It has recently received less media attention, but immigration is a hot-button issue in modern American politics.
As a Libertarian I have political views that align with both major parties (Republican and Democrat) at times. In this case, I believe the moral, obligatory and economically, beneficial position is to favor open borders.
First, it is crucial to recognize that the burden of proof is on those who favor restricted immigration. Why should someone who has a job and apartment waiting for him or her on the other side of the border not be allowed to cross? The idea that just because someone was born in Haiti rather than Miami they aren’t allowed access to a better life is ludicrous.
From what data we have, the hourly wage of the average Haitian is four dollars, according to Salary Explorer’s average Haitian salary converted into US dollars based on a forty-hour work week. In contrast, The National Equity Atlas provides that the median American hourly wage is twenty-two dollars. On average, a capable Haitian immigrant could make five times more per hour in the United States. Immigrants moving here would be able to have a far higher standard of living, and employers (especially recently) are always willing to hire at reasonable rates. We could increase the productivity of our economy and allow the immigrants a higher standard of living in one move.
Many conservatives will argue that allowing more open borders will result in an influx of crime—well, let’s examine that.
Currently, relatively few immigrants are allowed in legally. Criminals and cartels are more likely to fly or sneak over the border illegally, meaning that of all immigrants (legal and illegal) we have a significantly higher proportion of criminals than would come if we allowed open borders. (Not to mention the fact that the war on drugs is fueling this fear of cartels)
There are thousands of honest families and young people who want to move to America to create a better life—what authority do we have to deny them that? Preventing immigration is a violation of natural rights, economically unwise and cruel to the honest migrant. An open borders policy is humane and protects the liberty of all individuals, not only those who happened to be born on this side of the line.
