It is natural for us as humans to seek security. We are motivated to find every opportunity for ourselves and our families to be safe. When we encounter difference, we are primed to see that difference as a threat to our security, and we react accordingly.

Immigrants are, by definition, different. They have come to this country from somewhere else, and so we are ready to see them as different. If they are different from us in other ways – especially in skin color and social class – we perceive those differences even more intently. Because of these factors, immigrants have always been a convenient scapegoat for any society’s ills, and modern American society is no different. Those with power will look for any target at which to direct society’s anger other than themselves. And so it is with our American elites. So that we don’t turn on them, they point us towards the immigrant. So it was and so it is. 

American concerns about immigration are based on reasonable fears. We worry about our physical and financial security. But the idea that immigrants, especially undocumented immigrants, unduly impact our security is a trumped-up lie. Immigrants are less likely, not more likely, to commit crime than native-born Americans. And this remains true in spite of high-profile examples. What happened to Laken Riley was a tragedy, as is any unnecessary death. But it does not merit the demonizing of an entire group. Despite the accusations, undocumented immigrants contribute financially to our nation through their work and through taxes. To the extent that they pay less taxes than others in their social class, it is because they must work in the shadows. 

Often, those who demonize undocumented immigrants will ask, “Since you support illegal immigrants so much, are you saying we shouldn’t try to control who comes through our border? Don’t you lock the doors to your house at night?” I would just say that believing we should have some controls on who enters our country doesn’t mean we need to condemn entire groups. If people really want to address the crisis at the border rather than exploiting it for their own ends, they should advocate for fully funding the immigration courts and officials who actually process the cases of immigrants who arrive here. 

Undocumented immigrants are the ultimate punching bag for our society. Those who are new here, so new that they have no homes, so new that they likely don’t speak the English language. In most cases they are people of color and are almost always poor, because if they had even moderate wealth they wouldn’t be fleeing their countries of origin in their current condition. And so they have no attributes of power to defend themselves from craven attacks. They are completely open to targeting by the powerful, who cast others’ anger at undocumented immigrants and away from themselves. This is cowardice manifest – having all of the power yet being unwilling to face the consequences of that power and so manipulating those in the middle to direct their fury at the powerless. 

Part of me wishes that I could turn to a just God in the belief that there will be retribution for such evil behavior, but I am no longer a believer. I can’t count on some kind of cosmic justice. What justice there will be must be what we create and unfortunately, justice feels in short supply these days. The wealthy elites control all levers of power in our government – and no, I don’t refer only to the Trump administration and their Republican lackeys. To a lesser but still indecent degree, the Democrats are in their thrall as well. President Biden implemented a rollback of longtime asylum policies and President Obama deported more immigrants than anyone. But the new administration promises a frightening crackdown on our immigrant neighbors and friends. In this moment, this is what we must resist. Starting next Monday, Inauguration Day, we will see what form this crackdown takes, and then we will see how we must react. Today, I send solidarity and courage, both to my undocumented immigrant friends and neighbors and all of us who support them.

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