“In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue…” or so the story goes. Christopher Columbus discovered a new continent, invited the locals to the first Thanksgiving, and oversaw the creation of a new world – one with star-spangled freedom at its heart. God bless America, right? As we know today, this tale is only plausible if […]
Tag: immigration
Russia’s Human Assembly Line
Russia has never been busier — or more exhausted. After three years of war, the Kremlin boasts record-low unemployment and record-high labor shortages. Factories can’t find welders, farms can’t find drivers, and the defense industry is devouring what’s left of the civilian workforce. The result is an economy that runs without advancing — its motion […]
The American Dream is Our Mirage
The American Dream: the ideal that the United States is, without fault, the land of opportunity. This doctrine promotes the notion that any individual who is willing to persist through hard work, toil, and determination will inevitably achieve social progress. Throughout centuries, whether rich or poor, people viewed the American Dream as the only way […]
Not a Citizen, but Not Un-American
Uprooted from Korea, raised in Cupertino, sent back across the Pacific only to return a decade later — all of it felt worth it, if it meant that I would finally be able to make a life for myself in the U.S. The American Dream carried me through it all. Like many other international students, […]
The Case for a “Civil Gideon”
Across cases nationwide, unaccompanied immigrant children walk into courtrooms alone, with no attorney by their side. Without guaranteed access to legal representation in immigration proceedings, they are often left to confront the full force of the American legal system on their own, along with the subsequent life-altering consequences. In these moments, the idea of “due […]
Trump’s Deportation Policy Cuts Two Ways in California’s Economy
One in every eight Americans are immigrants and California is home to 10.6 million of them. To that end, immigrants have significant importance on the economy and culture of California. It is a large misconception that immigrants don’t positively contribute to the economy and benefit from their residency in the US without paying taxes. In […]
Nauru’s Citizenship for Sale: Golden Visas and the Price of Survival
Imagine lazing on a beach on an island in the South Pacific — the temperature is always 80 degrees, the water always perfect, a mimosa in one hand and a pair of sunglasses in the other. Life has never been better on the paradise of the Nauruan shores. This isn’t real. What won’t be noticeable […]
Behind the Facade of French Colorblindness
If you’ve ever taken a train through the less glamorous fringes of Paris, you’ve seen another side of the city, one that is a far departure from Hollywood fantasies. There’s a palpable gulf. Before reaching the glamorous eighth arrondissement and scenes that look straight out of Emily in Paris, one must traverse what the French […]
The Danger in Trump’s Anti-Immigrant Rhetoric
“They’re eating the dogs, the people that came in, they’re eating the cats. They’re eating the pets of the people that live there, and this is what’s happening in our country, and it’s a shame.” In the weeks following the 2024 Presidential Debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, the former president’s false claim—and now […]
Portugal Elections Mark Europe’s Surge Toward Radical Right
In April, Portugal was supposed to celebrate its 50-year anniversary of democracy, leadership, and stability since the Carnation Revolution, which overthrew the right-wing dictatorship that had led the country for decades. However, in March, just one month before this great milestone in the country’s history, it is facing political turmoil and democratic decay. Populist right-wing […]