As the full picture of the devastation from COVID-19 comes into sharper focus, we have become keenly aware of how the fates of all Americans are interconnected, and how it will take all of us — native-born Americans and immigrants alike — working together and tending to each other to overcome the pandemic.
It’s a time of coming together and playing our part.
That “part” is different for all of us. We have come to understand that the definition of frontline responders has expanded significantly. For some, it’s driving a truck that delivers food or medical supplies. For others, it’s manning the front lines in hospitals, dealing with thousands of patients, and taking on the risk of becoming infected. For our men and women in uniform, it means standing watch in a dangerous world even in the face of new and uncertain risks. For our small business owners, it’s keeping their workers on payroll and the doors open.
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And in every one of those groups fighting for our country, putting their lives at risk every day to keep us going, we see the faces of immigrants.
This pandemic is shining a bright light on the critical roles that immigrants play in America today, from health care, to essential work in the economy, to producing the food that we rely on every day. Working side by side with native-born U.S. citizens, they are working hard and risking much for the new country they have embraced. By taking on such important duties, they demonstrate that they are as much a part of “us” as any other American.
This is a reality that transcends politics — and one that two organizations like ours, LIBRE and National Immigration Forum, from different places on the political spectrum, can see clearly. COVID-19 impacts us all. It does not care who we are, where we come from, or how long we’ve been here. Moreover, even before COVID-19, many communities, especially those in rural America, relied on immigrants — from the farm to doctors’ offices. And now we are more reliant on immigrants than ever.
The truth is this is what has led us to join together with other groups — including the George W. Bush Institute, the NAACP, The National Association of Evangelicals, and others— to launch the #AllofUS campaign, which focuses on elevating the contributions of immigrants and celebrating the work they do to keep the country moving.
For example, although immigrants represent 17 percent of the U.S. labor force, they represent nearly 30 percent of U.S. physicians, more than 35 percent of home health aides, and roughly 20 percent of surgeons, clinical lab techs, nursing assistants, and diagnosing practitioners. Additionally, nearly 30,000 Dreamers enrolled in DACA are also working as health care professionals in a range of positions — a substantial risk to take on behalf of a government that has thus far refused to resolve their legal status.
Immigrants also make up a disproportionate share of the farmworkers deemed essential by the White House, as we confront COVID-19. According to the USDA, about three-quarters of hired crop farmworkers are immigrants, and the Migration Policy Institute also found that immigrants account for more than 1 of every 5 workers in the U.S. food supply chain. On farms and ranches in rural America, social distancing and accessing medical care nearby is often impossible, and commodities such as hand sanitizer can be hard to come by at the workplace. By willingly working under those difficult conditions, these workers are risking their health and safety, as they play an essential role in helping America overcome this challenge.
If Americans are defined by fortitude, self-sacrifice, and a commitment to the well-being of their neighbors, then immigrants, whether from 200 years ago, or now, are the reason we are the way we are as Americans.
That’s why we undermine ourselves when we fall prey to those seeking to divide us. We weaken ourselves and our future when we ignore those who are vulnerable. And many immigrants are especially vulnerable now, as they do not have the option of working from home, don’t have the protective equipment or access to health care to stay healthy when doing work we depend on, or are left in the cold when the job they had is shuttered. And that impact extends to the millions of citizens who are part of their families, and to the communities in which they live because immigrants are not only essential workers; they are part of our families, congregations and businesses.
Past challenges have brought our nation together. This moment calls for nothing less. We have the opportunity, and duty, to leverage the full strength of what it means to believe and act as one America. Those are the very ideals that brought immigrants to the frontlines of our country’s struggle. They are responding to communities in need, and we need to respond in kind.
After all, a community is only as healthy as the most vulnerable among us, and all of us are equal and carry an inherent dignity. Standing shoulder to shoulder, new Americans and native-born, will we get through this pandemic — #allofus as one.
Daniel Garza is President of the LIBRE Initiative. Ali Noorani is President and CEO of the National Immigration Forum.
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