I read with interest Anne Hamilton’s op-ed in Tuesday’s WHT as well as some of the rebuttals in Wednesday’s paper. While the rebuttals pointed out a list of factual inaccuracies in her letter, I would like to touch on some of the broader issues that are raised in her letter.
As a political independent I enjoy the luxury of coming to my own conclusions on any number of issues. I have no desire to be boxed in to one political camp where I am required to be outraged simply because that is what is expected of me on a particular issue. There are some conservative viewpoints I agree with and some liberal ideas that I support. It is from this position that I would like to toss out a few thoughts and questions regarding Mrs. Hamilton’s letter.
First, Mrs. Hamilton discusses the current immigration crises while using the term “fact-less news,” which I assume is the same as “fake news.” While I hear this term being thrown around constantly these days, I had literally never heard this expression until a few years ago when our current president started campaigning for office. Can someone help me understand what this is supposed to mean?
My interpretation, and I hope it is incorrect, is that a powerful man running for president simply stated to the American people that going forward if one reads or hears anything in the free press that does not praise or show unquestioned loyalty toward said powerful man then it is fake news. On the flip side, any press that supports and agrees with the thoughts and viewpoints of this powerful man must be real and accurate by default. Did half the American population really just take this person at their word and say, yeah, that sounds about right?
I am well aware that there are many media outlets driven by bias, opinions, and certain political beliefs. However, are you telling me that I can’t consume a variety of print and television media and make up my own mind on the issues because one individual with a particular agenda is telling me they are all fake? I must ignore everything I read in the Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, National Geographic, or the New York Times and rely solely on Fox and Friends for the “facts?” Please tell me I am missing something here.
Secondly, in defending her support for children being torn away from parents who are seeking political asylum, and being tossed into cages, Mrs. Hamilton asks those who don’t agree with her viewpoint to stop being haters. Wow, this statement is so thick with irony there simply is not enough space here to dig deeper in to the hypocrisy of what she is saying. I will just say policies based on hate and fear are exactly what is separating these families right now at the border, and what is driving much of our current isolationist and xenophobic domestic agenda.
No, Mrs. Hamilton, hate and a lack of access to the “truth” is not what makes me oppose families being broken apart as part of immigration policy. It is a simple belief, a Christian belief, that one is obligated to help to the best of their ability those who are on the fringes of society, the poor, the scared, the politically persecuted, the hungry, the discriminated, basically the marginalized people of the world. I am not a religious scholar by any means, but I am fairly certain these are very basic Christian teachings which I happen to believe in.
Let’s be clear, if an immigrant shows up at the border with cocaine strapped to their back and a pistol in their belt, indeed they should be arrested and deported. While MS13 and other Latin drug gangs are certainly a huge problem in our country, so are Russian gangs, the Aryan Brotherhood, the Italian mafia, Irish gangs, domestic street gangs, and so on. Strange how we hear so little about them.
In reality the current crisis on the border is about families seeking political asylum who are fleeing countries from different parts of the world where their lives are in imminent danger, from any number of sources. They are literally trying to survive and find a better life. To respond to these folks asking for help by throwing them in prison and taking their children, or simply telling them your particular country is not welcome here, is just really puzzling to me. It just doesn’t sound like the America I am familiar with.
Which leads me to my final thought. I’m curious why the undertone of many of these letters imply that I am somehow less patriotic or less American because I have certain beliefs that perhaps do not align with the current administration or the far right.
I would argue the opposite. I feel my respect and admiration for basic American laws and ideas that make this country so special such as open elections free of foreign interference, a free press, the right to peacefully protest, the separation of powers, the right to live free of discrimination, a willingness to help those in need, and the fact that our entire country was built by immigrants of all skin colors, makes me more patriotic, not less.
Ultimately, the uniqueness and nobility of these ideas is what makes our country much larger than any one person or political party and what has always set us apart in the world. Now that is real news.
Eric Garrett is a resident of Kailua-Kona