TodaysImmigrants

By:

BrigitteGarcia
,
AliBell
,
EricRamire
z
,
MauricioMejia
&
XeniaA.Kosteck
April25,2016

I.

Introduction
Morethan40millionimmigrantsresidedintheUnitedStatesasof2012

thatmakesupa
largeportionofourpopulation,andthatnumbercontinuestogrow.Sowecannotdenythatthey
arehereandwecannotdenythattheyarethetopicofmanydebates..WeliveinSanDiego,
CaliforniawhichisveryclosetotheMexicanborder.MostofusareMexicanandhavegrownup
tryingtounlearnthestereotypesmanypeoplebelieve.Oneofthemostfrustratingstereotypesa
Mexicanfacesisbeingtoldtheyareillegal.Someofusunderstandbeinganimmigrantfroma
personallevelsomeofusjustwantedtobemoreinformedaboutthetopic.Manyimmigrantsare
heldtotheimagethattheoldergenerationhascreatedsayingtheyarehereillegally,theyare
criminals,theyarelazy,ortheyclaimtheyarestealingjobsSowe
arefocusingontheMexican
immigrantssinceitisabigtopicforthepresidentialcandidates
.

Somecandidateshavetargeted
themandtheirresidencyhereinAmericabyclaimingtheyaresendingkillersandrapistsover
theborder
.

Becauseofthisraciststereotypessuchaswetbackhavebeenusedandbecomemore
frequenttofindinthemedia.
Butbeforewepointfingersandblamesomeonefortheproblemwe
wanttohearthedifferentopinionsfrombothsides
Themainideaistogetpeopletalkingand
listeningsothattheydontusewhattheyhearinthemediatodecidewhattheythinkabout
immigrants.
Wewanttoaskthemabouttheiropinionandengageinarealconversation.It
usuallyseemsmostdontevenknowtherealfactsaboutimmigrants.Sowewillbetestingwhat
theyknowbyaskingthemtrueorfalsequestions,andthengivingthemactualstatisticsproving
whytheyareorarenttrue.Wehopethattheywillgoontousetheirnewknowledgeinother
conversationstoinformpeopleofwhattheynowknow.Wewillfirstgivebackgroundto
stereotypesandthengointohowweplantouseit.

II.
Motivation
The Mexican Stereotype has been around for quite sometime. Using slurs or assuming
based on impressions of how one individual looks like is a continuous offense we see in
everyday life matter. Common stereotypes that have been used on Mexicans are aliens,
brownface, and many others, but the most commonly known name is wetback. What is a
Wetback and what is the history behind it? The reason why Mexicans are referred to this is
Mexicans entered the U.S. state of Texas from Mexico bycrossingtheRioGrandepresumably
by swimming or wading across the river and getting their backs wet in theprocess.Itsaword
thats used to degrade Mexicans for their past and in turn on affect their future.
According to
studies by the Hamilton Project
p
overty rates for Hispanics are 24% which is more thandouble
of nonHispanic Whites 10%. These stereotypes are also merged into reasons for keeping
Mexicanimmigrantsfromcrossingtheborder.
ManyHispanicfamilieswholiveintheU.Sknow
these stereotypes all too well, because they have family who are facing this prejudice or are
dealing with it themselves. This problem is a big topic in the America, especiallyinSanDiego.
Knowing that we live right by the border we have the opportunity to start up conversationsthat
willbeinteresting,becausewewillgetthefirsthandexperienceofimmigration.

No one has found areasonablewaytodeterminewhoshouldandshouldntbeallowedto

come over.
People argue that most immigrants offer nothing whileothersthinkeveryoneshould
be given the opportunity to live out theAmericandream.
Theresstilladebateofwhetherornot
we should even have a border or whether to rebuild higher. The problem we have is knowing
whether or not an open border is more helpful to us as a country or unfair by creating missed
opportunities to nonAmericans. One of the most repeatedstereotypesofimmigrantsisthatthey
steal jobs from Native born Americans.
That has proven to not be truebecausebasedonstudies
by the American Immigrant Council, economists do not tend to find that immigrants cause any
sizeable decrease in wages and employment of U.S.born citizen.
This means that it isnt true
about them stealing jobs. Another thought is that immigrants offer nothing to our economy, so
far statistics show that most
immigrants are not poor, nationally 20 percent live below the
poverty line, compared with 16 percent of nativeborn citizens, which means were all within
the same standards of earning money. We arent any different from each other and no one is
stealinganythingfromanyone.

III.
ProjectSummary
Ourgroupsproposalforthevideoistogooutsideandinterviewanywillingpeople.We
wouldtellthemsomeeyeopeningstatisticsabouttheEuropeanimmigrantsinthebeginning
timesofAmericaandalltheatrocitiesthatwerecommittedagainsttheNativeAmericans,we
woulddisguiseitasifitwerepresentdayMexicanimmigrantsthataredoing
to
themtoday.For
example,wewouldaskthemhowtheyfeltaboutimmigrantsbringingdrugstobreakup
Americansinternally.Theintervieweewouldthenanswer,andattheendwewouldrevealthatit
wasactuallyourfoundingfathers,whohaveanunstainablereputation,whopurposelyintroduced
NativeAmericanstoalcohol,somethingthatistothisdayveryprevalentintheircommunity.
WewouldthentellthemsomestatisticsaboutMexicanimmigrants,suchasthattheyareactually
predisposedtolowercrimerates.
Thereisavideowherewebasedourideaoffof,wheretheinterviewerwouldaskfora
DonaldTrumpsupporterfortheiropiniononaquotethatTrumpsupposedlysaid,butinfact
thosequotesweresaidbyAdolfHitlerinthepast.Theysupportedthequotesatfirstbutthen
theyweretoldtheywereactuallyHitlerquotesandtheirsupportedwanedsubstantially.One
thingthatwelikedaboutthevideowasthesurprisevalueattheend,whereevenDonaldTrump
supporterswereshockedthattheywouldthinkaboutsupportingthosequotesfromHitler.
Somethingthatthevideosandsocialexperimentsoutintheinternetfailtoachieveistobring
someactualhistoryandstatisticsaboutimmigrants,whichiskindofsurprisinggivenhow
immigrationwasthefoundationthathelpedbuildthiscountryfromthegroundup.Thisiswhy
wewanttobringvariousstatisticsandhistoricalperspectiveaboutthistopictoeducatepeople
thatmightnothaveknownalotaboutit.Thistopichasbeenamajorpartinthelivesof
countlesspeople,especiallyinacountrybasedonimmigrantsliketheUnitedStatesourmain

objectiveistoshowhowimmigrantsarenotheretohurtourcountry,butinfacttohelpitgrow
likeimmigrantshavethroughoutAmericanhistory.

IV. Projectdetails
Settinguptheenvironment
Ourvideoisasunbiasedaspossible,wellbeaskingpeoplefromtheFashionValley
Malltoparticipateintheexperimentofourconversationaboutimmigrationandhowits
currentlyaffectingourcountry.Theactorsinthevideowillbeourinterviewees,withsomeshots
oftheinterviewer.Hopingthatourvideowillreacheveryoneandthatouraudienceisnotlimited
toanyspecificagegrouporracewewantittobeopentovariety.
Tobemorespecificwewant
tohavepeoplewhomaynotfullyunderstandthistopic,sotheycanfigureoutwhattheythink
wouldbebestforourcountry.AndreceivetheirinputonImmigrationandtheirreactiontowards
it.The#Breakfreemomentofthevideowillbetheintervieweethatunderstandsthefactsabout
immigrationarenotactuallyaboutMexicanimmigrantstheyarefactsabouttheearlycolonists.
Thiswillputtheirideasaboutimmigrationinadifferentperspectiveandshowthemthatthishas
happenedinhistorybefore.Thisisntanewbattlewearefightingbutinsteaditssomethingwe
arestilldealingwithasacountry.Themainideaistoprovokehis/herideasaboutimmigrationin
general.
Wehopetoopentheirmindswithoutmakingitseemlikeblameisbeingplacedupon
them.
Inordertocreatethebestvideopossible,wewillbeusingavideocamera,videoediting
application
s
,suchasimovie,andtoaskunbiasedquestionstoo.
Wewillbeaskingourexpert,
Mrs.Marquez,anunofficialattorneyfortheadministrationofimmigrants,whyimmigrantsare
seenasanissuetomanyAmericansandfactsaboutwhatitsreallyliketobecomeacitizen.We
hopetonotonlyeducateourselvesbutthosewatchingthevideoaboutwhatitsliketobean
immigrantandhowwecanbeallies.
ImplementationIssuesandChallenges
Becauseofthedifferentperspectiveseveryonehasofimmigrationitcanbedifficultto
talkabout.Therecanbeissueswithfindingtherightopenmindedpeopletointerviewbecauseof
theextremeopinionsoutthere.Thisissomethingthatpoliticiansconstantlydebateabout,soto
bringitintoaconversationwitheverydaypeopleisharderbecauseitbecomesmorepersonaland
sensitive.Wewillhavetobecarefulwiththewaywebringitup.Wecannotjustmakeaperson
answerquestionsifthetopicmakesthemuncomfortable.Wewillmakesureweshowbothsides
oftheargumentandaskunbiasedquestions.Wewilldothisbyreadingthemfactsandnotjust
givingoutownopinion.Wewillalsonottrytopersuadethemtogiveacertainanswerbysimply
askingthemaboutwhattheydefinitelyknow.Anotherissuewehaveismakingsurewedont
takefactscompletelyoutofcontext,becauseeventhoughessentiallythatiswhatwearedoing
wedontwanttosendthewrongmessageofusinghistoryagainstitself.Wewillalsobeing

usingstereotypesthatcouldbetakeninahurtfulway.Wewillexplainthehistorybehindeach
fact.Wewillalsomakesurewecompletelyunderstandthemomentsinhistorylikethe
presidentialcandidatesstanceonimmigrationlaws.Aswellasmakesureweletthemknowthe
typeofquestionswewanttoaskthem.Thiswillhelpusmakesurewearenotcalledoutduring
ourexperimentandinterviews,anddonotoffendanyone.Wewanttoaddtotheconversation
notbecomepartofthestereotypelikeproblem.
Ourvideowillbeexplainingimmigrationintwoperspectives,fromthehistoryofthe
earlycoloniststotodaysMexicoCaliforniaborderissues.Itllshowtheobviouscontrastfrom
historywhenthenativeswouldhavenosayatalltothepeoplewhoenteredtheirlandandhad
thefearofitbeingstolen.Thesuddenrealizationofhowwearestillhavingproblemsfiguring
outimmigrationtodaywillbetheattentiongrabberofourvideo.Tomanypeopleitsaproblem
o
fhistorybutwearetryingtoprovethatitis
still
happeningjustinadifferentway.Itllbenice
tohavetheopinionsofdifferentpeopleinsteadofjustnewsanchorsandpoliticiansontvgiving
theirthoughtsoneveryonesbehalf.Ourcapturingofbothsidesexplainingtheirreasoninginan
unbiasedenvironmentwillsparktheinterestofeveryone.
Deliverables
Thequestionswewillbeaskingwillbewellthoughtoutandprovoking,yetopenenough
tonotgivetoomuchinformationormaketheintervieweegiveabiasedanswer.Asagroup,we
hopetoshownotonlyourinterviewees,butanyonewhowatchesourvideo,thatimmigrantsare
notasseeninthemedia.Wehopetogainanunderstandingourselvesofwhatisgoingoninour
country,andtoalsogiveothersthesameunderstanding.

Ourpurposewillbetoaddontothe
discussionofimmigrationandhopefullyshineanewlightontheproblematicstereotypesoften
said.Theactorswillprovideuswiththenewlightbygivingustheiropinionsandstarting
conversations.Ourvideowillincludethefollowing:

Wewillfirsthaveaninterviewwithourexpertdiscussingstereotypesandaskingherour
questions:
Howcanweastheyoungergenerationcontinuetobringthisissueclosertoasolution?
Whatdoyouwishmorepeopleknew
Whatisnottrueaboutthestereotypesofimmigrants
Howcomplicatedistheprocesstobecomeacitizen?
Thenwewillhaveaninterviewswithrandombutadiversegroupofpeople(3)andtellthemthe
followingstereotypes:
Undocumentedimmigrantsdontpaytaxesbutstillgetbenefits.
MyancestorslearnedEnglish,buttodaysimmigrantsrefuse.
Anyonewhoentersthecountryillegallyisacriminal.
ImmigrantstakegoodjobsfromAmericans.
Mostimmigrantsarehereillegally.
TheUnitedStatesisbeingoverrunbyimmigrants

Wewillhavethemtelluswhattheythinkofthesestereotypesandiftheythinktheyretrue.
Wellalsoaskthemiftheyhaveheardanyothersandthentellthemourfactsandstatistics
debunkingthesemyths.Thiswillbeourbreakfreemomentwhentheyrealizethatmanyofthem
donthaveactualproofwhetherthesesstatementsaretrueornot.Theywillthenlistentouswant
tolearnthetruth.
Afterwehavealltheiropinionssaidwewillmoveontoshowourinterviewswithactual
immigrants.Weregoingtotellthemthesamestereotypesandhavethemtelluswhattheythink
ofthem.Thenalsoaskiftheyveheardothersandhowtheypersonallymakethemfeel.
Oncewearefinishedwiththeinterviewwewilltellpeopletotweetandpost
#ImmigrationConversation.Thisisthenameofthespacewearehopingtoprovidetoanyone
wantingtolearnmoreaboutimmigrants.Wehopethatthroughourhashtagtheywillsee
conversationsaboutstereotypesandlearnthetruth.Wereallywanttospreadtheright
informationandhelpthecommonpersonbeinformed.

Bytheendwewillgointosomehistoryandexplainthatthesestereotypeshurtpeopletheydont
evenrelateto.Thescreenwillshowourhashtagandaconcludingmessageandwewillendit
there.

Timeline

Bynowwewillalreadyhavetalkedtoourexpert
WeplantogotoFashionValleymalltorecordallofourinterviews.Wewillalsofilm
someextrashotstoaddintoourvideolater.
Somewhereinbetweenwewillmakeasmallposterofourprojectonphotoshopandadd
aQRcodethatwillthentakeouraudiencetoourvideoprojecttomakeiteasyinfinding
ourvideo.
Afterwefinishthatwewilleditthefootagewehaveandaddinthingslikesubtitles,
transitions,voiceovers,etc.
forotherstounderstand.
Oncewefinishweplantotaketooursocialmediasandstartthespreadofourhashtag.
V.
Conclusion
Weknowthateveryonehasadifferentperspectiveonimmigrants
andstrongopinionson
immigration.Wewanttolistentoeveryonesdifferentopinionsonthesestereotypesthrougha
personallevelandanonpersonallevel.
WewillinformthemonwhyMexicansaregiventhe
stereotypestodayandprovethattheyshouldnotbejudgedjustoffofaname.
Aswellasprove
howmanyofthemarenottrue.
Ourgoalinthisprojectistokeepprovingthatthesestereotypes
onlypaintapictureofasmallportionofimmigrants.Weareallallowedtohaveourown
opiniononwhathappenstoourcountry,butweshouldmakesureweunderstandallthefacts
first.
Thesestereotypesthatwevealllearnedaresomethingweshouldovercomeandbreakfree
frombecausenobodyshouldbelabeledinadisrespectfulmanner.Itonlycausespeopleassume
theworstaboutMexicanimmigrantswhowanttohavetheopportunityforabetterlife.

VI.

References/CitedResearch
MontesDeOca,Cristan.
Quora
.Quora,Inc.Web.22May2016.
<https://www.quora.com/WhyareMexicanscalledwetbacks>.
YeHeeLee,Michelle."DonaldTrumpsFalseCommentsConnectingMexican
ImmigrantsandCrime."Washingtonpost.com.FredRyan,8July2015.Web.22Apr.
2016.<https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/factchecker/>.
Greenstone,Michael,andAdamLooney."ECONOMICANALYSISWhatImmigration
MeansForU.S.EmploymentandWages."
Http://www.hamiltonproject.org/
.
Http://www.hamiltonproject.org/,4May2012.Web.23Apr.2016.
<http://www.hamiltonproject.org/papers/what_immigration_means_for_u.s._employment
_and_wages/>.