Posed by Javier Méndez of El Mercurio
newspaper,
in Santiago, Chile.
Answered by Imad-ad-Dean Ahmad, president of the Minaret
of Freedom Institute.
Q. A lot of immigrant groups consider the
immigration reform
“discriminatory” and they fear to be expelled. How do you see that
point?
A. Immigration laws have been motivated by
religious and
ethnic discrimination since the beginning. Until 1917 the United States
had no
immigration quotas. The first laws were directed against Catholics and
against
the Chinese and Eastern Europeans. Today Latinos and Muslims are the
main targeted
groups.
Q. Do you think that will be a very strong fight
in Senate
over this law?
A. Even if the
Senate avoids a lengthy fight, one still looms in the House since the
differences between the House and Senate versions need to be resolved
before
any bill can become law.
A. The immigration
issue is expected to have a significant impact on the coming
Congressional
elections, which accounts for much of the political posturing no taking
place
on the matter. The main reason is the intense resentment against Latino
immigration in the Southern border areas. Also contributing now is the
paranoia
over Muslim immigration engendered by the polemics of the War in
Terrorism. On
the other side, the rising strength of the affected immigrant
communities, who
are becoming increasingly well organized. The Cuban community is
especially
effective and has reason to be dissatisfied with the way refugees from
Castro's
Cuba are forced to return.
Q. How is Bush administration managing the
immigration
problems?
A. The Bush administration is not doing well
managing the
immigrations problems because the basic approach of strong regulation
suffers
from the same problems that strong regulation afflicts on any part of
the
economy. The law of supply and demand must be recognized and
accommodated. It
is a simple fact that there is a strong demand for less expensive labor
in the
United States and a strong demand for jobs and for the free society in
America
from potential immigrant populations from many parts of the world. The
best
hope for resolving the problems of immigration is not to make illegal
immigrants and the charities that help them into felons, but to open up
the
borders to all law abiding peoples who wish to come and support
themselves here
by their own labor. The consequent threatened exodus from the other
parts of
the world can only have a positive effect on reform in those societies,
much as
the "brain drain" from Britain in the sixties led to the reforms in
that country that have helped its economy.