Disclaimer: I use the words “legal” and “illegal” to describe the activities of certain individuals as well as the individuals themselves. This is not because I believe that an individual him/herself can, in fact, be “illegal,” but rather it is for the purpose of explaining the points of this piece in an easily understood manner without going into the lengthy discussion of illegality and how it can or cannot be attributed to individual humans.

Recently, Tomi Lahren, the infamous white girl from South Dakota, went head-to-head with Trevor Noah on a number of highly controversial issues. The list of topics included Black Lives Matter, Donald Trump, Colin Kaepernick, and other such divisive subjects.

Tomi Lahren, as many of us know, has no issue making her opinions and beliefs known. She sees herself as a voice for the voiceless. Specifically, she believes that she is speaking for the individuals who find themselves located within the central portion of the nation. She argues that these individuals, and the states in which they reside, are largely ignored by the East and West coasts. Despite the fact that this is almost entirely due to the disproportionate distribution of populations within this country, she nonetheless feels obligated to say what she believes these people are too afraid to say for themselves.

One issue that Tomi and Trevor discussed, and one that is highly controversial, is immigration. Tomi proposed the following question: “What do you say to [legal immigrants] when they see people cutting in line?” The purpose of Lahren’s question was to make the point that it is somehow “unfair” to legal immigrants that there are individuals that have made their way here through illicit and/or undocumented means. I’m going to address this issue from a couple different angles.

First, as Trevor mentioned, there is no “line” in which immigrants are forced to stand while awaiting entry into the United States. Rather, there is a highly elaborate and overly difficult process by which these individuals gain entry. The legal route is notoriously difficult and potentially costly. This is a fact that Tomi acknowledges, yet simultaneously disregards. She admits that the process of gaining entry can cost individuals thousands of dollars, yet she just as quickly criminalizes the people that came here illegally. It is as if she has already discounted the fact that legal entry is difficult. Consequently, Tomi fails to take into account the intense hardships faced by these so-called “illegal” immigrants. For example, many immigrants from Central America flee their countries of origin in order to escape certain death. The countries which comprise this region (Honduras, El Salvador, etc.) see some of the highest rates of homicide in the world. But this fact is ignored in discussions of immigration, because the issues are frequently simplified and reduced to problems of the law, specifically our law. We disregard the individual stories of these people and forget to ask why they came illegally. Instead, we simply see that they did not enter the country through official pathways, and say that therefore they are criminals that deserve to be persecuted and ostracized. The issue is not that simple.

Second, Tomi seems to subscribe to the faulty notion that these undocumented immigrants are a “drain” on society, or that they are benefitting from our various government-sponsored programs at our expense. This is simply not true. Sarah Horton, an anthropologist, has investigated the issue of labor conducted by illegal immigrants, and what she has discovered challenges practically every widely held perception we have of these individuals. Perhaps most central to this discussion is the fact that, rather than draining our resources, undocumented workers collectively contribute billions of dollars in the form of wage deductions (Horton, 2016). These individuals, because they are undocumented, are forced (often time by the employers themselves) to use borrowed social security numbers (Horton, 2016). Because these social security numbers are not their own, they cannot reap the benefits of the programs they directly support through these wage deductions. They are, after all, illegal. Further, they’re unable to file worker’s compensation claims because, again, they are illegal. They are unable to report exploitation at the hands of employers because, again, they are illegal. The status of these workers (working jobs no American wants to, mind you), makes them particularly vulnerable to this exploitation and abuse (e.g. working overtime without compensation) (Horton, 2016).

So, what do you say? You say nothing. Because the individuals that have come illegally do not in any way, shape, or form enjoy the same benefits of residence that you, I, or legal immigrants enjoy. Do not simplify these issues by reducing them to mere questions of legality. We must humanize these people and their experiences and give them the benefit of the doubt.

They are not guilty until proven innocent, they are people.

You can watch the full video here.

Reference: Horton, S. B. (2016), Ghost Workers: The Implications of Governing Immigration Through Crime for Migrant Workplaces. Anthropol Work Rev, 37: 11–23. doi:10.1111/awr.12081