Opinion: Supporting immigrants and communities instead of spreading hate

I recently finished an amazing book titled “The Immortal Irishman” by Timothy Egan. The book is a biography of Thomas Francis Meagher, an important political figure with an incredible, almost unbelievable, life story. Meagher ended up in the United States just before the outbreak of the Civil War after escaping exile in the Australian penal colonies from the British for protesting the potato famine injustices wreaked in Ireland, which caused millions of deaths and a mass exodus of people fleeing the country to find a new home. Many fled to New York, Boston and other areas in the U.S. When Meagher finally made it to New York by hitching a ride on a ship, he was heralded by the vast number of Irish immigrants as a political hero.
Meagher never saw his homeland again. He never even met his young son, who was born to his first wife, who died while staying with Meagher’s father. Despite staying loyal to the Irish cause of independence, Meagher became a citizen of the United States and adopted the nation’s cause of freedom and unity as his own. Eventually, he even led the 69th Infantry Regiment of the New York State Militia as their general. The group would become known as the Irish Brigade and gained a reputation as fearless fighters, suffering some of the greatest losses of the war.
While the highlights of Meagher’s story are without a doubt amazing, we can’t ignore the motivations behind his decisions and those of the greater Irish immigrant population. At the time, many people in the U.S. were wary of the large number of immigrants pouring in looking for a piece of the American dream and seeking relief from famine or other oppressive situations in their own home countries. An entire political movement and party even supported nationalistic views, spreading conspiracy theories and hate towards people of certain religions and nationalities. Shockingly, it isn’t too much of a stretch to draw parallels between the 1850s and today.
In the wake of the most recent presidential debate, in which a former president spread lies about the Haitian community in Springfield, Ohio, my mind keeps going back to this book and seeing how history has a way of repeating itself in so many ways. Lies that have been debunked live on and continue to damage a community of people seeking new opportunities within our country. Schools are receiving bomb threats, parents are afraid to put their kids on buses and hate and fear are left to be perpetuated and twisted. No community is perfect — that goes without saying. But to vilify and spread rumors isn’t helpful to anyone, regardless of race, religion, nationality and so on.
As a daughter of immigrants and a first-generation, naturally born citizen of the United States, I recognize that this country is made up of a diverse demographic. My parents dreamed of a certain kind of life with additional educational opportunities, which were thankfully realized. Because of their hard work and sacrifices, my own dreams have always been in reach. I recognize not everyone has the same opportunity afforded to them. Thankfully, there are people, organizations and communities willing to embrace and support the diverse kinds of people who add so much to our country and who are striving for dreams of their own. Remember those Irish immigrants? Some of them had the last name of Kennedy and produced the first Irish American president of the United States.
Maybe, instead of spreading false rumors and lies about a group of people, we should be looking at how communities like Springfield, Ohio, who are welcoming these groups, can be supported. How can the infrastructure be built to be provide needed resources for everyone in those areas, instead of trying to keep people out? We should recognize that the country we have today has been built from a rich history of sacrifice from people who have left behind families, careers and beautiful homelands of their own to build up the dreams of others and bring their own strengths to our communities.
Tess Fontanetti-Rice was born and raised in Utah to parents who moved from Brazil to the U.S. She received a bachelor’s degree from BYU and a master’s in arts administration from SUU.