Changing the Dynamics of the Immigration Debate

Americans know that we have a broken border and a broken immigration system. But how many of us realize that we may be many years away from fixing either, because the very way we talk about immigration is more broken than anything?

We’re so eager to be heard that we’ve stopped listening to each other. We jump to conclusions without having the facts, and we question one another’s motives. We’re so convinced of the righteousness of our position that we don’t see the need to consider alternatives. Besides, the loudest voices are the shrillest, and we pay too much attention to special interests with narrow agendas.

Those on the Right should just admit that there is an element in their ranks that is anti-foreigner and wants to end not just illegal immigration but the legal kind too. Those on the Left insist they support enforcing immigration law, which seems unlikely given that they oppose workplace raids and deportations. Until both sides come clean, we can’t ever hope to have an honest discussion.

That’s what I was aiming for during a recent appearance on Fox News Channel’s The O’Reilly Factor.

But first I had to set the record straight and correct something the host said about me. Bill O’Reilly had read, and agreed with, a recent column I’d written supporting the recent wave of immigration raids at meatpacking plants. We also agreed on how wacky it is for cities to have “sanctuary” policies that prohibit local police officers from handing over illegal immigrants to federal authorities. Frankly, O’Reilly was shocked that we were in agreement on these matters because — he said — I have previously supported illegal immigrants.

That’s baloney. But it does sound familiar. Every week, I get dozens of angry and insulting emails from people who insist that I excuse illegal immigration and defend illegal immigrants. Many of them accuse me of being “biased” — an odd accusation for a columnist. But what they really mean is that I’m too “pro-Mexican.” Some in the black helicopter crowd even accuse me of plotting to retake the Southwest for Mexico.

But here’s the thing. In nearly 20 years of writing opinion pieces and columns, not once have I ever written that I support illegal immigrants or illegal immigration. In fact, in one column a few years ago, I chastised the defenders of illegal immigrants for failing to even acknowledge that these people are lawbreakers whose actions have negative consequences for themselves and their children. More recently, I wrote a column applauding the deportation of Elvira Arellano, an illegal immigrant who had sought refuge in a Chicago church before being apprehended by authorities. In another column, I criticized those immigrants who marched in U.S. cities demanding an unconditional amnesty.

Given that, I was curious. How could so many readers get the idea that I’m supportive of illegal immigrants? As luck would have it, I have a few theories: It could be the nature of the immigration debate. Many feel that we need to agree 100 percent. If we don’t, we’ll fight to the death over disagreements instead of emphasizing common ground; or it could be the passion with which many Americans approach the issue — so much that, if you challenge them on any one facet, they’re likely to assume you disagree on all facets; or it could simply be my Mexican heritage. That seemed to do it for the elderly lady who, not long ago, accused me of “supporting the Mexican invasion because you’re Mexican.”

Yep, definitely a broken dialogue.