The caravan of refugees and asylum seekers slowly winding its way through Mexico toward the United States has brought the immigration question to the forefront in the weeks preceding today’s mid-term elections. President Trump has seized upon the issue in his numerous campaign rallies and not only highlighted the need to keep borders secure, but also, has sent troops to the border to assist immigration officials.
On their part, Democrats have been adopting the position of their left-wing Progressive elements to oppose the President’s “nativist”, anti-immigration position. They are calling for “open” borders, unrestricted immigration, and the abolition of the Immigration Control Agency (ICE). Democrats claim that they are the party of compassion, while their opponents, motivated as they are by racism and white supremacy, are totally lacking in compassion.
Frankly, I fail to see compassion in those who exhort and encourage poor people from Central America to embark on a dangerous 1000-mile journey with their children in tow. It is dangerous enough for Mexicans to walk through their own country. I also suspect that these immigrants are being encouraged for motives that have little to do with their welfare. Consider how many Democrat candidates and their supporters in the media have been using the immigrants as a weapon in the campaigns.
It is true that the President has used the immigrant issue to rally his supporters but I believe that when he asked the people in the caravans to turn around and go home, he was actually showing more compassion than his critics. Just today an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal described the crowding and confusion even at legal entry sites, as well as the diseases picked up by immigrants on the journey.
Actually, I think the President could have gone even further. He could have offered to fly immigrants and their families directly into the USA. All they would need is a sponsor who would agree to care for them and provide for their basic needs for a period of years. I would like to suggest that compassionate liberals, especially the very well-to-do ones living in wealthy blue states, take it upon themselves to adopt or take in families of immigrants.
I am sure that compassionate liberals would jump at the opportunity to take care of the needy. People like Oprah Winfrey could certainly take in one than one family. Wealthy politicians like Dianne Feinstein, Nancy Pelosi, and Connecticut millionaire politicians like Richard Blumenthal and Rosa DeLauro would also jump at the opportunity. They could even send the immigrant children to the private schools their own children attended.
The President could even offer to fly the immigrants to sanctuary cities like San Francisco, New York, and New Haven in Connecticut. It would be less expensive than sending troops to the border, and take some of the pressure off the border states. There are certainly enough compassionate people in these ultra blue cities to take in, and care for caravans of immigrants. In New Haven, for example, the Yale Law school students who were able to take time off to travel to Washington to protest against the nomination of Judge Kavanaugh would certainly be willing to help.
I’m making the above suggestion with tongue in cheek but the more I think about it, the more I believe such a plan has roots in American history. When my grandparents came to the USA more than 100 years ago, the doors were open to immigrants, but there were some restrictions. Those with diseases were sent back at the expense of the shipping company that transported them over.
More importantly, on arrival, someone had to meet them and be willing to provide them with room and board as well as a job. Usually, it would be family members but sometimes potential employers had to provide jobs and housing for the immigrants. It was not the role of government. There were problems, of course, but history shows that this private, voluntary system was a huge success.
Even before during the colonial period the system of indentured servitude worked very well in bringing needed immigrants into the country and assimilating them. Immigrants would sign an agreement or indenture whereby they would work for someone for seven years. In effect, they were servants whose basic needs would be supplied by their employer. They were not slaves since they were free to move on after the indenture period was over.
There is no doubt in my mind that we need immigrants today. Even with all the legal and illegal immigrants that have entered over the past few decades, we still have virtually full employment. There are many jobs that Americans can’t or won’t take. Just the other day, the man who repaired the chimney on my house was from Honduras. His employer is the grandson of an Italian immigrant who came to the USA about the same time as my grandparents.
America is one of the few countries in the world that has an immigration problem. Most other countries have an emigration problem since their people are so willing to leave. If we work together, I believe that we could solve the problem but I don’t think it does any good to claim that those who disagree with your solution are lacking in compassion.
###
No comments:
Post a Comment