Policy of Humanity

I was privileged to have an opportunity to speak at a San Francisco Immigration Summit in the Fall. I shared the stage with Mayor Gavin Newsom, and SF Board of Supervisors Tom Amiano and Aaron Peskin. These were my remarks:

We are a nation of immigrants, but we are also a nation that loves to debate immigration policy.  And in that debate we should realize that something is terribly is wrong when we have an enforcement policy that results in people dying at the border at a rate of one human being per day. “Operation Gatekeeper” was established under the Clinton administration under a theory that if we closed off the easiest parts of the border to cross that would be an effective deterrent.  However, they continued to come, trying to cross at the most dangerous parts of the border, and they began dying – in the hottest parts of the Arizona desert during the summer and in the freezing mountains during the winter months along the Southern California mountains. Something is wrong when we know that a human being will die because of an enforcement policy.

There is also something terribly wrong when two volunteer college students in the Tucson area were arrested for transporting undocumented aliens, simply for trying to save the lives of human beings who were dying on the dessert by taking them to the emergency room in a van clearly marked “No More Deaths.”  There is something wrong in Richmond, California, and Santa Fe, New Mexico, when ICE agents entrap immigrant parents at bus stops as they drop their children off to school and interrogate them about their immigrant status.

Something is wrong when longtime, lawful residents of the United States who have grown up in Chinatown, the Mission District of San Francisco and the Fruitvale District of Oakland, who are products of our society and their environment and who may have committed a crime or joined a gang, are deported without a process that includes the opportunity to express remorse  or a chance at rehabilitation.

Former President Carter has reminded us in a recent book, that our nation was premised on a policy of humanity. Yet, in my view that policy of humanity is missing when it comes to immigration policy and enforcement in the United States. What would a policy of humanity contribute to the immigration debate?  Such a policy would foremost recognize that undocumented immigrants contribute to our economy, as well as to our social lives. It would recognize that granting legalization to undocumented would in fact help our national security. It would recognize that those individuals arrested and convicted of a crime deserve a second chance—an opportunity to rehabilitate. It would recognize that the family reunification categories, that were excoriated in last summer’s version of the Senate immigration bill, are actually good for America, that family immigration is the bedrock of our country, and that family values are American values not just Democratic or Republican values, but values on which our society is built. It would recognize that NAFTA, globalization and the discrepancies in economies in developing nations explains much of the migration flows to the United States.

We have a choice of two Americas, one narrow and one broad. One is close-minded, resistant to continuing changes, breeding tension and violence. The other is one that embraces change and encourages integration in the hopes of building a stronger community and brighter future.

The choice we make tells us a lot about ourselves. The experiment that we call America is a test of our character and willingness to believe that we can have an engaged community that is caring and diverse. Showing compassion and fairness in our immigration policies is not a sign of weakness, but of strength. Immigration policies based on humanity demonstrate confidence in the rule of law and in a system of government that metes out punishment fairly, and understands that regulating the lives of those who seek to live within our borders must be pondered with the utmost compassion, dignity, and understanding.

As in previous generations there is much to be admired in individuals who are seeking freedom and a better life. Whether they are fleeing persecution or seeking a better life, the newcomers of today are not much different from those of the past. Once here, welcoming newcomers and understanding the challenges they will be facing are imperative. As they become an integral part of our neighborhoods and communities, some will make mistakes, but we would do well to remember that providing a second chance, offering opportunity for rehabilitation and opening avenues for redemption are the essential building blocks upon which civil society is constructed. 

Such a social policy will undoubtedly benefit individuals, however, the social benefits will be exponential if applied collectively and consistently. When an individual finally turns the corner and assumes the responsibility of being a fully contributing member, the whole community reaps enduring social and economic benefits.

Thus, when it comes to the treatment of our fellow human beings who have crossed boundaries into our territory, we should be mindful of the social and economic forces that impel them to risk the treacherous journey across the border.  There’s a reason why Chinese immigrants in the 1800’s referred to the United States as Gold Mountain. These immigrants initially were lured by the discovery of gold, but eventually the attraction of gold became a metaphor not to be underestimated for the vast social and cultural, as well as economic, opportunities that the new world presented.

We are in this together.  Let us welcome the migrant workers, documented or undocumented, into membership because we have recruited them here and will continue to benefit from their labor. Give the convicted undocumented individual who has resided here since infancy a second chance to escape their inner city environment.  Embrace the cultural and economic contributions of social kinship that immigrants bring with them to the country. Recognize that reaching out to and incorporating newcomers advances the national security. Welcome the newcomer into the civic life of our society so that he or she can fully contribute to the community. This is how we continue to build our nation of immigrants. This is how it’s done, in a just, humane, moral, and intelligent manor. It is through enacting just and humane laws, informed by a policy of humanity, that we will open new avenues of reconciliation, community, and national unity.

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