MONROE — America was always a destination for immigrants wanting to start a new life, even as there have always been those who wanted to keep all but the whitest European migrants out.

“We like to keep this narrative of who we are,” said Mike Jacobs, a UW-Platteville history professor and expert on immigration in the United States. “The issues that were hot button issues are still that today.”

Jacobs was speaking at an event in Monroe focused on immigration issues sponsored by a local group: Dando Una Mano: Together We Rise. The event, “Immigration in America: Past and Present”, was billed as an in-depth overview of American immigration and featured speakers, information, and fellowship around what has become one of the most divisive issues of our time.

Union Presbyterian Church hosted the two-hour event March 26.

“Unless you are a Ho-Chunk (native American) all of us are immigrants or the product of immigrants,” he said.

Jacobs said the idea that immigrants come here and vote illegally has been around almost since the country’s founding. There were anti-Irish, anti-Catholic, anti-Italian and anti-Jewish political movements throughout the industrial revolution. Even the idea of building walls, fences, and other physical barriers to entry for those considered less American has been debated throughout the nation’s history.

“This idea that people are voting who shouldn’t be is nothing new,” he said. “And walls do not work, they’ve never worked, building a wall is nothing new.”

Also speaking at the event was another immigration expert and attorney, Kime Abduli. She grew up in Monroe and practices law from her offices in West Allis. The central question of immigration to America really centers on a basic human concept, she says: “Why do people leave home?”

The answer should not surprise many, especially those whose families have been impacted by the immigration push by President Trump and the GOP.

“People don’t leave because they are comfortable,” said Abduli, noting that everyone embraces the idea of “home” and its security and inherent comforts in some way. “It takes a lot of courage for someone to pick up and abandon that.”

She detailed the legal terms and nuances of immigration and how the process — complicated and opaque — works in this country. In fact, she said, it does not work at all and those on both sides of the political spectrum have agreed for decades that it is a problem, albeit one with no clear solution.

Dando Una Mano: Together We Rise, is a 501(c)(3) Green County organization, “whose purpose is to create and promote an inclusive environment for all residents of Green County. For more information, visit the Dando Una Mano: Together We Rise Facebook page, or contact dandogreencounty@gmail.com to join the email list. 

Grants from United Way, Colony Brands, the Monroe Morning Optimist Club, Vicky’s Little House Community Daycare, and other individuals and local partners support their work. DANDO collaborates with many local organizations, including the Green County Family YMCA, the School District of Monroe, the University of Wisconsin Green County Extension, Green Haven Family Advocates, the Literacy Council of Monroe, Green County SARP, SSM Health, and the Monroe Arts Center, to sponsor events and provide support for local families.