Mr. Speaker. I had to read and reread these words from the poem by Emma Lazarus inscribed on the pedestal of the Statute of Liberty to make sure in my own mind that the United States was still that great melting pot. that wonderful country which had offered so much hope to many millions of immigrants these past 200 years. The words are still inscribed on the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty. but do we Americans believe them any more? The panic of so many of us 205 million Americans over the arrival of 100.000 South Vietnam refugees defies logic. It is almost like the outcry over the "yellow peril" of a century ago. The statements of public officials in my own State of California. officials who should know better. border on the absurd. "Disease. disease. they are bringing all those diseases." I heard from one of my constituents who somehow likened the refugees to the bubonic plague. Others felt that this socalled hordeestimated by one Los Angeles County official to be upward of 1 milliononly 1.000 percent off the markwould suddenly swoop down and take their jobs away from them. According to some press reports the evacuees constituted "bar girls. pimps. and corrupt generals and civil servants" whose first desire was to land in America and send for their gold in Swiss bank accounts. But it seems that the bulk of the refugees are families of Americans. employees and their families of American Government and business. or simply people who did not want to live under Communist domination. Most refugees felt they would be persecuted because of their participation in the South Vietnam cause and their friendship with the Americans. We are a nation of immigrants. Historians have noted that much of the strength and stability of this country and its democracy has been due to our broad racial and religious base enriched by new immigrants. Our policy of welcoming those faced with political or religious persecution has been in sharp contrast to other countries with their narrowly restrictive immigration barriers. Perhaps the vocal opinions we hear today are merely a reaction to the tragedy of Vietnam and the total bankruptcy of our policy there over the past 20 years. Would we deny Vietnamese refugees a haven in order to blot out reminders of our failure? We need reminders of our failures as well as our successes. But a human beings survival should be valued as just that and not as a symbol of a success or failure. Those Vietnamese who choose to adopt the United States will. like the many millions of immigrants before them. add strength and new values to our country. They should be welcomed and given an opportunity to succeed just as my father was given the same chance when he immigrated in 1912. On the eve of the American Bicentennial. what better way can we renew the spirit of our countrys meaning?
Identified stereotypes
Refugees are bringing disease, taking jobs, and are criminals with Swiss bank accounts.