Activists Seemingly Favor Open Door Immigration Policy

Hooooooooo Boy...

Every so often, when one fnally begins to forget some of the absurdities of the far left, they do something to remind us.

This is something they have in common with their brethren on the far right, but I digress.

On Saturday May, 6, the controversy over illegal (or undocumented, as you may prefer) workers that has preoccupied the United States spread to Canada. In Montreal, hundreds of individuals identifying themselves as civil rights activists marched in protest of recent deportations of illegal immigrants and refugees.

According to Aaron Lakoff, up to 500,000 residents of Canada may be undocumented immigrants. Seemingly, mr Lakoff feels they should all be instantly granted resident status, regardless of the customs and immigrations laws they have broken, in the name of civil liberties.

In the end, it all comes down to what one considers a "civil liberty".

In no orderly society, anywhere in the world, should the ability to skirt the means for legal entry into the country be considered a "civil liberty". If anything poses a greater risk of resulting in a lawless society, not many of them are immediately apparent.

If undocumented individuals want to remain in Canada, they should apply through the proper legal channels. A short period of amnesty from deportation for anyone who has yet to do so may be a constructive step in the right direction, but outright absolute amnesty should be considered immediately out of the question.

In the meantime, renewed debate about the role of humanitarianism in Canada's immigration policies should be considered welcome indeed. Take, for example, the cited case of Abdelkader Belaouni, a blind Algerian diabetic who has been hiding from Immigration authorities in Montreal's St. Gabriel's church. A deportation order -- accompanied by an arrest warrant -- was drawn up for Henaway in January.

If anyone should qualify as an immigrant in Canada, surely a blind immigrant must fit the bill. Belaouni fled Algeria's civil war in 1996. While it may certainly be true that Belaouni is unemployed (as are many blind people), and may have no family in Canada, surely there should be some means by which he could stay.

Perhaps members of the many activist groups that have written letters in Belaouni's support could sponsor him, and agree to support him in his life in Canada.

In the absence of this commitment, one should wonder how Belaouni would survive in Canada without any family to support him. While in this specific case, activists should put their money where their mouths are, the Belaouni case clearly uncovers some inadequacies in Canada's immigration policies, particular in regards to refugees.

In the meantime, however, the law is the law. If undocumented immigrants want resident or citizen status, they should earn it like all other immigrants do -- by flipping burger's at your local McDonald's.

(...Okay. That was just a joke...)