my response to op-ed, "immigration is not a magic bullet for regional economic development"

7/30/2019 My Response to Op-Ed, "Immigration Is not a Magic Bullet for Regional Economic Development"

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I think Sanda Kaufman, Ph.D., professor of Planning, Policy, and Public

Administration at Cleveland State University, is a brilliant scholar , an immigrant

success story, and a well-intentioned, kindred spirit.

But Im not quite sure what to make ofher Op-Ed,Immigration Is Not MagicBullet for Regional Economic Development,in todays Plain Dealer, which

appears to be supporting the Mayors comments and immigration policies, or lack

thereof.

First, the piece states:

A decade ago, Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson's task force on

immigration approached the Maxine Goodman Levin College of

Urban Affairs at Cleveland State University for data and

analysis to help city officials explore immigration as a means of

growth for the city. Based on our research, we concluded that

investing public resources to attract immigrants is not a magic

bullet for regional economic development. In fact, it might not be

a wise use of scarce public resources on which to pin hopes for

rebuilding the city.

As far as I can tell, theresearchthat Dr. Kaufman conducted on immigration

and Cleveland was commissioned by in 2002 and published in May, 2003.

Frank Jackson was not Mayor. Jane Campbell occupied City Hall. JaneCampbell convened an immigration task force, not Frank Jackson.

Second, Dr. Kaufman favorably refers to the Frank Jacksons controversial

immigration-related comments that were made at his recent State of the City

address.. She writes:

Given Cleveland's current population makeup, a strategy aiming to

rapidly grow immigrant communities may be an uphill battle; it will

not significantly bolster the economy in the short run. As with alldevelopment efforts, do not think of immigrants as a quick fix to the

city's or region's population decline..Since we can't afford to wastescarce public resources, we have to hope that decision makers' mental

models of where immigrants choose to go match reality and aresupported by data. It is important to make the best use of what we

have, know what we are reasonably likely to attain, manage resources
http://www.cleveland.com/opinion/index.ssf/2013/05/immigration_is_not_a_magic_bul.htmlhttp://www.cleveland.com/opinion/index.ssf/2013/05/immigration_is_not_a_magic_bul.htmlhttp://www.cleveland.com/opinion/index.ssf/2013/05/immigration_is_not_a_magic_bul.htmlhttp://www.cleveland.com/opinion/index.ssf/2013/05/immigration_is_not_a_magic_bul.htmlhttp://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:rrEZXjdCNEUJ:citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download%3Fdoi%3D10.1.1.202.4844%26rep%3Drep1%26type%3Dpdf+&cd=3&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=ushttp://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:rrEZXjdCNEUJ:citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download%3Fdoi%3D10.1.1.202.4844%26rep%3Drep1%26type%3Dpdf+&cd=3&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=ushttp://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:rrEZXjdCNEUJ:citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download%3Fdoi%3D10.1.1.202.4844%26rep%3Drep1%26type%3Dpdf+&cd=3&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=ushttp://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:rrEZXjdCNEUJ:citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download%3Fdoi%3D10.1.1.202.4844%26rep%3Drep1%26type%3Dpdf+&cd=3&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=ushttp://www.cleveland.com/opinion/index.ssf/2013/05/immigration_is_not_a_magic_bul.htmlhttp://www.cleveland.com/opinion/index.ssf/2013/05/immigration_is_not_a_magic_bul.html


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effectively and measure success in quality-of-life terms rather thanjust changes in population size.

Taking care of our own, no matter their origin or ethnicity, is a

good first step toward attracting others. Then, if and when neededimmigration reform occurs, we will be better positioned to

welcome any groups who want to call Cleveland home.

For some reason, the link on Frank Jackons phrase taking care of our

own phrase, takes the reader tothis plain dealer pagewhich contains

no relevant information, instead ofthis plain dealer pagewhich contains

criticism from Brian Tucker (editor of Crains), Dan Moulthrop, myself,

and others, of Mayor Frank Jacksons statements, policies and inactionon immigration related issues.

Rather than supporting Frank Jacksons statement (and record on the issue), many

people were perplexed by his response to a question from the audience on whether

Cleveland should embrace the immigration-based economic development

strategies being touted by a growing chorus of mayors or other elected officials in

Philadelphia, Baltimore, Dayton, Detroit, St. Louis, Indianapolis, and elsewhere.

Folks shouldnt have been surprised.

Frank Jackson has said this many times before. This was published in

Immigrant, Inc. in 2009, by Robert Smith and myself, reprinted in thePlain

Dealer:

An aversion to immigrants permeated the region's political

leadership and peaked at City Hall. Mayor Frank Jackson

dismissed suggestions that the city try to attract immigrants to

revive inner city neighborhoods that were mostly black and poor.

Jackson, a multi-racial mayor who identified most strongly with

his African American roots, told civic groups he did not trust

immigrants to help his people.
http://www.cleveland.com/cityhall/index.ssf/2013/03/cleveland_mayor_frank_jackson_18.htmlhttp://www.cleveland.com/cityhall/index.ssf/2013/03/cleveland_mayor_frank_jackson_18.htmlhttp://www.cleveland.com/cityhall/index.ssf/2013/03/cleveland_mayor_frank_jackson_18.htmlhttp://www.cleveland.com/cityhall/index.ssf/2013/03/cleveland_mayor_frank_jackson_18.htmlhttp://www.cleveland.com/cityhall/index.ssf/2013/03/cleveland_mayor_frank_jackson_18.htmlhttp://www.cleveland.com/tipoff/index.ssf/2013/03/cleveland_mayor_frank_jackson_2.htmlhttp://www.cleveland.com/tipoff/index.ssf/2013/03/cleveland_mayor_frank_jackson_2.htmlhttp://www.cleveland.com/tipoff/index.ssf/2013/03/cleveland_mayor_frank_jackson_2.htmlhttp://www.cleveland.com/opinion/index.ssf/2010/04/attracting_immigrants_to_revit.htmlhttp://www.cleveland.com/opinion/index.ssf/2010/04/attracting_immigrants_to_revit.htmlhttp://www.cleveland.com/opinion/index.ssf/2010/04/attracting_immigrants_to_revit.htmlhttp://www.cleveland.com/opinion/index.ssf/2010/04/attracting_immigrants_to_revit.htmlhttp://www.cleveland.com/opinion/index.ssf/2010/04/attracting_immigrants_to_revit.htmlhttp://www.cleveland.com/opinion/index.ssf/2010/04/attracting_immigrants_to_revit.htmlhttp://www.cleveland.com/tipoff/index.ssf/2013/03/cleveland_mayor_frank_jackson_2.htmlhttp://www.cleveland.com/cityhall/index.ssf/2013/03/cleveland_mayor_frank_jackson_18.htmlhttp://www.cleveland.com/cityhall/index.ssf/2013/03/cleveland_mayor_frank_jackson_18.html


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If someone else wanted to try to draw immigrants to Cleveland, "I

will not be against it," Jackson told The Plain Dealer in early

2009. "However, as we move ahead, I'm always interested in the

self-help mode, in taking care of our own."

Apart, from his words, his actions over the last 7 years also tell the story.

Starting with his treatment of the Somali and Ethiopian-owned taxi companies who

were excluded from working at the Hopkins Airport, failure to hire immigrants in

significant positions at City Hall, and extending to his disinterest to implement

immigrant-friendly policies at City Hall, the Mayors actions have spoken volumes

on his view of immigrants and their role in Clevelands economic, political andcivic circles.

Rather than try to unite the city and lead this discussion on diversity, inclusion and

global competitiveness, the Mayor has run away from the challenge. And the city

has suffered and fallen behind other cities which are now growing.

Dr. Kaufman argues that people-based strategies are key to attracting the

immigrants most likely to come to Cleveland. It is true, as Dr. Kaufman point out,

that immigrants coming to cities like Cleveland are often drawn by personalrelationships.

I couldnt agree more. Taking care of the immigrants we have, supporting them,

celebrating them, connecting and integrating them into our community is key.

When they are comfortable and successful, their family and friends will follow.

But I respectfully disagree with Dr. Kaufmans recent piece that seems to suggest

that because resources are scarce, we shouldnt be investing so much in people-

based strategies.

I believe that the creation of an immigrant-friendly city will not happen

organically, at least not within the next few generations. For it to happen in the

next 10 years, we will need to make a big push for raising awareness on why

immigration is important to Cleveland, on changing attitudes, on policies of

inclusion at all levels of local government, corporations, foundations, etc.


4/7

This will take tremendous civic investments --- not so much in financial capital,

but in leadership and political capital.

In fact, Dr. Kaufmans 2003 paperImmigration and Urban Development:

Immigrations for Greater Cleveland, (funded by Ruth Ratner Miller Center forGreater Clevelands Future) suggests that a robust effort be embraced to create a

welcoming environment for new immigrants to Cleveland:

Therefore, the challenge for the Cleveland region is to designstrategies that compete successfully with other cities that are

positioned to attract immigration, as well as enable Cleveland to target

those immigrant groups with the highest likelihood of succeeding attheir new location, either because of their skills matching local

demand or because existing immigrant communities might assist intheir absorption.

A key component of such strategies is to help build the socialnetworks that immigrants are known to favor in order to ease the

transition to their country of adoption. To this end, severalcomplementary streams of action should be considered:

Learn from the experience of larger immigration magnets about

absorption services local governments can offer, focusing on thosemost likely to assist newcomers and become an incentive for

choosing of the Cleveland region.

Capitalize on already-existing immigrant communities in the

region and assist them in becoming adept at welcoming

newcomers by strengthening existing nonprofits and private local

initiatives to attract immigrants from specific countries.

Education efforts, whether government-initiated or sponsored

by non-profit and private groups, are necessary to alleviate the

inevitable tensions created by the arrival to a region of people

with different languages and cultures.

It seems that once the seeds of such efforts are planted, they have atendency to snowball as positive experiences with intercultural
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contacts lead the local population to be more welcoming of

immigrants and, in turn, become incentives for newcomers to come tothe region seeking the positive climate, and the advantages of

developed social networks

On this point, Dr. Kaufman is right on the money! But the Mayor has done none

of this. And, in fact, talks of going the other way.

Our current Mayor is not willing to expend financial or political capital to do this.

(heck, he wouldnt even sign the sister-city agreement last month with the mayor

of Zhongshan, China, a city of 5 million people, the LED capital of the world,

despite nearly 2 million dollars flowing from Zhongshan into Clevelanddevelopment project, despite affluent families in Zhongshan sending their kids to

Catholic High School in Cleveland, and despite the roots of many Chinese-

Americans in Greater Cleveland in the Guandong Province. An embarrassing

moment for the Cleveland business/political/education/cultural trade mission last

month )

As a result, others are less likely to enter the discussion or take leadership roles.

For example, Cleveland is losing a tremendous opportunity right now, in not

aggressively advocating for region-based visas (or high skilled immigration

zones) as part of the immigration reform discussion in D.C. For more on the

policy adopted by the Great Lakes Metro Chambers (30 chambers from Chicago to

Pittsburgh), see

http://greatlakesmetrochambers.com/PPA_FederalImmigrationPolicy.aspx.

http://www.theatlanticcities.com/politics/2013/05/insanely-clear-cut-case-

region-based-immigration-visas/5475/

In fact, the Great Lakes Metro Chamber immigration policy was drafted out of

Cleveland. But Cleveland business leaders will not push this kind of creative,

progressive, gamechaging proposal unless there is serious commitment on the

ground in Cleveland. Which doesnt yet exist. In part because of a vacuum of

leadership and in part because of indifference or opposition.
http://greatlakesmetrochambers.com/PPA_FederalImmigrationPolicy.aspxhttp://greatlakesmetrochambers.com/PPA_FederalImmigrationPolicy.aspxhttp://www.theatlanticcities.com/politics/2013/05/insanely-clear-cut-case-region-based-immigration-visas/5475/http://www.theatlanticcities.com/politics/2013/05/insanely-clear-cut-case-region-based-immigration-visas/5475/http://www.theatlanticcities.com/politics/2013/05/insanely-clear-cut-case-region-based-immigration-visas/5475/http://www.theatlanticcities.com/politics/2013/05/insanely-clear-cut-case-region-based-immigration-visas/5475/http://www.theatlanticcities.com/politics/2013/05/insanely-clear-cut-case-region-based-immigration-visas/5475/http://greatlakesmetrochambers.com/PPA_FederalImmigrationPolicy.aspx


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Another example of a missed opportunity, in part due to a vacuum of leadership

on the issue, is leveraging refugee resettlement programs funded by the U.S. State

Department. Minneapolis has attracted over 100,000 refugees in the last 20 years

which has boosted its tax base, home ownership and small business sector.

And Dr. Kaufmans study in 2003 recommended special outreach to Latino

immigrants, particularly Mexican. Nothing out of City Hall, other than Cinco de

Mayo, seems to indicate buy-in or even casual interest from Frank Jackson.

But, all is not doom and gloom. There are plenty of small things happening. We

dont have to wait, or plan new research papers or books to make the case.

The economic case has been made for the global city.

What has to happen is to win the hearts and minds of the community. A newconversation built on trust, intercultural alliances, and friendship needs to happen.

The key is raise awareness and demonstrate that economic growth is not a zero

sum game.

Cleveland, it seems, has struggled with this issue for over 10 years. Much money

and time has been expended. The academics, PR whizzes, the politicians, the

lawyers, have all taken their stab at it. Its time to take the conversation to the

people.

But it is also critical that corporate and willing-political leadership join this

conversation.

This is why a group of us are working on establishing Welcoming Cleveland ---- a

grassroots, people-driven conversation to encourage intercultural alliances between

African Americans, Latinos and Immigrants, welcoming them and connecting

them to Cleveland.

For us, its not about building an immigrant city, or a black or white city. Itsabout building a multicultural, global city--- and ensuring that prosperity is

equitably shared.

We are applying to be an affiliate ofWelcomingAmerica.
http://www.welcomingamerica.org/http://www.welcomingamerica.org/http://www.welcomingamerica.org/http://www.welcomingamerica.org/


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Immigration-based economic development strategies have never been about being

a magic bullet. Those working on the issue know that immigration is a

supplement, not a substitute, to ensuring the education and readiness of the

American workforce.

Its about building the most powerful teams on the planet --- and competing to win.

Lets not shy away from this conversation ---- lets run toward it.

Join us!

my response to op-ed, "immigration is not a magic bullet for regional economic development"

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