"We view the anti-immigration rhetoric of politicians like Trump and Vance as deeply flawed. The truth is that the U.S. has a lot to gain, and indeed to learn, from the stories, experiences and skills of immigrants," the writers say. (LM Otero/The Associated Press)

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Among the prominent issues in the 2024 election, the discussions surrounding immigration were some of the most destructive. On this topic, President-elect Donald Trump and his running mate JD Vance struck a dark and negative tone. Vance has blamed illegal immigration for the high cost of housing and rural hospital closures. Trump has gone further, saying that immigrants are “poisoning the blood of our country.”

We think that this zero-sum, oppositional mindset toward immigration fails our country in two ways: it is both a moral shortcoming and a self-inflicted wound against all Americans.

Both of us recently graduated from Macalester College. Though not technically immigrants ourselves, we arrived in Minnesota four years ago as a product of fortunate circumstances.

Zak: I was born in the United States only because my grandparents moved from Georgetown, Guyana, to New York City more than 50 years ago. As young newlyweds, my grandparents brought their two children to America soon after the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 was passed. By opening access to the U.S. for a wider range of immigrants, this policy enabled newcomers from many countries to seek better lives here.

Over the ensuing decades, my grandparents and their children worked hard to establish lives here. Thanks to their endeavors, I could come to St. Paul in pursuit of a college degree.

By the simple virtue of my birth in the U.S., I’m immensely lucky. Being raised here made it easier for me to navigate the college application system. As a student in Minnesota, I could work jobs and internships that my international peers weren’t eligible for. These privileges helped open doors for me to engage with my local community in ways meaningful for myself and (I hope) for others, working with multiple Twin Cities-based organizations on research and advocacy around local housing policy.

It’s impossible to imagine replicating this path if the U.S. had maintained a stricter immigration regime and I was never born here.

Bobbie: I was born in Eswatini, a small landlocked country in Southern Africa. While severely underdeveloped and in dire need of assistance, Eswatini is home to one of 18 United World Colleges, a group of schools that transforms students into leaders and peacebuilders and, critically, links them to scholarships to top colleges and universities in the U.S. After seven years of hard work, I received a full scholarship to Macalester, unlocking doors to higher education and opportunities in the U.S.

Shortly after arriving in Minnesota in the midst of the pandemic, I found purpose engaging on a hyperlocal level. I became active in the shared governance of our college, eventually becoming president of student government and working to improve students’ experiences. Now, I am fortunate to work in U.S. foreign assistance programming, contributing firsthand knowledge of Southern Africa and the Global South to an industry that needs it.

Yet these contributions, to my own skill set and to the community, are a direct result of opportunities that so few have.

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Our individual stories aren’t actually all that important — they only highlight the good fortune in receiving opportunities that many others don’t. Immigrants have a long and documented history of contributing to this country once given the chance to do so. As Minnesotans know, our two stories represent a tiny glimpse of the rich and varied journeys that immigrants have taken here.

At Macalester alone, much of the campus activity and scholarship is driven by international students and children and grandchildren of immigrants. Their impact doesn’t end at the boundaries of our small campus.

Many more newcomers to our country contribute in everyday — but impactful — ways. They engage with their local communities, join our labor force and work hard to shape their own lives.

We view the anti-immigration rhetoric of politicians like Trump and Vance as deeply flawed. The truth is that the U.S. has a lot to gain, and indeed to learn, from the stories, experiences and skills of immigrants. Closing our gates and denying the same opportunities to others is not just nonsensical and destructive — we’d argue that it’s unpatriotic.

America is a country of immigrants. We ought to act like it.

Zak Yudhishthu and Bobbie Pennington are recent graduates of Macalester College in St. Paul. Yudhishthu writes about housing policy issues in the Twin Cities. Pennington works in international development in Washington, D.C.