The Immigrants Manifesto

Cristina Kennedy
3 min readOct 16, 2020

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I must write about this topic. I must write about voiceless immigrants. I am writing this blog post to shed light on a problem. A problem that I have been writing about for several weeks now. A problem that you may be tired of hearing about by now, yet here I am continuing to talk your ear off. I dedicate this manifesto to the people who crossed borders for a better life. I dedicate it to the people who had to risk their lives to swim across knowing that they, their friend, or even a family member may drown to cross that tumultous ocean. I dedicate it to the people who struggle everyday today to pay rent and put food on the table. And lastly, I dedicate this to the immigrants whose voices are never heard, but work every day, and all day just to die without memory even being honored.

French protestors marching against restrictive immigration laws.

Before you walk away from this blog because you may think that I am trying to push a liberal agenda onto my readers just give me one quick second. I swear that’s not what I am doing. You may be thinking that a After all, isn’t a laissez-faire immigration policy as liberal as it gets? Well, I’m not. I’m pushing a humanitarian agenda.

Imagine, working as a janitor because that is the only job you can get. Imagine getting paid less than minimum wage and long hours because that is the only way to keep you and your family afloat. Well, let me tell you something my friends. This is a reality that many people face all over the world. Thousands of immigrants sans papiers flock into the U.S., and Europe trying to find a better life. They are willing to accept the low income jobs because it is better than what they had before.

Tap this link for more info: https://www.epi.org/publication/immigration-facts/

The good news is, is that I am not alone in the fight for immigrant rights. There are other people and organizations that are at the forefront of this fight. Organizations such as ACLU, CHIRLA, and International Organization for Migration are all fighting for immigrant rights in the U.S. and France respectively.

Calais “The Jungle” a site for many sans papiers before it was taken down by the French government.

Good News! We can do something about the problems that follow immigrants. Change begins with people. We as USC students are the change. If you feel bad for immigrants who get paid very little, you can demand for that change to happen. How? Write to your local politicians, write to your representatives, write to your senators and ask them to demand for change. After all, it only takes a few minutes out of your day. As a matter of fact, draft up a small letter while you watch Netflix or Hulu. It is literally that easy. If you are like me tired of all the bullshit that immigrants have to go through just to live, let’s do something about it. Let’s demand for change. Let’s be the generation that demands for equal rights, and get it done.

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