Chloe Kim’s Gold Medal Win Causes Focus on Immigration Debate

Chloe Kim is America’s latest Winter Olympic star and this has caused the media to focus on the immigrant past of her father:

Seventeen-year-old Chloe Kim made headlines on Tuesday after she won gold at the 2018 Winter Olympics in the women’s snowboard halfpipe final with three incredible runs. And her devoted father has also found himself in the spotlight after his daughter’s spectacular show.

Jong Jin Kim watched from the grandstand at the base of the halfpipe with a sign that read “Go Chloe!” while shouting “American dream!” as his daughter made history.

Jong Jin Kim was an immigrant from South Korea who arrived in South Carolina in 1982 with just $800 to his name, reported CNN. His first job in America was a dishwasher at a fast-food restaurant before he graduated to cashier at a liquor store.

But had Kim’s family attempted to enter the U.S. under the administration of President Donald Trump, it is uncertain whether they would have been permitted.

During his January 31 State of the Union speech, Trump urged Congress to pass legislation that promotes “merit-based immigration,” describing it as a system that “admits people who are skilled, who want to work, who will contribute to our society.”  [Newsweek]

You can read more at the link, but clearly Mr. Kim wanted to work and contribute to society.  So the crux of the issue becomes he wasn’t a skilled worker when he entered the US.  While in the US he studied and became a skilled worker later.