Immigration Opponents Blame “Americanized” Immigrants for Rise in Carbon Emissions
20/10/09 a 4:54pm por Columnista Invitado
By Dara Lind
Most of the time, opponents of immigration seem to believe that assimilation is the best "solution" to the U.S.' immigration "problem." This week, however, the anti-immigration group Californians for Population Stabilization (CAPS) is rolling out a multimedia ad campaign blaming assimilation for destroying the environment.
According to CAPS' website:
"(W)hen immigrants settle in the U.S. their energy use quickly becomes Americanized. As a result immigrants' carbon emissions skyrocket. The result is a quadrupling of immigrants' carbon footprint compared to the amount of carbon emissions they produced in their home countries."
CAPS' president, Diana Hull, said that immigrants' energy use is even more "American" than native Californians':
"Californians made significant progress in energy conservation over the last couple of decades. However, the progress has been mitigated by massive population growth over the same period, driven by immigration and births to immigrants."
Instead of trying to spread California's conservation "progress" to the rest of energy-hog America, CAPS is spending its time (and advertising dollars) trying to keep immigrants from outgrowing the "relatively small carbon footprint" of many of their home countries. Hull said that "stopping mass immigration, especially from low carbon use nations will go a long way towards a solution" to global warming.
The ad, which will air on TV and radio stations across California, is based on a study by the Center for Immigration Studies, an anti-immigration think tank based in Washington, D.C. In the past, CIS has raised fears that recent immigrants, documented and undocumented, are not assimilating. In 2005, it even charged immigrants with "dual allegiance."
But when it comes to energy use, apparently "Americanization" doesn't look so hot.
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