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Via Feministing, it appears a group of anti-immigration organizations are trying to cloak their agenda in environmental concerns. They took out this half-page ad in The New York Times last week (click for larger version):
Here's the text:
Americans spend a lot of time in their cars. Not because they want to. But because of massive traffic congestion. And almost daily gridlock. For many people, commutes to work and school and daycare can take up to three hours a day. According to traffic management experts, it's only going to get worse if our population continues its present growth rate. In many American cities, it's the same stress with our schools, our emergency rooms, our public infrastructure, even our water resources. A majority of Americans agree that runaway population growth threatens their quality of life. But with U.S. Census projections indicating our population will explode from 300 million to 400 million in thirty years and 600 million by 2100, quality of life for future generations will be gone unless we take action today. The Pew Hispanic Research Center projects 82% of the country's massive future population increase will be a result of immigration between 2005 and 2050. And for every four new U.S. residents whether from births or immigration, approximately three more cars are added to our roads, increasing gridlock, energy use and greenhouse emissions. Together we can do something about it. We're the nation's leading experts on population and immigration trends and growth. Visit our websites to learn more and find out how you can help. Because wasting hours in your car is one pastime you can do without.
The solution to our energy and traffic problems isn't improved mass transit, better city planning, or changed behavior. It's keeping out those pesky immigrants. So who's behind this ad? American Immigration Control Foundation, Californians for Population Stabilization, Federation of American Immigration Reform, NumbersUSA, and Social Contract Press.
![Alien Nation](\"http://i276.photobucket.com/albums/kk34/feministing/popcontrolad.jpg\"){kind=link}
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Unfortunately,this sort of ad is likely to appeal to a lot of people. Certainly there are very many of us here in the NY metropolitan region who can relate to the unpleasant effects of overcrowding, in one context or another. But it would be too bad if this ad lends respectability to an unnuanced understanding of the problems associated with population growth, and to an unjust kind of solution.
Chickens deserve our true friendship! So do fish! So do other sentient beings! Let us learn to be kind.
With apologies to PT Barnum . . .. . . you'll never go broke underestimating the prejudices of the American public. Then again, it might be worthwhile to mine this ad for best practices regarding how to talk about environmental issues to red-staters. For example, note that the word "environment" does not appear once in the ad copy. Instead the emphasis is on "population," "infrastructure," "resources," "gridlock," and "traffic," all concerns that average Americans can grasp ...read more
I doubt it'll appeal......since most conservatives don't care much 'bout the issue of environment, they'll ignore it without even reading it fully. And anyone who truly does care and is knowledgeable 'bout the enviornment will recoginize it as a farce.
So it won't get much traction. The only ones who'll use it are people who are already against immigration.
Well...They are making a good point with regards to population and overcrowding, but scapegoating the immigrant won't do anything to advance the cause of GHG abatement or population control. Disinformation passing as facts to advance your interests and your political parties' short-term electoral interests won't solve the problem. Having said that, I have read a number of articles pointing to an interesting consequence of the massive influx of illegal immigrants(mostly from ...read more
Yep....I've seen the anti-immigrant stuff all over the place in CA. Pretty sad since stopping migration will fix nothing and will cause more problems...
Just The Facts, Ma'amLet's stop the knee-jerk liberal/left reactions and face reality. The ONLY current reason for population growth in the U.S. -- and this has been true for about ten years -- is immigration from Latin America. People coming to the U.S. from Latin America have more babies than native born Americans or people coming here from other places, though the latter are also a small minority of those coming here. This is a straight forward numerical fact. How one ...read more
UnfortunatelyMost of the comments are incredibly naive. You can't use "better city planning" to cope with a half billion people. Look at India or any other extremely overcrowded country. And to say that these organizations have an "unnuanced understanding of the problems of population growth", I guess that would mean they aren't welcoming all the poor people that don't use family planning? Billions live in slums throughout the planet now, and that is what we will have ...read more
Yes, unnuanced. And worse: evil.In that photo of slow-to-stopped traffic, it is not all the Latino immigrant drivers -- if there are any -- who are creating the overcrowding.
In new suburban and exurban residential developments, the forest-chopping, field-burying, fresh-water-clogging, wildlife-expelling, environment-polluting sprawl that environmentalists deplore, the new residents are for the most part not Latino immigrants.
In overcrowded subways and buses and sidewalks ...read more
Can always count on the Grist................... to make sweeping, poorly thought out statements.
First, let's talk about immigration. Why do people immigrate to the US? Grist members will be surprised to find out that not everyone else in the world believes that America is a disaster area or a repressive sh!thole. No, some people believe it is a land of opportunity.
Immigrants come here to find work. Most are honest, hard working people doing jobs at wages which native born ...read more
they farm for hire herebecause it is illegal for them to farm for themselves there.
it is a fine, fine setup. kinda one-sided but it has the extra benefit of being a clean, renewable source of scapegoats.
one day we will even own their national oil company! and even more of them will come work in our factories and our shops and our restaurants, without legal protection, and it will be even more beneficial to our economy.
we could make ourselves a nice mint julep, sit out on the swing, watch them work out in the fields as we play cards. a fine life.