Abbott’s cruelty toward migrants doesn’t represent who we should be

We should be revising our refugee and asylum standards to invite greater numbers of good, hard-working people who hunger for a better life into the country, even if they are fleeing something other than religious, political or identity-based persecution.

In 2019, Texas Governor Greg Abbott sent a two-page fundraising mailer that warned of a liberal plan “to transform Texas — and our entire country — through illegal immigration.” He called on Texans to “DEFEND” the border against a Democratic party plot to “turn Texas blue.”

One day later a gunman targeting Latinos and Hispanics at an El Paso Walmart killed 23 people and injured 22 more. Before surrendering to law enforcement, he posted a manifesto claiming he was motivated by a liberal plot to replace white Americans with non-white immigrants.

In the aftermath of the shooting, Abbott admitted “mistakes were made” in the rhetoric of the letter and, for a while, he talked less about the invasion of Latinos he believed were flooding over the nation’s southern border.

But for the past year, Abbott’s hateful and conspiracy-laden rhetoric has been back in full force, first during his reelection campaign for governor and now in his calls for Texas to violate federal law and take unilateral action on the southern border. Making matters worse, he’s added a new show of force to the rhetoric, in the form of razor wire and deadly buoys in the Rio Grande.

The wrecking-ball sized buoys are designed to prevent people from climbing over them by spinning, forcing the wouldbe climber underwater where they’re in real danger of becoming entangled in nets designed to keep people from swimming underneath.

If a person is able to make it past the buoys, they are greeted by layer upon layer of razor wire, designed to slice through the skin of would-be passersby. There are numerous reports of Texans who own land along the Rio Grande having the razor wire — and subsequent human damage — dumped on their property without their consent and over their fierce objections. In other words, Abbott’s thuggery extends to forcing property owners to deal with the human suffering caused by his barbarity without permission.

In short, the barriers are a deadly and dehumanizing cocktail of cruelty.

According to the Constitution, the authority to create and enforce immigration policy is the exclusive purview of the federal government and Abbott knows it.

Just last year, Abbott told the Texas Tribune that “The Supreme Court has ruled states have no authority themselves to stop illegal immigration into the states.”

That statement is certain to be used against him in a lawsuit filed by the Department of Justice last week following the governor’s refusal to removal the new barriers. Only time will tell how that lawsuit plays out under the current conservative Supreme Court. And while the clock runs on that decision, people will surely die.

Proponents of the inhumane measures claim they are necessary to deter migrants from entering the country illegally, that they will force migrants to official ports of entry. That’s nonsense.

We’re talking about deterring people who have risked everything they have, including their lives and the lives of their children and family members to escape murder, rape and torture on the chance that they can build a better life in the land of opportunity.

No, the buoys and razor wire will not effectively deter those who desperately seek the chance at a better life for their children and their family as they contribute to making this nation flourish as immigrants have always done in the US.

What the buoys and razor wire will do is maim and even kill people.

In the aftermath of the Holocaust, the United States and other developed countries swore that we would never again slam the door on people escaping violent persecution and authoritarianism. We knew then that embracing those in search of a better life would come with costs and risks. But providing shelter to those in need is a moral imperative, whether they are political refugees fleeing totalitarianism, environmental refugees fleeing the disastrous results of climate change, or the hopeless victims of crime-ridden nations made deadly by drug cartels feeding America’s drug habit.

As the realities of climate change reshape the world as we know it, we should be revising our refugee and asylum standards to invite greater numbers of good, hardworking people who hunger for a better life into the country, even if they are fleeing something other than religious, political or identity-based persecution. And we should ensure that all people entering the United States, no where or how they enter, are treated with human dignity.

That starts with Gov. Abbott removing the inhumane barriers at the border and choking the fires of hateful White supremacy he amplifies by espousing the “great replacement” theory.

For his part, President Joe Biden should ensure that claims made by refugees and asylum seekers are processed quickly and efficiently and receive a fair hearing that includes a translator.

Furthermore, the president should live up to his promise to the Sun’s editorial board when running for election when he pledged to develop a hemispheric foreign policy to encourage stability and prosperity for the nations South of us. The best solution to stem the tide of immigration is to encourage vibrant and free nations surrounding us. We’re still waiting for Biden to live up to that pledge.

Refugees and asylum seekers should be given the opportunity to support themselves and contribute to their community by working and paying taxes. Not only will this help lower the costs of social welfare programs, but it will also help fill the urgent need for workers to propel the U.S. economy.

Finally, migrants must be given a path to citizenship that is fair, equitable and realistic for people with limited means and limited knowledge of U.S. law. After all, what good is it to say we provide shelter for those in need if the only people who can access that shelter are those without need.

This final challenge, a meaningful pathway to citizenship falls to Congress, which has the opportunity to pass compromise legislation that reflects the needs, issues, and concerns of red states and blue states alike.