November 15, 2007--Illegals

At the last debate among Democratic candidates Hillary Clinton got all tangled up in the issue that may very well determine no only who will become the nominee but also our next president. Much of the post-debate commentary was about how she flipped before she flopped before she flipped. Somewhat lost in the pundits’ tussle was where she actually stands on the issue itself—in this instance issuing versions of drivers licenses in New York to illegal immigrants. This, of course, was a surrogate for her meta-position on so-called illegals. Gotcha indeed.

While folks like me who depend on undocumented workers to bring me espresso in the morning and then wash the cup and saucer after I’m done, all across America, including in extra-liberal New York, most people are raging about the question. And this is not just one of Karl Rove’s famous wedge issues designed to mobilize right-wing voters by pandering to their fears and prejudices as well as distract them from the mess we’ve made in the Middle East. It cuts deep among, it seems, almost everyone. Fully 70% of New Yorkers, for example, disapproved of their governor’s plan to make these licenses available and thus yesterday he dropped it. To Hillary’s and every other Democrat’s relief. They know how to count and want to win in 2008. (See NY Times article linked below.)

My snideness aside, this is truly a tough one. There are at least 10 million illegal immigrants in the country and more are arriving every day. Pretty much everyone agrees, including those most vocal on the subject, that the American economy requires them. To clean up after me in Balthazar every morning, to mow our lawns, as aides to our aging parents, to pick our lettuce. In other words to do much of the work that “real Americans” wouldn’t do even if we offered them $10 an hour. To help put this in perspective, do you personally know any 18 year-olds who want to wash dishes?

But then do we want to just say that even though we know you broke the law to get here we’ll forget that and put you on a fast-track to become citizens while ignoring all the others who are waiting on line to fill out applications, and then wait years more, to emigrate legally?

It’s not a sufficient argument to say that we are “a nation of immigrants” or that our grandparents or great-grandparents came here and worked in sweatshops until they dropped so we could go to school because most came here legally and more-or-less played by the rules, harsh though they certainly were. And it is not enough to recall that previous waves of immigrants also faced withering discrimination. Or that, since we are the beneficiaries of our families somehow managing to endure and overcome this, we should in turn be more understanding and tolerant about their successors who after all want the very same thing for their children.

Our history is full of stories about the No-Nothings’ racist claims and opposition to certain kinds of immigrants who were often seen to be less-than-human. Especially during hard economic times or periods of national fear. Sound familiar?

Though it may be all too familiar, still there are the 10-15 million who are here illegally. And like it or not, what to do about them is becoming an increasingly incendiary issue in the campaign. As Hillary Clinton found out, touch it even casually and you get helplessly stuck to it.

At the risk of getting equally ensnared, I suggest we consider doing three things:

First, shouldn’t we do a better job of keeping people from entering the country illegally? As the Republicans say, “secure our borders”? As most of us feel, to make us feel and actually be more secure?

Second, essentially linked to the next suggestion, as unfeeling as this may seem, shouldn’t we make a real effort to find and send home as many undocumented immigrants as we can? For a couple of reasons—to uphold and demonstrate the importance of obeying the law; and to make it less attractive to come here illegally;

And, third, coupled with this, make it much, much easier to come here legally—no more endless waiting. Since we need low-skilled workers now, and the contributions that their children will subsequently make to our economy and country, and since we would want to replace those who we deport, this should be a priority as well as a statement about what America, at its best, is about.

You know--“Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to be free . . .” Remember that? Though it may sound a little dated, it’s still a stunning concept.