Opposing Guest Opinion: Arizona Immigration Law Highlights Broken Federal System

We are a nation of laws.  If we don't have the fortitude to enforce them now when will we?  To be honest, the Federal Government should be ashamed that the States are now, in essence, telling ineffectual and inept Federal governmental bureaucracies to do their job.  Arizona did not propose a law that superseded Federal law.  They are highlighting a broken governmental system.

WASHINGTON, DC (Catholic Online) -   I respectfully disagree with Archbishop Dolan's article "Immigration Reform: Here We Go Again" on two points.

First, while I agree with his recitation of history, he leaves out the crucial context.  The facts he recites are of little use without their context.  There have been numerous anti-immigrant (and anti-Catholic) movements within the United States.  Any part-time scholar of American history is likely familiar with the religious quarrels of the Founding.  Likewise, they would probably be familiar with America's immigrant past.  While the cold-facts are important, probably more so is the importance of the historical context. 

In fact without the context of the events surrounding his execution, Saint Thomas More is not a martyr.  His faith and impeccable moral character is illuminated by his decisions and the events surrounding them.  The martyr saints "are" because they suffered and died in the name of Christ, not simply because they suffered and died.  To the point - the context surrounding the facts is important.  Let's consider the "Know-Nothings" and the anti-Catholics of the Progressive Era (1920's).

To be a "Know-Nothing" you had to be a Protestant male, over the age of 21, and of British decent.  There was an economic aspect to their anger, but they were truly afraid of the changing demographics.  Specifically, they feared the increasing numbers of Irish and German Catholics emigrating from Europe.  The "Know-Nothings" feared the laity's allegiance to the Pope, a foreign head of state, and the spiritual leader of an ever increasing number of Americans.  This occurs again with the Klan up through the early nineteen-hundreds.  As the Roaring Twenties took hold anti-Catholicism and the first Red Scare appeared.  In the instances of anti-Catholicism, upper and middle-class Protestants again, feared subversion by the Catholic Church.  

I believe the "anti-immigrant" argument that Archbishop Dolan builds in the first six paragraphs is flawed.  All the groups, organizations and movements his Excellency mentions were inseparably anti-Catholic and anti-immigration.  Events would have occurred differently if it was the "British Immigration" not the "Irish Immigration."  And you know what?  I resent being characterized as some kind of frightened bigot by some who do not agree with my dissenting opinion on this volatile issue. I  I believe there are a number of fair-minded Americans who feel as I do, and given a reasonable argument could be swayed away from their current position.  

The Federal Government did not begin restricting immigration until the mid to late 1800's.  During the 1840's immigrants were processed upon arrival and allowed to settle where they chose.  This was the law; there was no restraint on immigration.  Therefore, for all practical purposes they were all legal.  This is not the case today.  We are a nation of laws.  For certain, as Catholics we believe in the primacy of Natural Law over Federal Law. However, this is not about an issue of Natural Law. In fact, this involves an issue of prudential judgement concerning public policy in an area where faithful Catholics can -  and is obvious from my disagreement with the good Bishop - do disagree.

My second point follows this notion of being a nation of laws.

The Arizona Senate Bill is available on-line.  It's Arizona Senate Bill 1070.  At seventeen pages it is a quick read.  Here is what I got out of it:

1) Arizona has a "compelling interest in the cooperative enforcement of federal immigration laws throughout all of Arizona."
2) " For any lawful contact made by a law enforcement official or agency .where reasonable suspicion exists that the person is an alien who is unlawfully present in the united states, a reasonable attempt shall be made, when practicable, to determine the immigration status of the person."
3) Human smuggling is obviously illegal.  The smuggling of minors is particularly egregious.
4) It is illegal to knowingly enter into a contract with an illegal immigrant.

In short, the state bill asserts that Arizona's immigration policy is to enforce Federal Law.  It is not the mean-spirited bill that it is being made out to be.  Among other things, it strengthens existing laws regarding human-trafficking.  Law-makers felt it prudent to add-to and amend existing state regulation regarding such activity.  This seems reasonable.  It is a bill that neither calls for door-to-door searches, nor for the raiding places of employment.  That would be unreasonable.  

We are a nation of laws.  If we don't have the fortitude to enforce them now when will we?  To be honest, the Federal Government should be ashamed that the States are now, in essence, telling ineffectual and inept governmental bureaucracies to do their job.  The States are "calling them out".  The bill is an imaginary-tiger.  It is being publicized for its potentially significant political value.  I do agree with Archbishop Dolan on at least one point; we can do better.  But, before I conclude, I would like to go back to law, specifically to Natural Law.  I think that there is a reasonable argument to be made regarding Arizona Senate bill 1070.

Some "experts" claim that domestic crime is rampant within illegal immigrant communities; but, who knows?  They are living outside the society.  Regarding the public welfare of legal citizens, one government study found that at least 27% of the prisoners in the U.S. are criminal illegal immigrants.  That is, they are being incarcerated for a criminal offense AND they are in the U.S. illegally.  In another report, the Government Accountability Office collected information on 55, 322 incarcerated illegal immigrants.  They had a sum total 459, 614 arrests among them. Ninety-seven percent had been arrested at least once prior.  In the aggregate more than one third of the offenses were related to drugs or violence (rape, murder, assault).  Identity crimes are on the rise.  In a 2002 Government Accountability Office report, they reference a single seizure of 24,000 social security numbers by the Immigration and Naturalization Service during May 1998.  

Is the byzantine and broken immigration system that we now have dignifying of human persons?  It certainly appears neither effective, nor by definition efficient.  They can be extorted and exploited by anyone callous enough to do so.  Illegal immigrants live in fear - in fear of each other, law enforcement, really of society in general, and given the crime statistics I mentioned above, we live in fear of them.

They don't want to be here like this, but obviously it is preferable to the alternative.  No one wants to be a stranger at home.  If they aren't brought into the social fold when they come here -  well, when will they be?  What happens when they age and their bilingual children move away?   

We should welcome them!  But not like this; we need real, national immigration reform.  Arizona did not propose a law that superseded Federal law.  They are highlighting a broken governmental system.

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C. Hartline is a Catholic Layman who writes from Southeastern, Virginia.

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