Hard times in the United States
(Published 9/7/10, Manila Standard Today)

‘It’s not a perfect society, but it’s good. It’s better than my own country.”

(From a recent survey of US immigrants conducted by the nonpartisan group Public Agenda.)

America. I think it’s the greatest place to live, and millions of immigrants like me seem to agree. America’s allure remains so strong that some are willing to risk life and limb to enter its borders for a chance to live here. According to new Census Bureau data, the size of America’s foreign-born population has tripled since 1970 and now stands at 31 million.

What’s the reason behind this continuing influx of hopeful US immigrants?

It’s a combination of factors: economic, social, political, religious. “Opportunity for a better life,” is the major reason, but underlying that is the most basic need of all to have a decent roof over one’s head and food in the belly. To go to bed at night knowing there will be toast or cereal in the morning - if not bacon and eggs, too.

America, immigrants have found, is the best antidote to hunger.

Even through the bad times like now. You know the story. Economic crisis. Revenue deficits. Recession. Plummeting stocks. Massive layoffs. Enron. And in our own Evergreen State, a $2.4 billion budget shortfall.

The situation is so bad that services to children, the aged and the poor will be trimmed, our public colleges will stop accepting unfunded enrollments and some of our parks and libraries will have to close. Roads will not be built; sidewalks will not be fixed or streets lit. Businesses will close, and unemployment will continue to rise.

Can anything be more frightening and devastating?

Things could be much, much worse.

I come from a Third World country where I observed firsthand the poverty and misery that thousands of families and children endure daily, with little hope in sight. As inflight supervisor for an international airline, I flew to countries much worse than mine, where there are no parks or playgrounds for children, where roads are muddy tracks and medical services are not available for the poor.

Many transplants to this country have grim stories to tell. In some regions of the world, going hungry is not a euphemism. It doesn’t mean Thanksgiving without turkey and mashed potatoes, or Christmas without savory delicacies. It means you have harvested your last corn and have scraped your rice barrel empty. It means sharing what little food is left among the children and going without any yourself.

You are grateful to have a job that pays $2 a day. You don’t have a car. You don’t know anyone in your neighborhood who owns one. The company you work for does not provide medical, dental or life insurance. Social Security, 401(k)s, Medicare, SSI and unemployment benefits are unheard of.

You work and scrape and save in the hope of putting enough aside to send your children to college, because there are no government subsidies for the poor, no financial aid programs, scholarships or tuition waivers. Families and students, rich or poor, have to pay the total cost of a college education - or they can forget about it.

The poor never really get a chance for a better life. Hence, America is the utopian dream that is passed on from one family to another, from one generation to the next.

And having arrived here, if you are not picky and have the will and the strength to work, there is work to be had. If your earnings are not sufficient, there is help available.

Can’t pay your utilities? The city has special rainy-day funds for such emergencies. No toys for the children? Need clothes? The Salvation Army is right around the corner.

Soup kitchens and food banks supplement food stamps. There are free medical services and local shelters for the homeless. Needy students go to college for free and get extra help with board and lodging.

Poverty in America is not a shameful thing. It is a magic incantation that opens doors and coffers.

There is much more that I can say about the almost limitless bounty we have in this country and how fortunate we are, but I think you’ve got the message. Even if the current recession were to drag on, we would still be better situated than most countries, and immigrants will continue to knock on our doors.

Belma Villa of Tacoma, Washington used to be a guest columnist for the Perspectives page of the Tacoma News Tribune. This piece is an updated version of an original article published in 2003.