Essay Example on Making Foreigners: Exploring American Citizenship & Alienage

Making foreigners is a book written by Parker, Kunal M, and it focuses on the lives of Americans and how the American law defined citizenship and alienage in ways that have led to opposition both from the inside and the outside. Parker analyzes how different groups referred to as natives in the American territory, are regarded as "foreigners" in society and law. Parker did a good job of challenging the common understanding of "foreigner" and "alien." Making foreigners is an amazing book that is a critical piece in immigration law and American policy, Native American Studies, African American Studies, Latino Studies, and Women Studies, among others.

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People who come from any place outside the United States are regarded as aliens. Parker's thesis is that there exist geographical conceptions on nationality and citizenship, and they are inadequate when it comes to capturing the real practice and pattern in the United States, where those who find their way in the country are regarded and treated as aliens. When people live in a country for some time, they are likely to start demanding their rights regardless of whether they are in the country legally or illegally. They are, however, punished through deportation despite being longtime residents of America. The history of the United States immigration and citizenship focuses on those coming from other countries. During the time referred to in the book New York and Massachusetts states were leading in the number of immigrants. The two states, however, dealt with the issue differently, and restrictive laws were distinct.

The book "Making Foreigners" is about immigration and the challenges that come where foreigners and locals find ways of living together as one community. The immigrants and the natives have different approaches to handling issues; therefore, conflicts might arise. The book shows the importance of the natives and foreigners working as a team how the foreigners occupy foreign land influences their relationships with the natives. The book gives highlights of how the British colonized foreign countries and took up land and resources forcefully, leading to conflicts. Great Britain is accused of dividing communities by coming up with bodies in the colonies that they occupied. The locals oppose foreigners from taking and using their resources.

Among the challenges and conflicts that come with immigration is the right of the foreigners to how property and land in the foreign land that they occupy. The author states that foreigners are considered to be aliens; therefore, they need to be barred from owning property. Different countries have different laws in terms of the rights of the foreigners and the activities that they are allowed to participate in. The author uses the conflicts that occurred when Great Britain conquered other countries. The author also states that immigration can play a role in making a country and its people to be successful. The author gives an example of the United States how foreigners, in collaboration with the locals, have made the US be great.

The author believes that the race determines the level of resistance, for instance, there was less resistance among the whites that migrated to the United States when compared to the black minority from the slaves that were taken to the United States. There are perceptions that influence communities react towards foreigners that migrate to their countries. There is a history of immigration where certain communities have a history of migrating to certain parts of the world. There are positive and negative results of immigration; hence people need to review the possible outcome before resisting the settlement of the aliens. The author argues that the government has the responsibility of protecting foreigners. The locals need to have privileges over foreigners.

Some civil rights movements advocated for immigration order, where the people defended the human rights of the immigrants. The movements led to the formation of civil rights statutes that protected the rights of foreigners living in foreign countries i.e., in the United States. When there is law guiding the steps and actions that need to be taken to immigrants that break the law in foreign lands. The author was able to handle all the issues affecting immigration.

This historical book compares to other historical books, such as that written by Hidetaka Hirota about immigration in the State of Massachusetts in the 19th century. Another historian's work that relates to Making Foreigners is Brendan O'Malley's writing on New York in the 19th century. Just like these other two historians, Parker has used credible sources of information, which makes it a good historical book whose information can be trusted. Understanding the patterns of immigration in these two states is important as they led in the number of immigrants during the 19th century. Brendan's and Hidetaka's work acknowledges that there was a distinction on the restrictive laws on immigration between the two states. The strength of Making Foreigners lies in the author's devotion to talking about the period before the civil war, which is a significant time in history. The majority of the authors skip the antebellum period when dealing with the issue of immigration.

References

Parker, Kunal M. 2015. "Making Foreigners". Bookshelf.Vitalsource.Com. https://bookshelf.vitalsource.com/#/books/9781316365304/cfi/6/2[;vnd.vst.idref=coverpage]!.