I belong to a group on Facebook called "No human is illegal." I believe this to be true for several reasons, the most apt being that I can't find a moral reason to try to exclude a race or class status because it doesn't fit into my "standard" of being legal. Legal is what we decide it to be, not something that is dictated by some great Moral Code that we've always held so dear. An article (from the Austin Chron) in the group that I hadn't noticed before does a much better job of making summation of this thought I hold dear, by relating Lubbock in 1973 to Lubbock today.
I would hope that American society would continue to awaken, that it would continue to shed the bonds of intolerance and racism. Ultimately, the people who are the most intolerant will become the minority, either by idea or by sheer populace.
Let us consider Lubbock, Texas.1973, January through September, I lived in Lubbock – not a resident, a drifter, taking my time passing through. The Lubbockians I got to know all were Texans, mostly born and raised in Lubbock. Ethnically, most were some mixture of Anglo-Saxon-Celt, often with Cherokee stirred in a few generations back. Many traced their American ancestry to well before the Civil War. As for Lubbock – socially (to state the obvious and put it mildly), Anglo-Saxon-Celts, Hispanics, and African-Americans did not mix much and tended to keep to their own neighborhoods (the Anglo-Saxon-Celt neighborhood being most of Lubbock). Once or twice, at the Cotton Club, I saw an African-American male dancing with an Anglo-Saxon-Celt female; I admired his guts and feared for his safety. The only Jew I was aware of was the Long Island-born friend who'd driven me here, and she didn't stay long. Lubbock's cuisine in those days was limited – lots of Texan diner food, some Mexican, a Chinese restaurant, an Italian restaurant, and that was about it. Back then, Lubbock bragged about having the most Christian churches per capita of any city in the world. (Was it true? I never knew.) And all the Texans had Texas accents.
(Footnote: My newfound friends were – and are – among the smartest, most original, generous, multitalented people I've known. They changed my life. Long story.)
It's 35 years later, and I've been a Lubbock resident for three-plus years. Lubbock has changed. To understand America today, one must understand the scope of that change.
Oh how I wish to achieve this sort of eloquence after more years.
Comments
i read this back in December, and i still have mixed feelings about. while i dont want to get into my beliefs, i really don't agree with you or the facebook group you're in.
i have a Mexican grandfather who came here to America, and did what he needed to do to become "legal." and because of this, i don't agree with the people who are sneaking in and cheating the system. they are undermining what my grandfather and countless other immigrants have worked hard for, and I simply don't think it's fair.
Posted by: whitney at February 2, 2008 03:30 PM
The America your grandfather came to was much different than it is today. Open-door policies are gone. From what I read, it's damn near impossible to receive citizenship if born in Mexico.
Your argument is more apples to oranges; what I mean is that you can't compare 50+ years ago to today. It's a completely different world.
To say someone doesn't have a right to be here is antithetical to the whole basis of American freedom. I don't understand how anyone can think otherwise. We have as much "right" to be here as anyone else, but what we don't have is the moral duty to tell others they are not welcome. That's just ignorance.
Posted by: regan at February 4, 2008 11:40 AM
I totally agree with Whitney. Her grandfather, and my boyfriend's mother, and other like people, have gone to great effort and expense to abide by the rules of the nation in which they have chosen to live. It's not fair of other people to take the cheap, sneaky route. If they can't afford or otherwise manage to do it the right way, I'm sorry, but that is not America's problem.
The people are not "illegal" because we just arbitrarily want to call them that. They are squatting in a nation which has specific laws against what they have done, and those laws exist to protect our nation's economy, security, and sovereignty. People who violate those laws deserve to be prosecuted.
Also, do you know what Mexico does to people who try to immigrate from Guatemala and Honduras, through to the US? You should check that out sometime.
Posted by: jill at February 4, 2008 12:19 PM
I paid almost 40% income tax last year to provide medical care to people who don't pay any.
If that ain't illegal, it oughta be.
Posted by: Hoover at February 4, 2008 07:02 PM
While laws may be in place to protect our nation's economy, security, and sovereignty, I don't find them to be the most compelling ethical framework for the human journey (or biblical one if that's the particular rhythm you follow). I'm much more interested in communal integrity and the common good.
Posted by: James Orr at February 7, 2008 12:56 AM