In response to Brian Palmer’s Feb. 28 letter (“Goodnight America”), I must say I am impressed by the sheer lack of logic in his argument.
Palmer appears to suggest that if we continue to let immigrants come into the U.S., then we will “turn in the U.S. into a Third World dump.” Seems like a massive leap to make, not to mention an incredibly ignorant one. He paints a dark picture filled with “maggot infested slums” and “gangs of rapists and thieves,” as though immigrants are the sole causes of these problems.
What Palmer fails to realize is that the root cause of these deplorable conditions is structural, and far more often the result of gentrification, an unequal distribution of wealth, corrupt governmental figures and many more issues — none of which directly involve immigrants.
Also, what about all of the U.S.-born citizens who are rapists, thieves, murderers, racists and bigots? He says “immigrants” as though it’s a dirty word, as though they are less-than human, and this couldn’t be further from the truth.
Our country and economy would completely collapse without immigrants and the extremely labor-intensive jobs they perform, though many lazy, entitled and prejudiced Americans continue to deny this fact.
Instead of ridding the country of immigrants, I suggest we weed out people like Palmer, who prefer blaming others for the ails of this country instead of taking a hard look at themselves.
Kendra Hurtado
Eugene
A Note From the Publisher
Dear Readers,
The last two years have been some of the hardest in Eugene Weekly’s 43 years. There were moments when keeping the paper alive felt uncertain. And yet, here we are — still publishing, still investigating, still showing up every week.
That’s because of you!
Not just because of financial support (though that matters enormously), but because of the emails, notes, conversations, encouragement and ideas you shared along the way. You reminded us why this paper exists and who it’s for.
Listening to readers has always been at the heart of Eugene Weekly. This year, that meant launching our popular weekly Activist Alert column, after many of you told us there was no single, reliable place to find information about rallies, meetings and ways to get involved. You asked. We responded.
We’ve also continued to deepen the coverage that sets Eugene Weekly apart, including our in-depth reporting on local real estate development through Bricks & Mortar — digging into what’s being built, who’s behind it and how those decisions shape our community.
And, of course, we’ve continued to bring you the stories and features many of you depend on: investigations and local government reporting, arts and culture coverage, sudoku and crossword puzzles, Savage Love, and our extensive community events calendar. We feature award-winning stories by University of Oregon student reporters getting real world journalism experience. All free. In print and online.
None of this happens by accident. It happens because readers step up and say: this matters.
As we head into a new year, please consider supporting Eugene Weekly if you’re able. Every dollar helps keep us digging, questioning, celebrating — and yes, occasionally annoying exactly the right people. We consider that a public service.
Thank you for standing with us!
Publisher
Eugene Weekly
P.S. If you’d like to talk about supporting EW, I’d love to hear from you!
jody@eugeneweekly.com
(541) 484-0519
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