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Written by Simon
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Tuesday, 21 April 2009 |
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In a book published in October 2006: Deporting Our Souls.... Values,
Morality and Immigration Policy, Bill Ong Hing makes a very strong case
for a much more humane immigration policy in the United States.
Hing who is on the faculty at UC Davis Law School argues that we
need a new approach to immigration: "My solution is simple." He writes.
"Calm down. Welcome undocumented workers...." His is a refreshing voice
in a storm of fear. He uses lots of examples showing how the US's past
immigration policy has mistreated people. He also shows how
applications of the same policies are effecting people today. One
example he uses is how Operation Gatekeeper, which sealed the border
near El Paso drove the migrants into the Arizona desert where thousands
have died.
His argument for immigration is not the ethics argument used by the
Radical Immigration movement, that humans have the basic right to
migrate as long as they are not an undue burden on the place they
settle. He argues that we should allow immigration because it is the
compassionate thing to do, that we have a responsibility to others
wherever they live and that immigration is good for all of us. He does
not argue for, in the words of Bruce Ackerman, "an immigrant's prima
facie right to demand entry into a liberal state." Hing believes that
the US can make better rules for immigrants and the problem can be
solved.
The book ends with these lines: ". we should fully embrace
newcomers in our midst with open arms, for they are our neighbors and,
in a real sense, our own collective relatives." His is a welcome
sentiment in a sea of anger.
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Last Updated ( Friday, 12 June 2009 )
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