Promises
As the curtain falls on the nation’s celebration of its 250th birthday, it’s worth a moment to reflect on where we are, where we’ve come from, and where we can reasonably expect to be as the years unfold. What is the measure of our nation? And who gets to make it? Many contend to offer theirs. Let’s begin with words from a hallowed symbol of the “promise” of America — Emma Lazarus, inscribed at the base of the Statue of Liberty: “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free … Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me.”
Millions have come.
Since 1776, about 130 million immigrants. Of these, about 94 million obtained legal permanent residence, while another 35 million arrived without authorization. Today, we have over 53 million foreign-born residents, making up 15% of the total U.S. population.
Millions came, millions stayed. Until now.
The Department of Homeland Security says it has carried out more than 675,000 deportations and made over 595,000 arrests of noncitizens since the administration returned to office, and that an estimated 2.2 million people have voluntarily left the country. Turning the promise of refuge into a way station of arrest by hooded agents, whisked away to holding prisons, then flights to dangerous countries some have never even been to.
But wait. Others are more than welcome. The administration has expanded its refugee admissions program to exclusively prioritize white South Africans, or Afrikaners. This effort includes financial incentives: Refugees receive a $2,000 grant and plane tickets, with aid for housing and necessities during their first 90 days here. The U.S. Embassy in Pretoria has processed applications for thousands of Afrikaners, who are already settling primarily in states like Texas, Florida and California.
So what is the measure of our nation? America’s promise of refuge? A failed promise, or now a blatantly false promise?