Many older AAPI adults are foreign-born. They're tough on immigration too, a new poll finds

WASHINGTON — There are sharp generational disagreements among Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders when it comes to how the U.S. should handle mass deportations, with older AAPI adults — many of whom are themselves immigrants — taking a much tougher stance on unlawful border crossers, according to a new poll.

The survey, released Wednesday from AAPI Data and The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, finds that just 20% of AAPI adults under 30 favor deporting all immigrants living in the country illegally, compared to just over half of AAPI adults ages 60 and older. The rift among AAPI adults is wider than the divide among the general public, with younger AAPI adults less in favor of the hardline position than young adults generally, and older AAPI adults slightly more likely than older Americans overall to support mass deportations.

Coming off an election year full of uncompromising rhetoric around immigration and the border, there is a sense among many — including within Asian American communities — that the country cannot afford to provide resources for people in the U.S. illegally, said Karthick Ramakrishnan, executive director of AAPI Data and researcher at the University of California, Berkeley. But the split between older and younger AAPI adults could defy conventional wisdom about how immigration attitudes work.

The assumption might be that older Asian Americans, many of whom were born outside the U.S., would be more liberal on the issue because they're closer to the immigrant experience, Ramakrishnan said. But the data suggests that older AAPI adults, who may have put their migration experience in the rearview mirror years ago, have less sympathy for people who are in the country illegally. It's younger AAPI adults — who are more likely to be native-born — who want a more lenient approach.

The poll is part of an ongoing project exploring the views of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders, whose views are usually not highlighted in other surveys because of small sample sizes and lack of linguistic representation.

Younger AAPI adults see mass deportations as a low priority. An AAPI Data/AP-NORC poll conducted in February found that only about 15% of AAPI adults under 30 think deporting immigrants living in the U.S. illegally should be a ''high priority'' for the federal government, compared to about 4 in 10 adults ages 60 and older.

Meanwhile, older AAPI adults take a stern view of people who enter the U.S. illegally, particularly if the migrants have a criminal history. About 9 in 10 AAPI adults ages 60 and older ''somewhat'' or ''strongly'' favor deporting immigrants in the country unlawfully who have been convicted of a violent crime, and about 7 in 10 say the same about immigrants in the country illegally who have been convicted of a nonviolent crime such as shoplifting or burglary.

''I'm from immigrants obviously, but the fact is my strongest belief is that illegal immigrants who have committed crimes should be caught,'' said Nakawatase, who is Japanese American. ''If they're not contributing to society, I don't think they should really be here. They should be deported.''

But younger AAPI adults are less certain that mass deportations are the right approach, even for people with criminal records. Only about two-thirds of AAPI adults under 30 favor deporting all immigrants living in the U.S. illegally who have been convicted of a violent crime, and about 4 in 10 support deportation for people who have been convicted of a nonviolent crime.

Cecil Wuggle, a 20-year-old college student in West Palm Beach, Florida, who identifies as a Democrat, understands why some immigrants with illegal status and a criminal record would have to be deported eventually. But she opposes the idea of mass deportations based on criminal history alone, without further examination of their situation, such as whether the crime was committed at a young age.

''I think they should have at least a fair trial before deporting them automatically,'' Wuggle said. ''Maybe they're a good person now.''

Currently, immigration is a relative strength for Trump. A recent AP-NORC survey found about half of U.S. adults approve of his approach to the issue, which is in line with older AAPI adults' views of his handling of immigration.

Wuggle, whose parents came to the U.S. from China, is strongly against the idea of family separation, which she worries could do irreparable emotional damage to a child.

''I feel like kids, it affects the way they grow up,'' Wuggle said.

Other consequential fights over immigration policy are still brewing. The Trump administration last month pushed for the the U.S. Supreme Court to allow some restrictions on birthright citizenship even as legal battles continue over Trump's executive order to effectively end the Constitution's 14th Amendment, including citizenship being denied to people born in the U.S. after Feb. 19 if their parents are in the country illegally. The order is currently blocked nationwide.

About one-third of AAPI adults support eliminating the constitutional right to birthright citizenship for children born in the U.S. to parents who are here unlawfully, while about one-quarter favor an end to birthright citizenship for the children of parents who were in the U.S. on temporary work or student visas. A significant share — about 2 in 10 — don't have an opinion.

Nakawatase, the Republican, is ''on the fence'' about depriving citizenship for children of parents who illegally entered the U.S. He is less resistant to the idea of giving children birthright citizenship, though, if parents at least have a temporary work visa or a student visa.

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Tang reported from Phoenix.

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