An interesting reader response to my “colorblind immigration” post:
I was less gratified to see the statement than you were, because I don’t for a minute believe that it is anything other than a symbolic gesture meant to mollify critics of amnesty.
“any legislation addressing immigration should make explicit that while immigrants and their descendants should be afforded the right to compete fairly and freely in every aspect of American life, they should receive no special benefit on the basis of race, ethnicity or national origin.”
Sounds good – but how the Hell do you ENFORCE it on “their descendants”? If affirmative action and other racial-preference programs exist for “native born” Americans, how do you exclude the descendents of this PARTICULAR group from benefiting from them, since they presumably will have been born here and be just as “native born” as the rest of us? What Federal department is going to have the job of tracing immigrant bloodlines? How many drops of immigrant blood through how many generations can be used to deny preferences to THESE people that are still legal for every other ethnic grievance group?
So this would be just another bit of “feel good” (but also vaguely rascist) language that would mean nothing in reality if the bill were passed – just like the so-called “enforcement” provisions touted by an administration that refuses to enforce EXISTING laws.
The whole thing just feels creepy.