Nov. 5, 2007
Illegal immigration is undoubtedly a politically-charged, albeit extremely emotional issue that continues to be the subject of intense debate in the legislative halls, political campaigns, community circles and the blogosphere. In the news media, it is an issue that presents various standards and practice in the naming convention as it relates to subject individuals. What is the correct terminology to describe these individuals? Among commonly-used terms are: "illegal alien," "illegal immigrant," "undocumented immigrant," "unauthorized immigrant," "unlawful immigrant," "asylum seeker."
Wikipedia, the largest multilingual free-content encyclopedia on the Internet, has joined the debate with proposed guidelines for the use of these terms.
Read the arguments and add your own. Comment on the Members Only forum (you need your 5-digit membership ID). If you do not remember your number, please call (415) 346-2051 and the Administrative Assistant will assist you. Or send email to National@aaja.org.