Archived Opinion

Fear of immigrants will hurt this country

To the Editor:

I was glad to read intelligent responses with a different opinion than that of a recent letter whose writer stated that English language proficiency should be a prerequisite for entry into the U.S.

I am sure there are many others who share my history of grandparents emigrating to the U.S. in the early 20th century. My paternal grandparents who came to this country as legal immigrants around 1918 did not speak English; in fact, they were illiterate. They bought a farm, raised 10 children, all of them bilingual. Half of their children — without the benefit of completing elementary school because their help was needed on the farm — went on to own small businesses.

Haven’t we heard enough of this ethnocentric and selfish attitude of fearing cultures different from your own and valuing people only for what they can do for you?

Judy Stockinger

Franklin

Smokey Mountain News Logo
SUPPORT THE SMOKY MOUNTAIN NEWS AND
INDEPENDENT, AWARD-WINNING JOURNALISM
Go to top
Payment Information

/

At our inception 20 years ago, we chose to be different. Unlike other news organizations, we made the decision to provide in-depth, regional reporting free to anyone who wanted access to it. We don’t plan to change that model. Support from our readers will help us maintain and strengthen the editorial independence that is crucial to our mission to help make Western North Carolina a better place to call home. If you are able, please support The Smoky Mountain News.

The Smoky Mountain News is a wholly private corporation. Reader contributions support the journalistic mission of SMN to remain independent. Your support of SMN does not constitute a charitable donation. If you have a question about contributing to SMN, please contact us.