Quotes About Immigration

When you look at what's written under the Statue of Liberty, it's the immigrant story. It's about 'bring me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.' It's not about 'only bring me only your rich, your wealthy, your smart.'

I refuse to believe that 'Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free...' is now an empty entreaty. But if it is, shame on us.

I'm just trying the American dream. To work here in the U.S., you have to commit and be here. For many years, it was back and forth, back and forth, and it didn't work. But I'm always open to working in Spanish.

I've wanted to come to the U.S. since I was 8 years old. Every single year, my mom and I watched the Oscars. I always told her, 'I want to do that when I grow up. I want to tell stories; I want to be an actor and director.'

Forty-two years ago, I came to America from communist Cuba so I might have a better way of life, a freer way of life - a more democratic way of life. I wanted to live the American Dream where if you worked hard and put your mind to the task, anything was possible.

America is a country defined by a set of ideas, and when people choose to accept those ideas, they should be able to become Americans, as fully so as any - and perhaps more so than most - regardless of how recently they or their ancestors arrived upon our shores. This is the true American tradition, which as conservatives we must defend.

The U.S. has long characterized Haitian immigrants as criminals. This tradition began in 1963 when the first boat of Haitians seeking political asylum was summarily rejected by U.S. immigration officials, while at the same time the U.S. admitted thousands of Cubans as refugees and political asylees.

I know as a nation we are stronger because of our immigrant tradition.

In terms of Republicans, we have got to get to our cohorts in the Republican Party to get them to understand if we are going to get this country to its traditional values... we're going to have to control our borders and manage this huge change in our culture that's occurring.

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite American traditions. I quickly picked it up when I moved to the U.S. from Sweden.

We need to believe that we can achieve progress in fixing our broken immigration system, prioritizing smart border security investments, cracking down on those who are trafficking and smuggling, and relieving the ongoing humanitarian crisis at our southern border.

I find myself increasingly forced to think of my ethnic identity instead of the national identity I adopted as a boy in 1976. That is discomfiting for me, and a tragedy for America.

The policy of America to deny visas to technically trained people in the U.S. and shipped to other countries, where they create companies that compete with America, has to be the stupidest policy of all the U.S. government policies.

The comment that I've made is that if unaccompanied minors can cross the border, then certainly trained terrorists probably can, too.

This will always be a nation of immigrants. It is the one common trait we all share.

We have a lot of Brazilians in the United States. It doesn't mean we're traitors to our country.

The Trump view of immigration defies our history. Immigration is a transaction that has historically benefited the country.

Just watch the interlopers from all over the world come and install themselves in our home. They want to transform France into a giant squat.

In the 2012 campaign, the president successfully transformed the most intense conservative positions into liabilities on immigration and the role of government.

I'm an Australian. And I'm speaking generally here, but Australians in general aren't patriotic or nationalistic. Our country was built by immigrants. So, by my experience, I've seen the way immigration has transformed nations. They are the key people who quite literally build civilizations, be it culturally or musically.

By the reduction of the Arabs on the one hand and Jewish immigration in the transition period on the other, we will ensure an absolute Hebrew majority in a parliamentary regime.

If you really probe, people are anxious about their job, anxious about their home, their children's future. Obviously it gets translated into things like immigration, but that is nothing new.

It's no secret that COVID-19 has impacted immigration detention centers at an alarming rate. We must establish accountability and transparency in reporting data to ensure detention centers are taking the necessary precautions to protect detained individuals.

All things considered, defending our borders by building a fence to keep out people is a necessity. There is no more humane alternative when it comes to protecting ourselves. We must act humanely, within the law, while honoring transparency, but with firm resolve.