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Debunking the Myth of an Immigrant 'Invasion'
Understanding the root causes of migration is crucial to fighting back against the fear-mongering.
BY IVAN ESPINOZA-MADRIGAL APRIL 19, 2024 7:00 AM
President Donald J. Trump and El Salvador President Nayib Bukele meet during the United Nations General Assembly in New York City, September 2019.
If you care about fair elections, you need to understand what’s happening in Central America. Developments in El Salvador—along with the root causes of migration—are crucial to U.S. politics as immigration issues take center stage this election season. More than three decades after the Salvadoran civil war, it’s time to look at conditions on the ground.
Under El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele, the country has moved away from a multi-party political system into one that concentrates power in the executive office. Bukele has used tactics such as occupying Congress and controlling social media to force his autocratic policies through. Nevertheless, Bukele’s approval ratings are impressive.
Bukele’s overwhelming popularity compels us to question features we typically assume are fundamental to democracy. For at least some voters, it’s not off the table to dispense with traditional checks and balances, the separation of powers, due process protections, and civil rights. This laissez-faire attitude towards democracy raises the question: Can democracy die democratically?
In the digital age, real challenges exist to maintaining public trust and confidence in democracy, including polarization, tension around the integrity of political systems, and waning faith in elections. This disappointment and exhaustion with politics help explain Bukele’s ascent to power. In the United States, we’re not immune: 57 percent of Republicans believe President Joe Biden wasn’t legitimately elected.
Economic hardships also affect political trends. American aid and international technical advice have failed to lift Salvadorans out of poverty and inequality. The country’s economy rests on a precarious scaffolding: Residents are extremely dependent on remittances from abroad.
More:
https://progressive.org/op-eds/debunking-the-myth-of-an-immigrant-invasion-espinozamadrigal-20240418/