By Angelina Newsom:
Across the United States, employees skipped work to participate in a protest that was supposed to signify what the country would be like without immigrants. Hoping to have a big impact on the economy and illustrate the importance of immigrants to the United States, several employees simply didn’t show up to work. They didn’t give notice to their employers, or even bother to call out sick. For one group of employees, they were even told ahead of time that if they chose to skip work they would be let go and could find employment elsewhere. They did not heed the warning. For one company, up to 20 employees were laid off because they all skipped work to participate in the protest.
The fact that protestors lost their jobs shouldn’t come as a shock to anyone. I’m a firm believer that politics do not belong in a business or any place of employment. Furthermore, I see no reason why there needs to be a protest in solidarity with immigrants who are in the United States illegally. If illegal immigrants are employed in the United States, clearly they are not in compliance with the law. In any case, I can imagine that employees missing work to protest what they feel is unfair treatment towards immigrants is a huge slap in the face to employers who have taken it upon themselves to hire them. By accepting employment with an organization or company and then protesting by taking business away from them is absolutely ridiculous.
Then again, other employees simply took the opportunity and ran with it, quitting their current places of employment. Some cited that it wasn’t a welcome place for immigrants. Others went a step further and lied about being fired when they actually weren’t. There always seems to be a large group of people taking advantage of a situation and using it to push their own agendas.
Maybe it’s just me, but I would be grateful for an employer who gave me an opportunity and I’m not even an immigrant. There are so many other ways to show solidarity for a cause or group. These people basically flipped their employers off and insinuated that they are somehow responsible for the hardships of every immigrant. It doesn’t make sense that people would want to hurt the businesses and organizations that employ them and allow them to feed their families.
There are so many other productive ways that they can become involved in causes. In fact, I have to wonder if many of those who protest are doing anything at all for their communities or society in general off the clock. So much work needs to be done across the country, yet there isn’t this much passion from so many people on a day-to-day basis. It seems like whatever the trending topic is on social media is the cause of the day. Instead of looking to play social justice warrior, protestors should invest their time and money towards something proactive.
Angelina Newsom is an OpsLens Contributor and U.S. Army Veteran. She has ten years experience in the military, including a deployment to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. She studies Criminal Justice and is still active within the military community.
To contact or book OpsLens contributors on your program or utilize our staff for your story, contact [email protected]
