Words associated with immigration ignite controversy among divided political parties. Experts say the media, academics and politicians alike must first reflect upon the words they choose to identify the immigrant population.
The word “illegal”
“My sense is that [immigrants] don’t like the term illegal,” said Tomás Jiménez, assistant professor of sociology at Stanford University. “I think there’s a sense that the term has first become associated with Latinos and Mexicans, and there’s a feeling that it can take on a racial connotation.”
Jimenez said the word “illegal” may overstate the violation the immigrant has committed and doesn’t explain the sum total. “If we apply to it the same kind of criteria to describe people who receive traffic tickets, we don’t call them illegal drivers.”
Society often associates the word illegal with prostitution, drug use and murder, said Victoria DeFrancesco Soto, assistant professor of political science at Northwestern University.
The word “alien”
“[The word] dehumanizes the individual, which can serve multiple purposes—bureaucratic, political, or ideological,” DeFrancesco Soto said.
Jiménez said the word “alien” goes back into immigration history and is often used in a legal sense, but is often used with the word “illegal.” The word is also the official term used by the U.S. government in describing status in immigration laws and congressional acts.
Word choice
Both Jiménez and DeFrancesco Soto said they make conscious decisions when addressing their audiences or students.
“I have to make a pretty strategic decision,” Jiménez said. “When I write for a public audience, I use the term illegal immigrant in my writing … you have to ask yourself who your audience is.”
“I go between undocumented person and illegal immigrant, especially when I am teaching,” DeFrancesco Soto said. “I need to be sympathetic to the fact that some are immigrants.”
Political implications
DeFrancesco Soto said word choice varies among political parties and the audience political -hopefuls are addressing. “If they’re speaking to an anti-immigration crowd, they’re probably going to use ‘alien’ or ‘illegal,’” she said. “If they’re speaking to progressive parties, [the politician] will probably use the word ‘undocumented.’”
She said the implications go further. In the 2012 presidential election, DeFrancesco Soto said President Barack Obama needs the Latino population to clinch the vote, and his word choice will reflect that in immigration reform debates.
