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October 27, 2006
Rank and File
by Nova Stubbs, insurgent49

The ‘Outsiders’
   
     In the winter of ’96, he took me to a wooded area near the airport and told me in broken English, “if Immigration comes, this is where I’ll be.” He had hidden a bike, some clothes, and a sleeping bag behind a tree.

     He was primed and ready to escape if necessary, but in no way did he want to return to his native land of Serbia. If deported, he would be forced to join the military, which, at the time, was a suicidal proposition, considering he was an ethnic minority. He said, “they make people of my color and heritage do all the dangerous jobs.”
   
     He originally came to the U.S. as a high school foreign exchange student. He attended school for a few years in California and eventually made his way up to Alaska. Inevitably, his visa expired and he was forced to work odd jobs under the table in order to survive. Life was not easy for him in those days.
   
     Last Friday at eight in the morning, I received a phone call, and in a clear Americanized accent he asked “Nova, what are you doing at noon today? I am being sworn in as an American citizen.” My heart skipped a beat as I realized that his journey through immigration had finally come to an end.

     Nikola Jaksic is now an American citizen.

     I was not able to attend the ceremony, but I did see him later that night. One of the first things he told me was that, after he was initiated, he went and registered to vote. The number one reason Nick became a citizen, instead of settling for legal status, was so that he could vote. He has lived in the U.S. for fifteen years.

     My mother and my older sister, Tara, also became American citizens earlier this year. They have lived in this nation for over thirty years, and they too felt an urgency to play a role in politics by being able to cast their vote.

     So why all of a sudden is it so important to be able to vote? Could it be because the “outsiders” too are growing tiresome of the political state in America? I can’t speak for all immigrants who attain citizenship in order to vote, but I can say for certain that the three people mentioned above sure as hell aren’t going to vote for any conservative Republican types.

     In regard to immigration, it is of the Republican mindset to keep out foreigners as well as their “corrupt” foreign ideas. Old George W. just signed a bill this past Thursday, as a matter of fact, to build a 700-mile long fence along the U.S./Mexican border.

     Well, good job W. I guess you and your boys are keeping up on political surveys, because it looks like the majority of foreign born citizens are voting for Democrats. Furthermore, they are increasingly enjoying their right to vote … especially those who have recently become American citizens within the past decade.

     According to the Immigration Policy Center, “In 2000, there were 10.7 million adult new citizens in the United States, 6.2 million of whom were registered to vote and 5.4 million of whom actually voted.” This may sound low to many; however, for a country with an extremely low voter turnout, this number is astonishing.

     In 2004, another survey indicated that Latino Democrat population outranked the Latino Republicans by about 25%. Furthermore, in the 2004 presidential election 36% of Asian and Pacific islanders cast their ballot in favor of Kerry, while 20% voted for W.

     So, of course the current Republican representatives are focused on immigration reform. Well, Liberal America, it looks as though our foreign friends are, for the most part, on our side in this ideological war.

     My mom cried on the day she became an American citizen. She told me that they were not tears of joy, never really clarified why she had this outbreak of emotion. To this day, I don’t really understand why … but I believe that it is symbolic of something. This year my mom, Tara, and Nick have all become soldiers in America’s ideological war.

     Thanks, and I love all of you.
 
    
 
         

      


      Nova Stubbs is a freelance writer and activist, and is co-founder of Insurgent49. Nova resides in an undisclosed location in downtown Anchorage and may be contacted at nova@insurgent49.com.
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in-sur-gent (in sur'jent), n. 1. a member of a group which revolts against the policies of its leadership.