Watching X-Men: Days of Future Past the other night made me think about Immigration Myths.
Same feeling that I get when I watch Harry Potter films with my kids and see the conflict between Muggles and Wizards.
Immigration Myths are born out of misunderstanding.
That misunderstanding is based on fear.
Just like the Wizards who call Human Beings “Muggles” because they fear them.
Just like the Human Beings who fear Mutants in the X-Men comic books and films.
Too many people create Immigration Myths out of misunderstanding.
In Real Life, Immigrants do work that Americans need and admire.
Like the following people who shatter Immigration Myths:
- Madeleine Albright, Onetime Secretary of State
- Former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger who was also Mister Universe and The Terminator.
- Martina Navratilova, once the Greatest Women’s Tennis Player in the World
- Freddy Adu who became a professional soccer player at Age 14
- NATO Supreme Allied Commander John Shalikashvili who later was Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
In the Worlds of the X-Men and Harry Potter, the Mutants and Wizards are gifted with amazing powers that help their fellow men and women.
Look at these statistics which destroy negative Immigration Myths:
- Between 1980 and 2000, the number of foreign born PhD scientists and engineers in the United States grew from 24% to 37%.
- 25 years ago, 80% of post-doctoral chemical and materials engineers in the United States were immigrants.
Politics. Miltary. Sports. Science.
But Immigration Myths are broken by more than just the work of foreign born people in these areas.
How about Agriculture, Hospitality, Health Care and Real Estate Development?
The names of the immigrants who are employed in these industries may not be as famous as those in groups above, but they serve just as significant a function.
It’s Time that these Immigration Myths become as much a Fantasy as Mutants and Muggles.
