US grow up, hopefully soon.

I teach a course in social work in an MSW program called
"Advanced Theory and Practice with Ethnically Diverse Clients". We begin with a cultural sharing where each students brings 2-3 artifacts, food, music, books, whatever they deem important in their culture and share. "Often they include an immigration history of grandparents, parents or themselves as we have as many as 80 countries represented at Loma Linda University. We use Lums text on cultural competence which includes immigration and oppression history for Native Americans, African Ameircans, Latino Americans, Asian Americans, as well as special populations which includes European Americans, Elders,
Women, and Individuals with Disabilities. A second assignments is to describe how they each learned about "differences" among people as children, in school, etc. and finally they complete an interview with a client from work or internship ethnically and culturally different from themselves to assess and also process how they felt about the experience. During the summer due to the concentrated time (5 weeks) they are also required to attend a cultural festival, church, sanctuary, mosque, temple, (any religion different from their tradition) OR a cultural exhibit in a museum, or a cultural festival and write a reflection paper. We have many discussions during class about their ongoing interactions with those different from them -----in many, many ways. Victoria Jackson

I am a former teacher, and current civil rights advocate. I've been watching the tv coverage of Arizona's controvercial immigration law, and it upsets me to see large groups of people demonstrating in support of or in opposition to the law. I have the impression that, whether for or against the provisions that were struck down by the U.S. District Court, there are alot of people in those crowds who don't see a clear line between the way the white people feel about hispanic immigration that's legal, and the way they feel about hispanic immigration that is illegal. I find it very scary and upsetting, as a 5th generation white american who has been challenged throughout my lifetime with the realities of a diverse America.
If I can teach tolerance today to my clients, I try to show people who feel discriminated against that breaking existing laws is no longer considered by anyone an act of civil disobedience and a form of protest. If I had the opportunity to teach tolerance to the people of Arizona and the other Mexican border states, I would send thousands of pro bono immigration lawyers to all the immigrants - and help them get their papers in order, or - help them to get on either a path to citizenship (of Course we are waiting for Congress to pass legislation to make this possible) or a path home (which, sadly is the only real option for many).

When we don't do our job as advocates, the police, legislature and governor react with all the force the white race can muster to keep the number of brown and black and tribal people in the minority. Our immigration lawyers and paralegals can force the white majority (quickly becoming the minority) to draw the line clearly between all hispanic immigrants who want to settle in their state, and the illegal hispanic immigrants they feel so threatened by.

At the risk of volunteering for the project I'm describing, I hope the SPLC can send lawyers and paralegals to the border states to help hispanic immigrants get whatever papers they do have in order for presentation to the police. And for the people in America who can't show they have the right to be here (regardless of their national origin) maybe the SPLC could help them get on a path to citizenship (and change the federal law one case at a time) or a path home before they get cought by immigration officials.

The whole thing really upsets me because Congress has been unwilling to give us comprehensive immigration reform.

There is a book about a teenage girl of Middle eastern background, who lives in Australia. She hides her identity by using blue contact lens, cuts and dyes her hair. The book talks about her conflicts. The story is based on the author's own life,she is currently a lawyer.
Another thing I love is to show is pictures of immigrants, while I play
Neil diamond's song, Coming to America.

I teach English as a Second Language to adults. When we discuss immigration in my class, I always include information about Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) founded by John Tanton and about FAIR's 20 plus sister groups including Numbers USA. In 2008 FAIR was designated by Southern Poverty Law Center as a hate group.

FAIR is a white supremist group which has done a lot in this country to fan the flames of the immigration debate in a powerful and negative way. I have my students learn more about John Tanton and FAIR on the internet. And I share articles and information from SPLC and Center for New Community.

I also present them with information from studies done by our Iowa universities on immigration and contrast it to the claims made by the John Tanton groups.

I feel it is very important for older children and adults to learn where many of today's negative comments and responses to immigrants are coming from, and to learn how they can recognize when FAIR tactics are being used and respond in a constructive manner.

Hi, I worked for years at a community organization where I worked with a group of youth exploring issues of immigration (amongst others). I find that the best way of talking about the topic is to hear first person accounts. Whether it is from a live guest, or recorded stories of immigrants. This is useful particularly to address current issues. It is also helpful to identify the history of immigration to the US. In the past we have done an exercise where everyone in the room identifies when their family came to the US, to create a shared history of immigration.

Thanks for the opportunity for "Teaching Tolerance" readers to share teaching experiences and resources.

My "Social and Cultural Diversity" course was designed for teacher-preparation students and in-service teachers, but it draws students from all over the university. probably because it offers a different perspective on the predominant narrative and the many myths most of us were taught in school. The main text used in the course is "Lies My Teacher Told Me," by James Loewen. Until I read the book — as well as Howard Zinn's "A People's History of the U.S." — I am afraid I was guilty of perpetuating much of the mis-information found in many, if not most, history textbooks. Although instructors may not choose to select Loewen's book as a text for their classes, I urge EVERYONE, but especially k-16 teachers, to read the book for their own personal and professional enlightenment about the evolution of the U.S. — with well documented facts and passionate accounts of the marginalized groups in our country.

I am currently piloting a community based project called Many Voices, One Community in two rural WI counties. The goal is to create communities more welcoming to all kinds of diversity, including immigrants. We identify local people in many different sectors (education, faith, legal, business, student, etc), give them 20 hours of cultural and diversity awareness training, expose them to speakers, experts in the field, and then they are to design activities which they will carry out in their communities. We are now in the phase of carrying out our initial activities. It is exciting to see what they have come up with. More important is the change that has been wrought with this very simple training. This is a fine program which can be implemented at the community level, in churches, schools, businesses, organizations, just about anywhere.
I have 10+ years working in cultural education- I take dairy producers with Mexican employees to Mexico to the sending communities to meet these employees' families. Talk about life changing.... I was a classroom Spanish teacher for 20 years. I still teach, only my classroom has changed.....
Shaun Judge Duvall
Puentes/Bridges, Inc.
Alma, WI 54610

The University of Notre Dame helped to produce the film, "Dying to Live". This film, as one of my students said, puts you in the shoes of immigrants who come illegally from Central America to look for jobs. I have found it a helpful classroom resource