Musings on Immigration

One of the striking things about reading hundreds of newspaper articles about "immigration reform" with thousands of quotes from politicians is the amazing misuse of words and phrases that form an essential part of the debate.  To aid you in your understanding of the immigration reform debate, here are definitions of the key words and phrases, as used by the different side,s on this very important issue. Word/Phrase                                    Immigration Reform The Senate Immigration Bill DACA/Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals DREAMers Amnesty Border Security “Back of the Line” E-Verify ...

I was at church on Sunday when a fellow parishioner decided to engage me on the Arizona anti-immigration Law. His main point was this: ”it is exactly like federal law.” When I explained to him that it was not actually “exactly” like federal law and that in fact there is no federal law allowing for racial profiling and arresting people because they look “illegal,” he would not believe me (keep in mind, we are at church). I have heard repeatedly over the last month, from folks who may have read the Arizona law, but who have NOT read the federal law, that the Arizona law is somehow nothing more than an extension of what the Federal government already does. Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, the Arizona law is classic Kris Kobach. When he worked in the Attorney General’s office under Ashcroft, he took Section 263 of the INA (written as part of the Alien Registration Act of 1940 — this law is how we put thousands of Japanese into internment camps), and turned it into “...

One of my favorite movie lines is from “ The Princess Bride .” Vizzini, the mastermind behind the kidnapping of Princess Buttercup, upon seeing the Man in Black pursuing them keeps repeating the word “inconceivable.” Finally, Inigo Montoya, one of of Vizzini’s then assistants says: “You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.” That simple statement applies to so much in the immigration law world that it is hard to even define situations where it does not apply. Much of what we deal with is really about our perception of what the law is, not about what the law actually says. This is true for legislation and for court decisions. Today, this statement seemed more true than ever. I received an email from the Center for Immigration Studies, the anti-immigration “think tank,” promoting a new web program it is hosting on “Local Law Enforcement Authority to Check Immigration Status.” This email comes with this teaser: This program . . . “discusses a recent court ...

This week’s national elections brought home a very simple fact. The American People have, for a third election cycle, once again rejected Anti-Immigration candidates. Hate simply does not sell in America, and the Anti-Immigrationists only peddle hate. Frank Sharry and the folks at America’s Voice, issued a press release today confirming what many of us already suspected, Latinos came out strongly for President-Elect Obama and the Democrats. The key demographic came out so strongly not because they inherently believe all that Democrats espouse, but rather because the Republican party, the party most Latinos would culturally and philosophically be more drawn to, rejected them, classified them as “illegal” and law breakers, and literally chased them away and lost them, perhaps for a generation or more. Anti-Immigrationists, who tragically have found a home in the Republican party, can say they are only talking about “illegal aliens” and that they love legal immigrants, but the realit...