Immigration Reform

Do not mistreat an alien or oppress him, for you were aliens in Egypt.
                                                             – Exodus 22:21

The Lord watches over the alien and sustains the fatherless and the widow...
                                                             – Psalm 146:9


It's past time for me to weigh in on this issue that seems to have gripped the emotions of Americans of all persuasions. As usual, I will attempt to view the issue in light of the Scripture, and thereby draw conclusions that will be unpopular. Amen.

Some years ago I published an essay on Social Security in which I explained the demographic reason why the United States needs immigrants (short answer: we aborted 1/3 of the next generation). The only factor that has changed since that time is that now, all of a sudden, the media and everyone else seems to be talking about it.

I believe the source of the "problem" of immigration is the same source of all of our problems, that is, sin: specifically, the sins of avarice, pride, fear, and hatred. I'd like to view the present situation in light of these, and propose a radical approach: Open borders, subject to security, and offer amnesty for those who are in the country illegally but are willing to obey our laws.

Yes, amnesty. The "A" word. The politically unpalatable word. Since I'm not running for political office, I can say it. Amnesty, amnesty, amnesty. So there. But I would like to elaborate, so kindly keep reading.

Why do we care how many people – mostly those from Mexico and Central America – enter the country?

Perhaps the loudest argument we hear is that "those Mexicans will steal our jobs because they work cheaply." Observe Sin #1, Avarice. My response: Cheap labor produces corporate profits, which produces capital investment, which produces more jobs, including "better" jobs. In case no one has noticed, we don't manufacture much here anymore, and one of the culprits (but not the only one) has been expensive labor. So, let the jobs issue go. It's a non-starter.

A second argument against amnesty is that "those people have broken the law by being here, so they are criminals." Right - they are criminals. The city where we used to live had a speed limit of 25. Painful, yes. Most people dealt with the pain by … breaking the law! I would estimate the average speed in town at about 35. So before we talk about getting tough on criminals, we ought to acknowledge that that is what most of us are. When we single out others for law enforcement, while we ourselves break the law, we're practicing at Sin #2, pride.

Now, if you just backed up five paragraphs to see what the next sin was, go to the head of the class (if you dare) for that sin is Fear. Xenophobia describes this sin quite well. We are afraid of those foreigners, whose native language we do not understand and whose customs we really do not wish to understand. Further, their skin is darker than most of ours, and who can keep beat to their rhythms? Yes, looks like the race card, except that I'm a conservative white person. What shall we say to fear? Perhaps my old essay from the waning days of the last century will raise a few good points. But fear is also a sin. Jesus commanded us not to fear.

Finally we come to Sin #4, hatred. The Bible says so much about this that I'll leave you to look it up for yourself. But if you're not sure where to start, a good place would be 1 John Chapter 4. It says if we say we love God but hate our brother then we are liars. Jesus has called us to love others. He said that if we will do that, then the world will understand clearly that God has sent Jesus, His Son, into the world to be our Savior. And what could be more important and gratifying than that?

Enough talk about sin. How about some practical ideas for slowing down what could become a serious problem for both the US and Mexico? Here are a few:

* Some states have enacted laws, for reasons that are arguably political, that would seem to give illegal immigrants more rights than American citizens have. These, including those of my own state, California, need to be eliminated, as ultimately they will result in resentment and possible rebellion among the citizenry. They are irresistable to border-crashers.

* Establish a serious, temporary police presence at the Mexican border. I don't mean militias and I don't mean shoot-on-sight. These should act as a repellent and a source of information for would-be immigrants. We should make it known that the United States still desires the huddled masses of the world, but they will be received on our terms. When the word spreads that there is a realistic hope of a future in America, then the problem of illegal aliens should be greatly lessened. We cannot seal our borders entirely. The border between the US and Canada stretches over 5,526 miles of difficult terrain and climate. We will not post 500,000 military personnel at that border to ensure security.

* Controlled amnesty for the rest, for at least three reasons. First, there is no practical way to arrest and deport 12-15,000,000 illegals who are already here, many of whom have jobs and families in the US. Second, a controlled system would involve identifying and legitimizing those who are already here, thus dealing with the issue of national security: Register by such-and-such date or you become one of a very smaller number of criminals with whom we will deal seriously. Third, these people would begin paying taxes on their wages, including Social Security, helping to address another problem looming for the nation.

* After the amnesty period, arrest anyone who has not complied with the law, period. By this time, enforcing the law will no longer be as unacceptable for immigrant Americans as it would be now.