Clarity of Words is the Enemy of Mass Immigration Advocates
In his essay, “Politics and the English Language,” George Orwell observed that political language, by its very nature, is crafted to deceive and manipulate. He argued that politicians and propagandists deliberately twist language into falsehoods so they become seemingly plausible statements hiding true agendas.
Another George — the late comedian and wordsmith, George Carlin — sharpened that point: “by and large, language is a tool for concealing the truth.”
This explains why Christian McGhee, a sixteen-year-old student at Central Davidson High School in Lexington, North Carolina was recently suspended for using the term “illegal alien” during his English class.
It’s a taboo term now, not because it’s inherently offensive, but because of its clarity and truth which, for the left, must remain hidden. The term “illegal alien” is the most legally precise, descriptive term in the lexicon. It delineates between one of only two possible categories: one either has legal status to be on U.S. soil, or one is residing here illegally. “Illegal” means prohibited by law. Yes, entry without inspection into the U.S. is prohibited. And “alien” is a term that refers to a person who is not a citizen of the country. The term is well defined in 8 U.S.C., Section 1101. It is used by legal professionals across the board including the United States Supreme Court.
But not everyone has the semantic luxury and the legal protections of a Supreme Court Justice. As Christian McGhee can attest, for most, publishing or uttering the words “illegal alien” now runs the risk of adverse consequences. The alternative use of “undocumented immigrant” or “New American” is mandatory and avoids punitive actions…despite the fact that the former doesn’t satisfy the definition of “immigrant” while the latter is an insult to true immigrants who opt for citizenship to become Americans.
While the correct term “illegal aliens” is being systematically eradicated for its clarity, it’s no surprise that two other immigration-related phrases — both fundamentally duplicitous — remain unchallenged and dominate virtually all discussion of immigration by the left and the news media.
“Comprehensive immigration reform” – offers abundant semantic capital for the left because of its perceived lofty aspirations that mask its real meaning: mass amnesty for all 16.8 million illegal aliens. Use this term and you won’t get suspended from school. In fact, you may get a wink and a nod from the teacher knowing that you’re “in” on the secret code words.
The good news is, however, that most Americans have broken the code and understand the term simply recycles as fashionable nomenclature within leftist echo-chambers.
But… then then there is “fixing a broken immigration system” – the crown jewel of the left’s language — and a phrase that is only growing in popularity, fueled by its repetition in every White House statement on immigration. It deceptively conveys a roll-up-your-sleeves-and-get-to-work virtue while suggesting large-scale, long-term repair work is needed to solve a problem for which the left is not the least bit responsible …and which is so daunting a task, you’ll excuse them please if they never get around to it and just let millions continue to spill into the country.
“Fix a Broken System.” Uh, what is there to “fix” exactly?
An often-heard metaphor in the true immigration reform movement is the flooded bathtub: upon discovery the first thing to be done is to shut off the water. Good advice, but notice there’s nothing broken to fix; the faucet, pipes, and water supply are working just fine. The room is flooded because there was no effort to monitor and properly regulate the flow so as not to exceed normal levels.
Likewise, and in reality, the only thing “broken” about America’s immigration system is the left’s unwillingness to actually enforce our existing immigration laws.
Deceptive narratives and rhetoric permeate today’s immigration debate; words and truth and action matter more than ever.
In a nutshell, enforce the laws on the books.
Like most Americans, both Mr. Orwell and Mr. Carlin might agree that’s pretty clear language.