WASHINGTON (Oct. 7, 2024)-Former President Trump suggests undocumented immigrants who commit murder have ‘bad genes’, rhetoric that experts say is dehumanizing and is designed to boost fear about immigrants and the southern US border.
Trump made his remarks in a radio interview and according to a story in CNN It was the latest example of his hateful and disparaging rhetoric aimed at immigrants. Trump has promised to help curb illegal immigration if elected and has also vowed to carry out mass deportations.
The George Washington University has experts who can talk about all aspects of this issue. To interview an expert please contact the GW media team at [email protected]
Mark Edberg, is a public health expert and cultural anthropologist at the GW Milken Institute School of Public Health. He can talk about how such dehumanizing language and false information can impact the hard-working immigrants living in the US.
Cori Alonso-Yoder is an Associate Professor of Fundamentals of Lawyering at the GW Law School. Alonso-Yoder is a nationally recognized scholar on immigration legislation and the impacts of state, local and federal laws on immigrant communities. She specializes in the health policy of immigration. Additionally, Alonso-Yoder’s has worked to promote immigrants’ rights, she has collaborated on transnational labor policy and worker outreach.
Dr. Mina Attia is an Assistant Professor of Counseling at the GW Graduate School of Education and Human Development. His research focuses on trauma and adjustment of immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers. Dr. Attia has practiced clinical mental health counseling in various settings, including psychiatric rehabilitation, outpatient private practice, university center counseling, as well as clinical supervision of counselors-in-training. He can speak to the psychological impact of dehumanizing language on immigrant children and adults.
Elizabeth Vaquera is the inaugural Director of the Cisneros Hispanic Leadership Institute and an Associate Professor of Sociology and Public Policy and Public Administration at the George Washington University. Vaquera's research focuses on vulnerable and diverse groups, particularly Latinos/as and immigrants. Her work has analyzed the character and importance of immigrant status, race, and ethnic identity in outcomes such as education, health, and emotional and social well-being. In addition to an extensive body of work published in leading peer-reviewed journals, Vaquera is the co-author of several books, the most recent of which, Education and Immigration, examines the educational experiences of immigrants and their children living in the U.S.
“He’s [Trump] also been increasing his anti-immigrant rhetoric in his 2024 election bid,” says Vaquera in this video discussing Trump’s immigration policy approach.
-GW-