Thank you, First Ladies — and thank you to all of those from both political parties who have spoken up and out against President Donald Trump’s “zero tolerance” immigration enforcement efforts, which resulted in children being separated from their parents at the U.S.-Mexican border.
And assuming he doesn’t reverse his pledge to keep families together, thank you Mr. President for hearing the cries of your people — and citizens of the world. After maintaining that immigrant family separation was the result of a Democratic law that could only be changed through congressional action, Trump signed an executive order Wednesday to keep families together as they are detained at the border.
I’ve listened and read news commentary and social media posts on both sides of the issue and quite frankly, it has left me feeling ill. None of the arguments negated the fact that what was being done with these kids at the border was morally wrong.
A recap of recent weeks:
Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced a “zero-tolerance” policy in dealing with migrants who cross into the U.S. illegally. Since then, thousands of children have been separated from their families. After bipartisan public outcry began to build, Trump pointed his finger at Democrats and “their laws.” But there are no laws requiring the separation of children from their parents. And Trump could fix it, despite his claims to the contrary.
“There is no law that dictates children must be separated from their parents when caught crossing into the country illegally, and there was a time when ICE policy didn’t call for detaining all families,” Fox News reported June 18: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2018/06/19/what-trumps-zero-tolerance-immigration-policy-means-for-children-separated-from-families-at-border.html.
And there is a fundamental difference in what happened under President Barack Obama and past administrations of BOTH parties and what is occurring today, according to Peter Margulies, an immigration law and national security law professor at Roger Williams University School of Law.
“Obama generally refrained from prosecution in cases involving adults who crossed the border with their kids,” said Margulies. “In contrast, the current administration has chosen to prosecute adult border-crossers, even when they have kids. That’s a choice — one fundamentally different from the choice made by both Obama and previous presidents of both parties.”
Trump talks about wanting to stop the flood of heinous criminals like gang members coming to the U.S., but his policy has been choking the federal judicial system, according to the Wall Street Journal. How do you get rid of the dangerous people when you are bogging the courts down with families seeking better lives?
“The nation’s chronically overburdened immigration courts are becoming even more crowded as a wave of illegal immigrants enters the system and fewer are able to exit it,” the WSJ reported May 23. “The 334 immigration judges working nationwide each juggle dockets of some 2,000 cases. The backlog has reached nearly 700,000, more than double what it was six years ago, and the average case is in court for more than two years.”
It’s time for some introspection. The debate over immigration policy has reenforced that we can and will justify anything, while miring ourselves in petty political arguments that ultimately do little to support humanity.
Trump’s zero-tolerance policy exacerbated an existing problem. It is unfair to blame it all on him — just as it is unfair for Trump to blame it all on Democrats. This issue has been building for decades. And both parties bear some responsibility.
Our nation’s future depends on decent and reasonable people finding common ground and working together on immigration reform, as well as other important legislation. The president and our representatives and senators can stop bashing and blaming each other any time they want. That would be a positive, first step in setting the right tone for America. Can’t we simply put America first?
Kudos to those in both parties who are working to find a solution — and shame on those who are bent on widening the political divide with lies, blame and partisan bickering. If enough people stand up and do the right thing, the contrast to those who aren’t doing America right will be sharp.
Let’s do right by America.
Shea Wilson is the former managing editor of the El Dorado News-Times. Email her at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @sheawilson7.