Andrea Araujo
Rhet 101
Mrs.Mary
Word Count: 1080
Is it a Problem that Immigrant Children are in Detention?
Immigrant children in detention has been a recurring topic being discussed in today’s politics. In general, immigration is commonly spoken about and has been a heated argument across the United States. Do people’s opinion change when children are put in the picture? Ben
Shapiro argues that putting children in inhumane conditions is wrong. He points out that this is only surfacing because of democratic media, he believes in the law and what it enforces
(Shapiro). On the other hand, the Chicago Tribune’s editorial board disagrees with the law. They believe taking children from their parents diminishes the child’s future and success (Editorial
Board Don’t Separate). Likewise, The New York Times by the editorial board considers the fact that immigrant children are put in more risk when they are detained. It is unfair for the children who were promised a safe future. (Editorial Board Don’t Let) There are still some who disagree with immigration as a whole. Like Joseph Curl, who reports the number of illegal immigrants that come to the United States. He considers all immigrants as “illegal aliens.” (Curl) It is obvious immigration is a much debated topic and all argue for change in different ways. Some take the matter more seriously when children are involved, while others don’t care.
Ben Shapiro is known for his American conservative opinions. Shapiro is editor and chief for the Daily Wire. Not only that, he has his own podcast called ‘The Ben Shapiro Show,’ with over 400 episodes and has been considered as “the top conservative podcast in the nation.” (Ben Shapiro Daily Wire) In ‘Media Dishonesty on Immigration Contributes to Gridlock’ Shapiro argues that democratic media has made the issue of immigrant children in detention an exaggeration of the law. Considering that Shapiro feels children in detention is an issue, he still agrees with the law. He recognizes this by saying, “We’ve also heard about the terrible living conditions in the holding centers for these children. Likely, some of that is true” (Shapiro)
Although he admits this side, he also admits that the law should be respected. The law -“The
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals” (Shapiro) states that children will be taken away from parents.
This is because the parents are still doing something illegal. After recognizing these two sides,
Shapiro continues to argue that Democrats overpower opinions in the media. They use too much emotion to influence the truth, he states (Shapiro). Later, he compares Trump with Obama.
Shapiro points out “He’s also offered a bigger amnesty for so-called DREAMers than even
Barack Obama did.” defending Trump. He believes there is a solution because “The House of
Representatives is actually set to take up the issue of family separation in both versions of the immigration bill being presented in the House. But Democrats probably won’t sign on to either bill.” (Shapiro) Still, he believes Democrats are the reason a solution is not occuring.
Chicago Tribune’s editorial board has an obvious opinion on children in detention. In their opinion piece, ‘Don't separate immigrant kids from parents’, they state their argument right away by saying “If a family enters the United States from Mexico without permission, immigration officials should not separate minor children from their parents.” (Editorial Board
Don’t Separate) They base most on their argument by saying that it is cruel and unnecessary
(Editorial Board Don’t Separate) to treat immigrant children unfairly. There is also a strong belief that immigration problems are not being fixed by doing this actions and there is a long history of doing so. They recall by saying “Remember that the so-called Dreamers [...] are still living in limbo.” They continue, “The reasoning is linked to a 1997 court case [...] kids can’t be detained with their parents.” They purposely use the scare tactic to prevent people from crossing the border. (Editorial Board Don’t Separate) It is likely they have these opinions because they present news reporting to minorities and a diversity of people. They have liberal beliefs overall.
The New York Times, is another news outlet that contributes to liberal beliefs and focuses on a more diverse audience. Their Editorial Board argues their stance in ‘Don’t Let Migrant Kids Rot.’ It begins with giving information on the neural growth of an adolescent and how “fear and trauma” (Editorial Board Don’t Let) can trigger “psychiatric disorders.” (Editorial Board Don’t
Let) They connect these facts with the recurring incidents in youth shelters, where children are being detained. It claims that children are being abused physically, sexually, and medically.
(Editorial Board Don’t Let) Due to this, these shelters are being sued, but continue to make billions of revenue off of these shelters. (Editorial Board Don’t Let) The editorial board stresses that although “the agreement known as the Flores settlement” (Editorial Board Don’t Let) protects children from being detained over 20 days, President Trump will continue to diminish the future of these children.
On the other hand, Joseph Curl has strong conservative beliefs. He was once working as the White House correspondent for the Washington Times. Like Ben Shapiro, they both share
‘Daily Wire’ as their platform to express their opinions. Curl has collected a compilation of reports in ‘More Than 22 Million Illegal Aliens in U.S., Study Finds’ that state surprising numbers. There is a pattern of the word alien to describe immigrants that come to America. Curl emphasizes negative connotations throughout the whole article by the use of the word alien. (Curl) He references findings from Edward Kaplan (Yale professor), Jonathan Feinstein (Yale professor) and Mohammad Fazel-Zarandi (past professor of MIT Sloan School of Management.)
All the research states the same ideas--the number of immigrants coming to America is more than we know. Curl doesn't necessarily express his opinion, but only in the title. The entire article consists of quotes from the professors he references and he does very limited explanations of what the quotes mean to him.
Regardless of the stance they hold and what they are strongly passionate about, they all ask for change. On one side, the lives of the children should be taken into consideration. On the other side, immigration should be limited as a whole. Both sides tend to blame a political group or figure to originate the issue of the problem. They both point fingers at each other to emphasize their opinion. Some offer solutions, but with very little support. They are all respected opinions of a certain group of people. This includes Democrats, Republicans, liberal, or conservative individuals.
Cited Work “Ben Shapiro.” Daily Wire, www.dailywire.com/authors/ben-shapiro.
Board, Editorial. “Don't Separate Immigrant Kids from Parents.” Chicagotribune.com, 16 June 2018, www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/editorials/ct-edit-immigration-children-separate- dreamers-20180615-story.html.
Board, The Editorial. “Don't Let Migrant Kids Rot.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 9 Sept. 2018, www.nytimes.com/2018/09/09/opinion/editorials/dont-let-migrant-kids-rot.html.
Curl, Joseph. “More Than 22 Million Illegal Aliens In U.S., Study Finds.” Daily Wire, The Daily Wire, 23 Sept. 2018, www.dailywire.com/news/36209/more-22-million-illegal-aliens-us-study-finds-joseph-cu rl.
“Joseph Curl.” Daily Wire, www.dailywire.com/authors/joseph-curl.
Shapiro, Ben. “Media Dishonesty on Immigration Contributes to Gridlock.” National Review, National Review, 19 June 2018, www.nationalreview.com/2018/06/immigration-debate-family-separation-media-coverag e-misleading/.
“The Daily Wire.” YouTube, YouTube, www.youtube.com/channel/UCaeO5vkdj5xOQHp4UmIN6dw/featured.