Amidst the terrifying state of immigration under the current administration, it appears that some view the best way forward is with casually cruel and blatantly insensitive mockery: the kind you would only find on a reality show.
Recently, reports began to circulate of a competition show being pitched to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), whose premise involved immigrant contestants competing for a chance at sped-up citizenship. According a The Daily Mail article, Kristi Noem, the Secretary of Homeland Security, allegedly backed the show and is actively attempting to accrue votes for it.
DHS spokeswoman, Tricia McLaughlin, profusely denied claims of Noem’s support and the proposition’s own popularity. “This is completely false,” McLaughlin said of The Daily Mail’s reporting. “Secretary Noem has not ‘backed’ nor is even aware of the pitch of any scripted or reality show.” According to McLaughlin, the DHS receives hundreds of pitches annually for media content reflecting the state of immigration. She assured that each pitch goes through a strict vetting process. However, despite her adamant denial of Noem’s support for the show, McLaughlin acknowledged that the show has been pitched to the DHS and is currently in the process of review. “This proposal has not received approval or rejection by staff,” she said. It’s “in the very beginning stages of that vetting process.”
Whether Noem herself has backed the proposal is not quite clear; however, the pitch itself is not exactly a hoax, as the show’s creative director has spoken out about his vision. Rob Worsoff, a reality TV vet who was behind shows such as “The Biggest Loser,” “Duck Dynasty,” and “The Millionaire Matchmaker,” provided CNN with a description of the proposal, as well as portions of a pitch deck. According to Worsoff, the show is titled “The American,” and will feature contestants who are also aspiring US citizens currently “in-line” at immigration. The idea is for them to travel across the country, competing in a series of challenges—the heritage challenge, elimination challenge, a town hall meeting, and the final vote—which all culminate in the winner being sworn into citizenship at the Capitol.
The idea is painfully superficial and flippant towards one of the gravest issues in America today. However, Worsoff brazenly insists on the show’s sincere purpose. “Contestants will represent a wide demographic of ages, ethnicities, and talents. We’ll join in the laughter, tears, frustration and joy, hearing their backstories,” he claimed, “as we are reminded of how amazing it is to be American, through the eyes of 12 wonderful people who want nothing more than to have what we have, and what we often take for granted: the freedom, opportunity and honor of what it means to be American.”
Furthermore, Worsoff assures that the show will not pit contestants against each other in a cut-throat manner akin to The Hunger Games, which many people have begun to equate the concept to. “This isn’t ‘The Hunger Games’ for immigrants,” he said. “This is not, ‘Hey, if you lose, we are shipping you out on a boat out of the country.’”
The ignorance of this statement is palpable and the very reason why even the concept of the show—whether Noem or others are adamantly supporting it—is reflective of just how direly warped America’s understanding of immigration is. According to NBC News, since the Trump administration has come into power, “data shows border crossings have plummeted, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrests have doubled, and the number of people in detention is at an all-time high.” Per the report, ICE deported 11,000 migrants in February, just over 12,300 in the first four weeks of March, and approximately 17,200 in April. People are being snatched off of the street against their will, their whereabouts made a mystery.
Worsoff claims that the show is inspirational, making the wondrous dream of American citizenship a source of bonding entertainment. In reality, this show, like the lives of many immigrants struggling to gain citizenship, is about survival. And that is not something that we should be laughing along to through a TV screen.
