Abstract
Excerpted From: Grayson Carnahan, The Tempest Tossed-Aside: How Politicizing Immigration Policy Has Stalled Reform and Dehumanized Immigrants, 46 Houston Journal of International Law 73 (Fall, 2023) (149 Footnotes) (Full Document Requested)
“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!”
Lady Liberty, formerly a gatekeeper to the sovereign soil of the United States, has these immortal words emblazoned at her feet. The New Colossus was a sonnet written in 1883 by Emma Lazarus to raise money for the statue's construction; the sonnet was cast onto a bronze plaque at her feet in 1903. In theory, these words are the ideal--the picturesque example of what should define America's stance on immigration: we will take anyone from anywhere; not just the social elites, but even the “wretched refuse” or “homeless, tempest-tost.” Now nearly inconceivable in today's legal and political climate, this sonnet came about during an era of immigration law when the U.S. essentially had an open border. However, we have had a far fall from this idealized perception of immigration and just exactly who we will give the honor of touching American soil. Instead, fiery and accusatory rhetoric as well as unfulfilled campaign promises now mark immigration policy in the U.S. The immigration issue has become highly politicized. Now, immigrants' primary role in political discourse is as a pawn for political points. Democrats tend to make lofty promises of immigration reform with little to show for it, while Republicans play immigrants up to be nothing short of an invading foreign force. As such, the chief source of the issue in immigration policy today lies in the dehumanization of immigrants. I will argue that the politicization of the immigration issue has further dehumanized immigrants, stunted effective immigration policy, and worsened the situation at the border. The solution to this problem is comprehensive immigration reform.
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Despite traditional views of immigrants as hopeful opportunists seeking a better life and opportunity, those views have changed dramatically over the history of immigration policy. As it stands, politics and partisanship have kept any meaningful change from happening in this area of the law for decades. The blinders politicians have put on have stunted reform and left immigrants as political pawns without true advocates willing to fight for change. The policies and systems that make up the world of immigration are in desperate need of change, but this change will only come when each side can accept compromise and see the dignity and humanity of those “yearning to breathe free.”
On track to be a fourth-generation attorney, Grayson Carnahan is a 3L law student at the University of Houston Law Center. Born and raised in Southlake, Texas, Grayson studied Industrial Engineering at Texas A&M University and is interested in both intellectual property and immigration law.
