Abby Rich, Guest Writer
Did you know that the U.S. allows more legal immigration than all the other countries in the world combined? Contrary to the popular belief amongst many Americans, the U.S. is the most generous country when it comes to immigration. J.D. Vance does not want to end immigration, but rather wants to make it a more just and orderly process to protect our nation and legal migrants. There is nothing about this that conflicts with Catholicism.
The U.S. Catholic Conference of Bishop’s official stance on immigration states, “People have the right to migrate to sustain their lives and the lives of their families, a country has the right to regulate its borders and control immigration, and a country must regulate its borders with justice and mercy.” Recently, Pope Francis wrote a letter criticizing mass deportation and Vance’s use of Ordo Amoris, stating that it is Catholic duty to prioritize the marginalized and at risk. The U.S. allows at least 50,000 individuals annually to enter the country in the case of refugee crisis, and they are typically allowed to bring three additional persons through chain migration. In 2023, 60,050 people were allowed entry into the U.S. as refugees, which is the largest number since 2016. It sounds great to allow any and all individuals seeking asylum to come into the country, right? Unfortunately, there is far more to consider logistically. There has to be processes in place to regulate this, as the Pope acknowledged when he additionally reiterated that countries have a right to protect their borders in that same letter.
It is not against Catholicism to deport illegal immigrants. It is not against Catholicism to protect the American citizens that voted to put these individuals in office to protect them and their families. It is not against Catholicism to engage in mass deportation as an attempt to alleviate the consequences of the previous administration, which allowed millions of undocumented individuals to cross our borders and threaten the safety and wellbeing of American citizens.
The number of encounters with inadmissible immigrants have more than tripled in the last four years. Arrests of noncitizen individuals for crimes other than entering the country illegally have more than doubled since 2017. 13,000 illegal immigrants who gained entry into the U.S. under the Biden administration were charged with homicide in other countries, while 400,000 have criminal records. Are all illegal immigrants violent criminals? Of course not. But the fact is, there are severe consequences to allowing illegal immigrants to maintain residency in the United States. You might not agree that the Trump administration’s mass deportation approach is considered compassionate and just, but what is the alternative?
Could Trump and Vance engage in more merciful and empathetic practices regarding deportation? Absolutely. Not all Republicans are merciless monsters who want every illegal immigrant immediately deported with no second thought. ICE is currently focusing on apprehending individuals who came into the country illegally who have committed additional crimes and have expressed that collateral deportations are possible as a result. The executive order allowing ICE agents to enter churches and schools is not nearly as cruel as many people express. These agents often arrive in plain clothes, proceed to the main office, and present warrants to the school administration, who typically summon the child to the office. The agents seek to avoid any disruption and are not allowed to enter the classrooms or halls without authorization. Do I agree that it is entirely necessary for ICE agents to be able to enter schools? Not necessarily. But ICE is not made up of barbaric people ruthlessly apprehending any illegal immigrant in their path without compassion.
At the end of the day, many Republicans, including myself, would agree that the language used by Trump and Vance can be insensitive and lacking compassion. Illegal immigrants are people just like us, and their lives are just as valuable as anyone else’s. I hope that more empathy and compassion will be exercised in the future. I pray that all people, no matter what beliefs they hold, can see each other through a more empathic lens. Vance has made poor decisions, as every human does, but he is not acting in opposition to Catholicism. I challenge you to ask yourself: is your opinion motivated by emotion or formulated through considering rationale and fact?