Finding a loose brick

This past week I was unable to turn on the news or scroll through social media without mention of the war of words between Pope Francis and Donald Trump.

I won't rehash the debacle since the media has done so to death. But I do feel compelled to comment on some aspects about this wall business and immigration in general that are, quite frankly, an embarrassment to this child of immigrants.

The Wall around the Vatican

I have seen many Trump supporters calling then Pope hypocritical because Vatican City's border is a wall. It's pretty easy to make that statement without considering the history and the present state of Vatican City. 

Those walls have been in place since the 9th century and were built to protect the Pope against Barbarian invasions which were all too common in the Middle Ages. 

The modern Vatican retains these walls as vestiges of its history as do many cities in the ancient world. Europe is littered with remnants of wall from a time when they too had to defend against invaders.

There is a big difference between people trying to invade a country and people trying to emigrate to a country in search of a better life.

Vatican City today is home to about 500 people, most of them, employees of the Varican and diplomats. The Vatican employs more than 500 people. Many live in Rome.  The gates close in the evening, but the Vatican is a government complex and I don't know too many government buildings anywhere that leave their doors open all night.  

The point is that the Vatican is essentially an open border with Rome.  You do not need to get your passport stamped to enter or exit.  They can do that because it is that small.  You cannot compare the smallest country on earth to the second largest country on earth, the United States.  

The United States has never had a wall because our country was founded during the age of Enlightenment and "enlightened" people do not have a need for walls when establishing a free society.

Since our founding, America has been attacked by enemies both foreign (War of 1812, WWII, 9/11) and domestic (Civil War).  Yet, we never felt the need to build a wall around our country. 

Until now...

A Nation of Immigrants

Within the Statue of Liberty, there is a plaque with a poem by Emma Lazarus.  You can read the whole poem here, but the part that applies to the current immigration situation is this: 

"Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,

I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

America has always been a country of immigrants with the exception of the Native American people. Everyone I know - family, friends, politicians, and celebrities - are here because America opened its doors to my family and theirs.  Our co-existence makes it a messy, complicated melting pot at times, but it also is the one thing that sets us aside from other nations.  It gives us our "flavor" if you will.

Now we have a Presidential candidates proposing that we build a wall along our borders to prevent illegal immigration into the Untied States.  

And you have Americans who are falling for this rhetoric and denying why they are all in the United States in the first place.

Pot, meet Kettle

My family emigrated to the United States from Cuba in the late 60's, early 70's and beyond. My family emigrated legally to the US.  So has every Cuban living in the US.  But this is misleading. You see, it is impossible for any Cuban to emigrate to the US illegally.  

Cuban immigrants were pawns in the Cold War between the US and Cuba.  By instituting a Cold War policy giving Cubans special refugee status, Cubans would have no problem leaving the island. The US could then make the point to Cuba that "If your government is so great, why are the Cuban people flocking to the US?"

I have nothing against this.  I am an American because of it.  But if you take an honest look, if it were not for that policy, all Cubans would have had to get back in line with everyone else.  Without this policy, my family would have either emigrated much later, not at all or they would have found a away to make it over illegally, putting them in the same boat as every most central Americans or Syrians entering countries illegally.

I agree that we cannot have open borders in this day and age, and, I am all for the immigration laws of centuries past where people were examined and processed before being allowed to leave Ellis Island or local Miami airports for that matter.  

What I do not agree with is the hateful tone that is being taken to address this issue.  

Would you do it? 

The decision to leave one's homeland when faced with war and political/economic oppression is likely one of the most difficult decisions any human being can make. Think about it.  Why would anyone choose to leave the only home they know to face the unknown? I've done it three times with support and help from our employer and it has still been a challenge every single time.  I can only imagine what it is like when you have nothing but a suitcase full of hope. Also, while our reasons for moving abroad pale in comparison to those who risk their lives for freedom, I can say that leaving family and friends behind is hard for anyone who calls themselves human.  We choose to move abroad knowing full well that we can always come home again.  What if you left knowing that it is very likely you will never go back? 

Today, many Cubans Americans seem to have forgotten this part of their family history. They seem to have forgotten what it was like to be that desperate, to leave everything they owned behind because as part of their exit, they had to relinquish all their assets to the Cuban government.  I am sure that as they left for the airport, the sense of anxiety about the unknown and the thought of the family and friends they were leaving behind must have been overwhelming.  Again, who would do this if they had the choice to stay in their homeland? 

In spite of all this, Cuban immigrants had it easy compared to the wave of undocumented immigrants we have now.  The majority arrived by plane. They were processed at airports and were sent on their way to meet up with family in New York, New Jersey, Texas, Florida and elsewhere to start their new lives.  

Today's undocumented immigrants travel thousands of miles on foot or are smuggled in trucks across borders.  Many suffer unspeakable violence trying to make their way to the US. They leave poverty stricken countries that make our unemployment rate during the recession look great.  They are leaving countries where gang and drug violence makes it impossible for anyone to have a normal life. In the case of Syria, they are also leaving a war torn country where staying is kin to signing a death warrant.

It makes me sad to see that my people, who emigrated for similar reasons are throwing these groups under a bus because they seem to have the mentality that they are better than these immigrant groups or they make them out to be "not like us" all because of that special refugee status they enjoyed. It is dangerous when any people believe they are better than another.  Ask any Holocaust survivor how that plays out.

A Way Forward

This is a moral and ethical dilemma. There are many facets to be considered.  Tough, hateful talk on securing the border is the easy way to deal with it.  It is messy to see the human dimension.  It will make your heart ache when and if you do.  I used to view illegal immigration like many Republicans. Then, as a therapist, I met many undocumented immigrants. I got to know them and at the end of the day, they all want the same things all of us want: to raise our families in a safe environment and to provide for their basic needs.  These people changed me.  It is hard to go back to having a one dimensional view of immigration when you are exposed to another dimension.  

If you feel so strongly about securing our borders, do not contribute to the problem by spewing hateful rhetoric.  You can express your views without spewing hate. Our immigration policies leave much to be desired and you can't fault those who are already here for that. I liken this to the legalization of marijuana.  Its still illegal in the United States.  They just chose to look the other way.  The US chose to look the other way while millions of people crossed the border. Deporting millions of people, most of whom are hard working individuals who pay income tax and have no criminal history, is going to end up costing us more than developing an enforceable immigration policy and moving forward.  

Walls, as any Berliner from 1961 to 1989 can attest, divide people.  Breaking down walls comes down to finding the loose brick or loosening a brick. This is not about building a wall, but about tearing down the one you have put up around yourself.