They just don't fit in

Speaking of the far right's manipulation of the immigration issue, the most recent WorldNetDaily screed by Patrick Buchanan is worth checking out:

"Who cares where people come from?" comes the retort. "The Melting Pot will make them all Americans, as it did the 18 million who came from Eastern and Southern Europe from 1890 to 1920."

But those were European peoples coming to a country run by descendants of Europeans. They came to a land that enforced assimilation in its schools. They learned and were taught in the same language, read the same books and magazines, went to the same movies, listened to the same radio, went through the Great Depression together and served in the same Army in World War II.

And after the great wave ended in 1920, we had 45 years of low immigration to assimilate and Americanize the children of the immigrants who had come here.

But America's population has doubled since 1945. Instead of the 16 million people of color we had in 1960 -- almost all of whom were black Americans immersed for centuries in American culture -- there are 80 million people of color here now, from 100 nations.

Yes, clearly, all those people of color are a real problem. They can't (or won't) become real Americans.

This cornerstone of Buchanan's anti-immigrant "logic" was in fact a common belief in America in the years 1900-1950, particularly when it came to Asian immigrants, who during that period were forbidden to apply for citizenship. Note that Buchanan conveniently overlooks their existence. Perhaps that is because in the ensuing years, it has become more than apparent that, contrary to the bigotry of the Patrick Buchanans of that era and this, Asian-Americans have proven fully assimilable, Americans to the core, and valued contributors to our cultural melange.

Of course, this bigotry is being purveyed today not only by the Pat Buchanans and Jared Taylors of the world, but by a hundred smaller anti-immigrant groups, each posing as "reasonable" conservatives. I particularly noted the activities in Arizona of a group called "Coalition United for a Secure America," which, according to the Arizona Republic, has been running TV ads connecting Latino immigrants to crime:

In the ad, a narrator cites an increase in homicide and home-invasion rates, then states: "Police say it's caused by illegal immigration."

Note also the members of the sponsoring coalition:

The coalition is made up of several national groups that favor reducing immigration and population growth: Americans for Better Immigration, the Federation for Americans for Immigration Reform, Americans for Immigration Control and Pop.Stop.

It's important to note that police indeed agree that stopping illegal immigration would lower the occurrence of these crimes. But the ads' demonization of Latino immigrants rather nakedly plays on people's fears and deepens the stereotypes that come into play in the immigration debate. Particularly the belief that they will never become good Americans.