So said several participants in a panel discussion sponsored by New Jersey Policy Perspective in conjunction with the release of its report, “The Faces of Immigration in Mercer County.”
”We are creating a culture that pushes immigrants into the shadows of our communities then we are blaming immigrants for living in the shadows of our communities,” said Ryan Stark Lilienthal, a Princeton-based attorney who specializes in immigration.
While a national vision has taken root which views immigration, particularly undocumented individuals, “not only as a problem but as a crisis,” a different attitude prevails in Mercer County, with immigrants welcomed: “They are something we look forward to as growing our county,” said Mr. Lilienthal, who is also a board member of the New Jersey Immigration Policy Network.
