The rise of the U.S empire was due to multiple factors, one of which was a “brain gain” of immigration.
Both the U.S. immigration system and top research institutions have historically attracted the best of the best. Today, we stand at the threshold of a possible “brain drain” as prized talent either voluntarily goes elsewhere or flees.
The number of international students coming to study declined by 17 percent this past fall. Meanwhile, three-quarters of U.S. researchers are considering leaving the U.S. We are squandering this country’s future.
Not since the Great Depression have more people left the United States than entered it. Many who are leaving are not the so-called “illegals,” but U.S. citizens.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, last year there were 675,000 deportations while 2.2 million “self-deported.” But not all self-deporting are undocumented.
So many United States citizens are leaving that the government has a months-long backlog of those renouncing their citizenship. They are voting with their feet. So much for “American exceptionalism.”
Polling indicates those heading for the door have lost faith in the United States’ future.
In a world where universal health care is a human right, we live in a country where sickness becomes an excuse for medical insurance companies and the pharmaceutical industry to enrich themselves. In a world that sees firearms as not being a part of civilized society, we live in a country that teaches kindergarteners how to duck under their desks during an active shooter situation.
When we consider how the “rule of law” no longer applies to the elite, as demonstrated by their protection from the Epstein file revelations, the multiple pardons granted to those convicted of defrauding the government, the billions politicians make through insider trading, and even the president suing his own government for $1 billion, we are left wondering why we should continue being part of a failing state. In addition, those of us who are Latine face other threats that motivate our desire to leave.
As the state fails, people look for scapegoats to blame for the downward economic spiral of the middle class. Those fleecing taxpayers point to the Latine immigrant and shout, “We have found the problem!” Rather than blaming the corruption of this administration and its tech cronies, we point the finger elsewhere.
The irony is that white supremacists may want Latines deported, but our absence hurts the economic well-being of white United Statesians. Our current racist-based immigration policies, coupled with the vile anti-immigrant rhetoric spewed by this current administration, are contributing to mass self-deportation to the detriment of the U.S. economy.
White supremacy is not just unprofitable. It is the primary cause of the empire’s decline.
There is a strong empirical consensus that immigration is associated with a net increase in U.S. economic output, innovation, and entrepreneurship. A simple 1% increase in immigrants raises GDP by about 1.15%.
Why? Because when it comes to innovation, migrants are overrepresented, as evidenced by the disproportionate number of patents they hold.
Compared to native-born individuals, immigrants have a significantly higher number of entrepreneurs, contributing to the creation of employment opportunities. This is documented by the substantial number of employees at migrant-owned businesses.
Researchers, scientists and highly skilled labor are already going elsewhere (Canada, the UK, the EU, China) while the retention of foreign graduates is rapidly declining. This toxic combination is truly leaving us with the worst of the worst: white Christian nationalists.
Not surprisingly, immigration raises total U.S. economic output and long-run growth. But facts don’t matter to the racist-diseased mind. To them, we are rapists, we bring drugs, and we have lots of problems.
Our national obsession with deporting the so-called “worst of the worst” is backfiring as the best of the best migrants leave. Living in fear, constantly being stereotyped as a negative influence, and the constant threats to one’s livelihood and/or life are leading many of us to wonder if it’s time to also leave for our mental health and well-being.
Really, why continue to stay when your very presence is an offense that carries deadly consequences? Maybe it’s time for us Latines to simply say, “Adiós.”
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Professor of Social Ethics and Latinx Studies at Iliff School of Theology in Denver, Colorado, and a contributing correspondent at Good Faith Media.