Annoying assumptions

There are a few things that annoy me. Men who whistle annoy me. I don't know why, but they do. Luckily, Khalid has never whistled. Sluggish computers annoy me. I hate waiting for computer screens to change. That's why new computer gadgetry really doesn't impress me. I will never be impressed by the achievements of computer engineers until they actually create a machine that is able to anticipate my needs before I am even aware of them. If that happens, I will be impressed! I won't be able to afford the technology--but I'll be impressed! Yeah, I know..I'm a tough and impatient customer.

However, what really annoys me is when people who are casually acquainted with me and know that I am married to an immigrant, automatically assume various things about my husband. These assumptions include the following:

• he is not educated




• he speaks with an accent and/or does not speak English very well




• he doesn't pay taxes




• he's used public services and assistance




• he is unskilled




• he is short

All of these statements illustrate a profound misunderstanding of the diversity of the immigrant population in the United States. Many immigrants come from countries that structure their educational systems like English and American institutions. These schools teach English, science, math and technology and hold their students to a high standard: sometimes even higher than American ideals. Additionally, many immigrants are educated and hold prestigious degrees from either Western institutions or schools in their own country.

Why is this the case? Western imperialism has shaped the structuring of various country's economy and political functioning. In order to compete, many nations have decided to embrace the Western educational system. Other nations have not had the luxury of a choice but have been forced to homogenize their educational institutions into replicating the Western counterpart.

In Kuwait, where my husband spent his youth, the British had already established Western schools. All children were required to take English classes and to master the language. Khalid learned to read and write in English as well as Arabic. The education that he received in Kuwait was of such a high quality that he can read and write English better than a substantial portion of Americans.

My husband is well educated and has sought after skills. He has studied electrical engineering and his knowledge is valued by his employer. He is the only technician at his job that is vested with repairing the most complicated electronic units. He is most definitely skilled.

My husband does not have an accent. He has been in this country for over twenty years and he has consciously strived to lose any vestige of an accent. This is a useful and advantageous undertaking because he is able to assimilate into American culture and avoid many of the assumptions that effect immigrants in a negative way: many assumptions similar to the ones I am discussing right now.

As far as the following three assumptions go: he doesn't pay taxes, has utilized public services and is short--they are too insulting to even answer....I only wag my finger at them and say: "shame on you...."

The long hiatus

I’m back to blogging after a long hiatus. Although there isn’t a sufficient explanation for my negligence in updating my blog there are a few reasons for my absence. Some of these reasons include frustration, family issues, unrealistic expectations, and a little known malady I’ve dubbed “immigration burn out syndrome”. Some of these reasons are more relevant than others.

One reason I haven’t updated for awhile is because I feel frustration because no discernible changes have resulted from my blog. Unrealistic as my feeling is, I thought that if my blog went public it would incite people to ban together and fight injustice. It is disheartening to feel that people are complacent about something I am so passionate about. The old feminist adage “the personal is political is” is most definitely applicable in this case. Many people express dismay and empathy…but when it comes down to committing time and effort their passion wanes. It falters, not because they are insensitive and callous--but because it is not personal to them.

After a significant amount of soul-searching I realize I am expecting too much too soon. Changes rarely happen instantaneously: but instead-- occur in fits and starts over a long period of time. I want to make a difference in how people view the immigration issue and I want tangible evidence that I’m making progress in that direction. This is basically my ego issue. Like many Americans, I crave instant gratification in order to satiate a demanding ego. I have to accept the truth: life does not often reward humans with instant gratification nor is it particularly concerned with satiating our egos.

In all honesty--my commitment to various other social issues wanes also when time and energy is required. If money is needed, such as transportation to social justice events, I oftentimes cannot go. Even if I can go based on finances I can’t attend because of personal and educational commitments. We are so busy with our regular lives that there is little time for anything else. Activism is relegated to the bottom of life’s “to do list”. Oftentimes, even if we have the time, money and desire, we just don't know what to do to make the necessary changes.

At least if I didn’t get a group of activists together I was hoping I could get our story told by the media. Maybe it wouldn’t air on the local or national news but I thought that the independent news sources-- particularly those on the internet; like NPR, Breakthrough, Huffington Post or Alternet, might take on the story. I was wrong. No one wants to touch it.

I’ve spent many restless nights wondering why. At first I thought that Khalid’s conviction of reckless endangerment had something to do with it. Despite trying to save his own life, the “crime” rendered him an unsympathetic protagonist in the eyes of journalists. With the recent advent of stories surfacing of immigrants’ facing deportation who had committed even more serious offenses—I began to suspect that it wasn’t the conviction alone that was keeping Khalid’s story out of the media. There was something more.

I won’t deny the fact that I have felt there is some sort of “conspiracy” around Khalid’s case. The idea that someone was keeping his story out of the public consciousness was a plausible and scintillating explanation. There is a wealth of information that suggests there was-- and probably still is, a substantial amount of corruption in immigration law--both involving unqualified and racist judges and unscrupulous lawyers. How much the government is involved remains unclear, but manipulation behind the scenes is always a distinct possibility.

Everyone I have subsequently spoken to, who is in a similar immigration fix, has expressed at least one unpleasant experience with an unethical lawyer or an unconscionable judge. Additionally, there are examples of lawyers who are not educated in immigration law who are providing services to immigrants. Khalid and I had a disastrous experience with one such local lawyer. Despite the suppression of such experiences in the dominant media outlets I am comforted by my belief that in the future, information will surface that confirms my suspicion.

I still believe it is possible that there exists some conspiracy tendencies in Khalid’s case but now I’m convinced-after speaking with some journalists and reporters-- that Khalid’s case is far too complicated and “unbelievable” for most people to wrap their head around. Trying to form a rational analysis about Khalid’s case is not easy. There are so many twists and turns that it’s nearly impossible to make any sense of it all. I would not be surprised to hear that some people feel his story is unbelievable. There were times, early in our relationship, when I myself was skeptical. But, every time I have researched and followed up on Khalid’s story everything has always added up.

One of Khalid’s most common sayings when asked about his situation is: “It’s my case, I’ve lived it and even I can’t make sense out of it.” Truth is indeed stranger than fiction. Even I, with my vivid imagination, couldn’t have come up with a stranger story.

Reporters’ and journalists don’t want to touch Khalid’s case because it is so complicated and defies conventions of most other deportation cases. According to the law, most deportations are very cut and dried. An immigrant did this and this so we can use laws number 200188b and 309187c in order to justify deporting him or her. There is no framework to place Khalid’s situation because it is a 1 in 300 million case. It is unique. Basically, the judges have had to make it up as they go along. Flying by the seat of their pants wasn’t a major issue initially because Khalid had no ties to anyone in this country and was completely vulnerable to their whims.

That all changed when Khalid and I got married. All of a sudden they had to find a rationale to deport him. They designed a tenable legal labyrinthine in order to deport him that resulted in the most mundane of reasons for deportation: overstay. Overstay is generally overcome by being married to an American citizen. They had to create a complicated and convoluted explanation for something so simple. For those who are listening— that should speak volumes.