While immigration issues in certain nations truly pertain to matters of national security and can pose a threat, in most of the Western world, migration is a weapon of political policy used to justify the expansion of government at the expense of the common people. In the name of “helping people” or “protecting the nation”, tension is injected into society for the purpose of the government stepping in an acting as an arbiter, which most of the time results in the expansion of state power and the erosion of rights.
The situation with the US-Mexican border is a very common example of this, as not only is the border well-patrolled, but most of the illegal migration is allowed for economic and political purposes, as the vast armies of undocumented and underpaid workers circumvent labor laws and allow for a massive supply of cheap food that is used to keep domestic peace and home while creating foreign dependence on US food, leading to political and social control. Likewise, it is used to make Americans who adhere to either political party upset, and thus to pass more laws that, when one considers them outside of the immediate context they are presented within, serve to make Americans more as “prisoners” at home than what they are already.
Following this theme, the Trump administration had declared their intention to propose a regulation next year that would require all travelers – including U.S. citizens – to be photographed when entering or leaving the United States, that would include invasive biometric scans and naturally, their being logged into an undefined Federal database.
The proposed regulation, slated to be issued in July by the Homeland Security Department, would be part of a broader system to track travelers as they enter and exit the United States.
The plan has already drawn opposition from some privacy advocates. Jay Stanley, a senior policy analyst with the American Civil Liberties Union, blasted the idea in a written statement on Monday.
“Travelers, including U.S. citizens, should not have to submit to invasive biometric scans simply as a condition of exercising their constitutional right to travel,” he said.
The Trump administration contends in its regulatory agenda that the face scan requirement will combat the fraudulent use of U.S. travel documents and aid the identification of criminals and suspected terrorists. (source)
“Terrorism” has been the excuse given for actions such as these for the last two decades.
According to the story, the Trump administration also said it plans to issue a separate fast-track regulation this month that would allow the entry-exit project to move beyond a pilot status, and would be a continuation of similar pilot programs that collect photographs and fingerprints from foreign travelers.
This program might be able to help “monitor” people who cross the border, but as the nature itself suggests, it only applies to “legal” migrants. What is to stop an “illegal” migrant- something which the US frequently permits to happen -from going into this system?
The issue here is not at all about actually helping people, or keeping the nation “safe”, or helping with border issues. The issue is solely one of power, and concentrating said power into the government that results in rights being taken away from the people and thus enslaves them more than what they already have become.
It will be interesting to monitor this program and see what it becomes in the months and coming year, and what the response will be from those who support Trump as well as from his critics, as ultimately the issue is not about who the political actor is in charge, but what he is advocating for.
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