Illegal immigration is both a domestic and foreign policy issue that the US government has long failed to adequately address. Traditionally, the US has turned a blind eye to the problem in order to reap the benefits of cheap labor, but the threat of terrorism and a weak economy have turned the issue into a national political debate that too often centers on domestic policy changes with little mention of foreign policy shifts. In recent months, a new dynamic has been added thanks to a sharp rise in children illegally crossing the border on their own. Potentially a result stemming from the Obama Administration’s attempt to better prioritize deportations and offer talented children a chance to contribute to America, this unintended consequence is a major problem.
Where American parents send their children to college for a better life, rarely questioning the promise of an education, Hispanic parents are sending their children across the border for a better life in America. While the economic benefit has overwhelmed the threat of deportation for those willing to illegally enter the United States, increasing violence throughout the Hispanic world creates an even stronger incentive. Given that it is not in the nature of Americans to bluntly embrace cruel and inhumane policies, the US can never apply enough punitive measures to counterbalance the incentives to violate American immigration laws. At the same time, it is becoming ever more clear that deportations and amnesty cannot solve the illegal immigration problem while securing the border is no easy task as some of the willing are always going to find a way through. In the long run, massive illegal immigration resulted from a failure of nations in our hemisphere to serve their Peoples interests, thus economic development and improved governance in Hispanic countries is necessary. Given the largest effort in Mexico, Central America, South America, and the Caribbean over the last decade or so has been the embrace and implementation of “free trade” policies, which are truly a hands-off approach to economics, the US has largely been disengaged in our own hemisphere. As Republicans often like to say, America needs to show greater leadership, which is truly especially when it comes to our closest neighbors. Beyond a massive policy initiative to reengage the Hispanic world, the most pressing issue that must be addressed is the humanitarian crisis that these children represent. Human trafficking is dangerous, because illegal immigrants can be murdered, die of exposure or neglect, be raped, be sold into slavery, be abused, and/or be exploited. For children, this danger is even greater. Consequently, parents of would-be border crossers need to understand they are sending their children to a potential death sentence. In addition, it may be necessary to coordinate with our neighbors to create legal penalties for parents who endanger their children in such a way, even if that requires establishing detention centers outside of the US. As for the children already inside the United States, there truly are no easy answers, so the Obama Administration needs the funds to care for the needs of these youths before they can be sent home to their countries, which must take greater responsibility for their repatriation needs.
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Today, two stories are coming out of Israel. On the one hand, Israelis are shocked and shamed by the vicious murder of a young Palestinian, who was burned to death in response to the kidnapping and murder of three Israeli youths. Showing an unusual level of empathy for their Palestinian cousins, even Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Shimon Peres felt the need to phone the victim’s parents to express their sympathy. Out of this tragedy, which has clearly demonstrated how the hatred, bigotry, violence of these warring cultures have infected the young, could come a shift in public attitudes, thus generating the magnitude of social pressure that may well be needed to end the protracted conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians.
On the other hand, Hamas and Israel are also engaged in an escalating conflict in the Gaza Strip. Given the instability in the Middle East due to the ripple effects of the Arab Spring Revolutions, most notably the resurgence of jihadist extremists in places like Iraq and Syria, Israel risks entering a broader conflict by allowing Hamas to escalate the conflict via its reactions. It is probably more in the interests of Hamas to escalate this conflict in order to garner the attention and support of outside extremists; therefore, escalation is counter to the interests of Israel. Certainly, Israel must police crimes committed against its citizens by taking proactive steps to prevent attacks on Israel and by targeting those who specifically attack Israel, but Israel cannot engage in an outright war against Palestinians within Hamas controlled territory. Iraq took one step closer toward a territorial split along sectarian lines, the solidification of gains made by Sunni extremist, which means the creation of ISIS’s so-called “caliphate” is becoming a reality that will translate into a protracted conflict between neighboring territories, and the loss of American support when the Iraqi parliament both failed to establish a new governing coalition and decided to recess until August. As us Americans would put it, Iraq is in a situation where “if you don’t come in on Friday, you might as well not come in on Monday.” Quite frankly, any politician failing to show up to work when their nation is in the middle of a crisis should voted out of office. The fact that Iraq is on the verge of collapse and the Iraqis are going on break is beyond outrageous. When you are in a situation like this one, you stay until the job is done. Sadly, forming a new government is not even the problem. What Iraq needs is leadership from a credible, functional governing coalition in order to address the rise of the ISIS to power.
Focusing on Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki as the supposed leader of supposed leaders, his unwillingness to even consider abandoning his chances at a third term demonstrates the problem with the Iraqi leadership, i.e. they are concerned with their own power interests. If there is no confidence in the leadership of the Prime Minister, he cannot lead, even if he is the most qualified candidate. This is the nature of governance. The underlying problem is that the leadership in Iraq lives in a political bubble where you do whatever it takes to hold onto your influence. Unfortunately for them, the reality is that their government is about to disappear, so there is no need for them to concern themselves with who is in power. As such, the US and other allies willing to support the national government of Iraqi need to make very clear that such support will be futile unless the Iraqi parliament gets its act together. This means immediately cancelling parliament’s break and resuming efforts to organize a governing into the night until the job is done then finding solutions to the crisis. The Fourth of July holiday is not just America’s Independence Day. In many respects, it marks the beginning of independence for the world. Reviving the dream of Athenian democracy, the British colonies that would become the world’s most influential and powerful nation not only rejected the traditional rule of a monarch, they put forth a philosophy that resonates throughout the entire world today.
Through their Declaration of Independence, America’s Founding Fathers rejected the notion that all people are born subjugated to those endowed by their creator to rule and nations exist solely to serve the powerful elites. In doing so, they laid the foundation for our modern understanding of society. We know recognize nations are built on a balancing of interests while we believe our governments solely exist to serve the interests of their People. When society fails to adequately address our needs and wants, it is our inherited right, and responsibility, to demand our society recognize our interests are not being met and seek improvements to our society. With economic disparity suppressing freedom and civil unrest provoking few constructive results beyond violence, the many Peoples of the world are struggling to assert their most fundamental rights as human beings. The strength of democracy is rooted in the fact that it is the system of governance most capable of allowing people to express their needs and wants over time, so their interests can be balanced and society can be strong. It is not, however, a guarantee that our interests will be met. For that, people must continually struggle to balance our interests with our neighbors’ interests. On the negative side, the struggle for democracy runs counter to the interests of the powerful and egocentric extremists. This means there is constant pressure in our society to suppress the interests of majorities and vulnerable minorities, which creates conflict. On the positive side, all democracies are rooted in this notion that governments exist to serve their People and the People have the right protest when their interests are not being met. In short, the principles behind America’s Independence Day are alive and well in every struggle for freedom around the world. From Ukraine to Brazil, Asia to South America, Iraq to China, Europe to America, the eternal fight for democracy may be long and often disparaging, but it is one that is won and enjoyed moment by moment, day by day. This is why the Fourth of July is a day all the people of the world should reflect on as they make their mark on this world. While Israelis are mourning the kidnapping and murder of three teens, Palestinians are mourning the brutal slaughter of one teen and the killings of two others at the hands of Israeli security forces responding to the abduction of the Israeli teens. It seems the two sides, defined by their religious-based ethnicities, are taking to heart “an eye for an eye.” Although Israel has long reacted to violence perpetrated by Hamas and blamed the militant organization when bad things happen, Israel’s impulse to react in such a heavy-handed, uncompromising manner is the worst thing to do.
Certainly, Israeli and Palestinian leaders need to bring those responsible for these killings to justice, but a need for police action does not translate into a need for military action. Looking at what is happening throughout the rest of the Middle East, the war these heinous crimes are provoking will only lead to the destruction of Israel, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip. Taking into account the attempts of ISIL to form its own Islamic state after overwhelming Iraqi forces and provoking a sectarian war, it appears Israel is facing a very similar threat. Indulging the impulse to attack, both the Israeli and Palestinian People are being baited into a mutually destructive conflict that is sure to incentivize and attract extremist activities. Given the events in Iraq and Syria, Islamic extremist elements will, in turn, likely try to use the forthcoming chaos to expand the so-called “Caliphate” in Iraq into a regional Islamic state. What the Israel and Palestinian Peoples, whose leaders must resist the political impulse to endorse violence over more constructive action, must do is use these tragedies to overcome the issues that divide them and use such heinous acts to justify peace. |
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April 2020
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