THE IMMIGRATION DEBATE

The Rev. Dana Prom Smith, S.T.D., Ph.D. (7/7/10)

Years ago the cover of The New Yorker was an imaginary map of the United States with only the East Coast and the West Coast included and the Middle West and the West left out. The map reflects the mind of the federal government. If the BF’s oil gusher in the Gulf of Mexico has occurred in the Chesapeake Bay, Long Island Sound, and Cape Cod, the government’s response would have been far more effective. If the violence overflowing from Mexico into Arizona was taking place in either Maryland or Virginia, the National Guard wouldn’t be called up, the 101st Airborne would be sent in.

Of the U.S. Supreme Court nine justices, two came from Trenton, N.J., one from Buffalo, N.Y., one from Brooklyn, one from the Bronx, and the current nominee, Elena Kagan, from New York City. Two come from San Francisco and Sacramento. The New Yorker was on the button.

Coupled with that, the Arizona legislature and governor, playing Indians and cowboys, are making political capital out of Washington’s myopia by passing nasty legislation that appeals to a latent racism in much of the American psyche. Ironically, the bad cats aren’t kept from coming in, but the decent ones are being chased away.

Further, it victimizes police officers by turning them away from protecting and serving, and transforming them into agents checking the citizenship and immigration documents of wayward citizens. The act was political cowardice, making the police do the dirty work the legislature was afraid to tackle.