Thomas Sowell’s attempts to enlighten us to the righteousness of the GOP ideology continuously backfire. His Feb. 4 diatribe, “GOP immigration reform plan may benefit Democrats,” is no exception, as he further illustrates their hard-headed, hard-hearted, and exclusionary attitudes. Sowell compares illegal immigrants to criminals such as “embezzlers and burglars” and that their children, either born or brought here through no fault of their own, have no more right to stay than the poor children of India or Africa.
I would remind Sowell that over the course of many decades and many administrations, right and left, Latin Americans have been lured here through lax immigration policies and whole industries with business plans relying on their exploitation. These captains of industry and capitalism operate with a wink and a nod from authorities. This was an open invitation, welcoming those who made it here with substandard wages and working conditions.
For Sowell to compare someone who came here to mow his lawn with someone who breaks into his home to steal is ludicrous. This false equivalency would have us consider shoplifter and murderer as equals.
Illegal immigration is an issue that we must face, with a measure of justice and compassion given our hand in failing to discourage it. We can’t just load 12 million men, women, and children on a bus and send them south.
