The Irony of Anti-Immigration Rhetoric from the Children of Immigrants

Immigration has long been a contentious topic in American politics, often evoking strong emotions and heated debates about who “deserves” a place in the country. What’s striking—and frequently overlooked—is that some of the loudest critics of immigration are themselves the children of immigrants.

Take Kash Patel, for example. His parents, Premode (or Pramod) and Anjna Patel, were Gujarati Indian immigrants who had previously lived in Uganda and Tanzania before settling in New York. His father was a refugee who fled Idi Amin’s brutal regime in Uganda in 1972, seeking safety and opportunity in the United States. Similarly, Dr. Mehmet Oz was born to Turkish immigrants Mustafa and Suna Öz, who moved to the U.S. in pursuit of a better life. Even Donald Trump, a figure synonymous with anti-immigration rhetoric, is the son of Scottish-born Mary Anne MacLeod, who immigrated to the U.S., bringing her own story of courage and determination. Melania Trump adds another layer to this pattern, having been born in Yugoslavia before moving to America, and Marco Rubio’s parents fled Cuba in 1956 during the regime of Fulgencio Batista, years before Fidel Castro came to power, bringing with them the hopes and fears of those leaving their homeland behind.

The irony here is impossible to ignore. These individuals have all benefited directly from the opportunities, protections, and rights afforded to immigrants in the United States, yet some of them have used their platforms to support policies and rhetoric that demonize the very people who followed similar paths to theirs. It is a stark reminder of how personal history can be selectively embraced—celebrated when convenient, erased when inconvenient.

This contradiction underscores a larger trend in politics: the ability to dehumanize others while enjoying the fruits of one’s own immigrant lineage. Their stories illuminate a fundamental truth about America’s history and identity—it has always been shaped by people who came from elsewhere, seeking safety, stability, and the chance for a better life. Remembering that history is crucial, especially when immigration is wielded as a political weapon rather than recognized as the lifeblood of the nation.