Senator Bernie Sanders (D-Vt.) put the value of immigrants back in the spotlight with his stunning, double-digit win over Hillary Clinton in the New Hampshire primary, putting the political establishment with it’s billionaire funded Super PACs on clear notice: In his victory speech, Sanders — the first Jewish candidate to ever win a primary — reminded the world of his humble roots, and the foundation of the American dream:
“I am the son of a Polish immigrant who came to this country speaking no English and having no money. My father worked every day of his life and he never made a whole lot.
My mom and dad and brother and I lived in a three and a half room rent controlled apartment in Brooklyn, New York. My mother, who died at a young age always dreamed of moving out of that apartment, getting a home of her own, but she never realized that dream.
The truth is that neither one of my parents could ever have dreamed that I would be here tonight standing before you as a candidate for president of the United States. This is the promise of America and this is the promise we must keep alive for future generations.”
What makes Senator Sanders’ win all the more powerful is that he is the mirror opposite of GOP candidate Donald Trump on everything of importance, especially immigration. While Trump speaks of building walls and barring Muslims from the U.S., Sanders reminds the world he’s the son of immigrants who has risen to become a candidate for the most powerful political office in the world.
Make no mistake: This is the American story, and it’s about immigration and how America gives immigrants the opportunity to reinvent themselves and freedom they would never have seen in their native lands. Indeed, if Senator Sanders parents had stayed in Poland, they might have perished in the Holocaust like so many others in their families. So once again this country has been the gateway to opportunity and freedom for immigrants. In no other country in the world could this have happened, and that’s why Senator Bernie Sanders candidacy is a powerful reminder that to become anti-immigrant is profoundly anti-American.
Foulis Peacock
Founder and Publisher
Immigrant Business
