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Land of the not-so-free

Book review of "The Accidental American: Immigration and Citizenship in he Age of Globalazation", by Rinku Sen.

Rinku Sen, The Accidental American, Berrett-Koehler

“Immigration is not a problem to be solved; it is the sign of a successful nation. New Americans are to be welcomed as neighbours and not to be feared as strangers.” These words, spoken in 2000 by George W. Bush, then governor of Texas, were largely put aside after September 11, 2001. The terrorist attacks led to restrictions in immigrants’ rights and stricter border surveillance. The same backlash occurred in Europe, suspicion replacing integration for many.

Rinku Sen maps out the 180- degree turn the immigration debate took in The Accidental American: Immigration and Citizenship in the Age of Globalization. Sen, president of the Applied Research Center in New York, which promotes racial equality, says the desire to settle in places where economic wealth creates employment is natural and shouldn’t be punished, but rewarded with a path to citizenship. After all, illegal immigrants in Europe and North America lose chunks of their salaries to pay for health, pension and other benefits they can’t claim. Meanwhile, by doing essential jobs disdained by even high-school dropouts—in hotels and restaurants, as farm labourers and housecleaners—undocumented workers become the backbone of the economy. Still, newcomers are subject to harsh restrictions.

Sen approaches the debate through the story of Fekkak Mamdouh, a Moroccan immigrant who started working in the U.S. as a busboy, became a waiter at the prestigious Windows of the World atop New York City’s World Trade Center, lost 73 of his co-workers on 9/11, then played a pioneering role in setting up the Restaurant Opportunities Center of New York to procure better working conditions. The Accidental American advocates open borders even as it reads like a personal history and a tale of an experiment in entrepreneurial spirit.