Poems are often a reflection of the society they are written in. Many times, poets adopt the general rhetoric of the public, placing it in a poem that people can read and enjoy while at the same time allowing them to reflect on how said rhetoric affects them. Many of these topics spur from immigration, specifically the fear of immigration. An overwhelming fear of losing jobs to a surge of immigrants has long since plagued American citizens, as well as citizens of South Africa and other similar countries. In some of these countries, such as South Africa, immigrants have been killed and beaten out of local fear, a term later renamed Xenophobia. Xenophobia disrupts how locals see immigrants, preventing us from coming together as one. Moreover, it often turns locals into hypocrites.
So many poems have been written that reflect the xenophobia, or the experience of the immigrant. One such poem, “So Mexicans Are Taking Jobs From Americans,” by Jimmy Baca, he writes, “Do they sneak into town at night, and as you’re walking home with a whore, do they mug you, a knife at your throat, saying, I want your job (Baca 14).” The poem speaks on behalf of the Mexican, seeking a new life in America. Moreover, it laughs satirically at the ignorance and self-righteousness of the Americans who place blame on their lack of a job on immigration. A common insinuation, when the subject of immigration is mentioned, is that immigrants now only want the local population’s job, but they will take them by force. The assertion is that the average immigrant is not only able to come into America, violently taking a local citizen’s job, but that they want to do that at all. Even the country’s leaders of both America and Mexico have let empty promises of healthcare and education for their citizens die in the wake of immigration. As Baca aptly stated, as an echo to the time and society in which we live, “an asthmatic leader crawls turtle heavy, leaning on an assistant, and from a nest of wrinkles on his face, a tongue paddles through flashing waves of lightbulbs, of cameramen, rasping “They’re taking our jobs away (Baca 14).”
Unfortunately, in the very recent past, we have witnessed a presidential candidate publically and blatantly expressing his disgust toward immigrants in general, and Mexicans in particular. He spoke candidly and disgustingly about the ways in which he believes Mexican immigrants, as well as all other immigrants are stealing the jobs of American citizens, going so far as to suggest America build an unbreachable wall on the Mexican border to prevent further immigration by these “job stealers.” Baca’s poem is even more pertinent when a potential future president speaks so adamantly about immigrants taking jobs, once more, forcibly from American citizens. He has, for obvious reasons, be called a bigot by Democrats across the aisle; they claim if he is to claim the presidency, it will have detrimental effects on racial relations within the country. We are inclined to believe these assumptions, since the poem raises sardonic, but true speculation on how Americans view and treat Mexican immigrants, yet all assumed reflection appears to be lost on the candidate in question, Donald Trump.
Stunningly, throughout his poem, Baca succeeds in not only showing us the hilarity to the average citizen’s, or presidential candidate’s, assumptions about the average immigrant, but also manages to show us the perceived bigotry running rampant throughout America. It manifests most commonly when we refuse the immigrant passage through America, but is also visible in our common rhetoric, which is also visible in passages like, “O yes? Do they come on horses with rifles, and say, Ese, gringo, gimmee your job (Baca 14). We must reconcile how we treat others when they enter America, how they really act, and how we think they act. America is, after all, the land of opportunity, and it is a place that should allow everybody to pursue their dreams. Americans say this, but the poem and its rhetoric force us to admit the dream is a coveted thing that is beheld only for those who are born here. It is a birthright. Those who migrate here are not privy to the dream; they force themselves upon Americans and their presence is a violent oppression. This is the satire and the hilarity, because immigrants do not create this imposition, it is in the local population’s head. The hilarity increases when we remember many are lazy, refuse to work, and instead collect welfare checks while complaining about immigrants who enter the country ready to contribute honestly to the economy by working a blue-collar job.
We, the Americans, are quick to blame our problems on droves of immigrants, whether they are eager to work or not. We do it so often, we have managed to blind ourselves to the real issues that persist in our country. We have even managed to forget, somehow, that we were once the immigrants. Rather than place the focus on who has taken which job, as this is rarely the problem, Americans should take care of issues that truly matter, such as police brutality and poverty. Alas, we are Americans, and we prefer to pass blame on anyone but ourselves, but we are not racist. It is the Mexicans who are thieves, stealing jobs from us. That is the typical thought that enters our minds, because even if we are unable to have what the immigrant has a chance to attain, we want to blame them for taking it from us. It is easier than accepting the blame for our own life choices.
The poem is laced with undertones of the need to accept one another by setting aside our racial differences. While it is true that Mexicans do come to America in search of jobs, they also are just trying to better their lives. Moreover, they are not doing so in an effort to worsen somebody else’s life. The United States is big enough and prosperous enough for everybody; as immigrants ourselves, we should remember there is room for everybody, including the immigrants of today. Some Americans are unable to hold positions in this country, or are unwilling to, and immigrants come here willing to do so. The poem merely makes a social comment, asking why we should not let them, and why we cannot accept them into our country, allowing them to compliment us as a society. Social acceptance is an enormous problem in America.
In a similar poem, Mary Oliver, “Singapore,” the poet comments further on society and its implications on socialization and jobs. Oliver speaks as an adult in the poem, allowing us to assume the janitor she meets in the poem is not the first she has met in her life. How she has learned to regard them through her life is highlighted in the second stanza of the poem: “Disgust argued in my stomach and I felt, in my pocket, for my ticket (Mary Oliver 3).” The title of the poem makes it safe to guess the location of the poem, though regardless, janitorial work is usually looked down upon as difficult and disgusting labor. Americans in particular never seem to see it as good enough for themselves. Oliver in particular shines a light on the job. She does not want it, she finds it disgusting. It is not good enough for her in her country or any other; many Americans share this idea. However, should the Singaporean janitor come to America, looking for janitorial work, there would suddenly be an uproar. It is a country of a hypocrites, shouting, “I do not want it, but you cannot have it either.”
The American culture has taught us to cringe with disgust when we see hard-working janitors, the homeless, and even the mentally ill. We have been conditioned to see them something other than human beings. Immigrants, specifically, are not humans looking for work and a better life. They are thieves, coming to take our jobs and our homes. The poets read here indicate to us that every job is important in its own way. We must all earn a living, whether the job is president of the United States, or a janitor. When we begin to understand human beings hold these positions, we can begin to understand these human beings begin these positions with the intent to survive. We are all humans, and nobody is trying to “steal” somebody’s job as vehemently as Baa describes. We are all humans, worthy of work and being treated as humans, dissimilar to how Oliver states. Despite our job titles, we are not so different from each other. When we shed the darkness that comes from judging one another by the jobs we hold, our education levels, and our race, we shall be truly liberated as the human race.
Works cited
Cultural and Linguistic Diversity. Dir. Eugene Garcia. 2009.
Teaching for change Latino Hispanic Heritage 2007 Accessed at https://iamthelizardqueen.wordpress.com/2007/04/05/jimmy-santiago-baca-so-mexicans-are-taking-jobs-from-americans/
Singapore by author Mary Oliver." 123HelpMe.com. Accessed 23 Feb 2016 at <http://www.123HelpMe.com/view.asp?id=97267>.
