Park political bias and make immigration law right

By Dick Tunison

“In the first place we should insist that if the immigrant who comes here in good faith becomes an American and assimilates himself to us, he shall be treated on an exact equality with everyone else, for it is an outrage to discriminate against any such man because of creed, or birthplace, or origin. But this is predicated upon the man's becoming in very fact an American, and nothing but an American...There can be no divided allegiance here. Any man who says he is an American, but something else also, isn't an American at all. We have room for but one flag, the American flag, and this excludes the red flag, which symbolizes all wars against liberty and civilization, just as much as it excludes any foreign flag of a nation to which we are hostile...We have room for but one language here, and that is the English language...and we have room for but one sole loyalty and that is a loyalty to the American people." From a letter written by Theodore Roosevelt to the president of the American Defense Society on January 3, 1919.

I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty upset about the demonstrations in Los Angeles, Denver, and a few other cities, this past week. The temerity of many of the hoard who carried Mexican flags in the streets of America for the purpose showing their real allegiance simply rubs me the wrong way. By what stretch of the imagination do these demonstrators feel the right to show their disdain in this way, while decrying the absolute right of the United States Congress to conduct its business? Although I may not agree with the direction Congress may be heading, these demonstrators, many of whom are in this country illegally, have no right to complain at all.

The whole matter of foreign immigration is a complicated one and must be resolved for our mutual benefit, but 500,000 people agitating in the streets of Los Angeles for special treatment is an affront. As a sovereign nation we have the duty to protect our borders from foreign invasion. Currently, it’s estimated that a half million people cross our southern borders annually, most of them from Latin American countries. When they cross into this country illegally, they are acting as invaders, even though their intent may be benign. And when they demonstrate in the streets for special consideration, they become part of the problem rather than the solution. There are ways to immigrate legally. There is honor in doing so. Even though the requirements may seem cumbersome and time consuming, millions of other immigrants are patiently standing in line to do what the law requires.

We all remember when kids cut into lines at school or ducked under the fence to avoid the cost of a football game ticket. Such acts never brought much favor. And in my mind letting immigrants do the same thing is neither a mark of Christian charity nor is it fair to all those who believe in taking their turns.

To be sure, there is a need for a workforce that will fill jobs vital to our economy despite what some isolationists may argue. Job opportunities are not limited to domestic services and agriculture, and the like; they include science and engineering as well. Candidates for the latter categories are generally the ones who are following the rules.

For some reason, we have cast the victim’s net of “social injustice” over those who would fill the more menial jobs. For that reason we are urged to view their needs in a more compassionate light that pushes our sense of reason off kilter. Although there is a well defined economic demand for workers who would fill lower level jobs, the gates cannot be so porous as to allow aliens to steal their way into this country with impunity. Violating the law cannot be excused simply because jobs my be waiting.

The social justice advocates complain about low wages and hard working conditions often found where the illegal immigrants are employed. In doing so they let their utopian views cloud their understanding of basic economics. There is a natural value scale attached to work and tinkering with it in order to create some level of contrived equality for all, is both misguided and futile. In an effort to remedy this perceived injustice, many liberals, union leaders and ACLU members label lower level jobs demeaning and discriminatory. To the contrary, lower level jobs are legitimate and worthy of our respect, but filling them with illegal workers does not legitimize those who fill them.

We’re in a tough spot. When we find foreign governments complicit in breaking our laws by making it easier for their own citizens to cross our borders in order to alleviate their own political and economic pressures, we see an uneven playing field in action. We are certainly faced with a problem of great complexity that needs to be resolved soon. It has grown to a near explosive point since Lyndon Johnson defrocked the bracerro program in 1967. All reasonable solutions should be examined at the same time political biases are parked at the door.