Dr. Andrew Yuengert, the John and Francis Duggan Professor of Economics at Seaver College, Pepperdine University, discussed the various economic and moral dimensions of the critically important immigration issues facing America today. In an interview on The Jerry Bowyer Show yesterday, Dr. Yuengert talked about "The Right to Migrate" (MP3).
Dr. Yuengert argues, within the context of Catholic Social Teaching, that there is a “right to migrate,” but it is not an “absolute right.” This means that for policy discussions, “the purpose of rights-language is not to end public policy debates and disagreements, but to orient them toward the common good of all persons, natives of the host country and immigrants alike.”
In general, political arguments have been made in favor of limiting immigration, on the basis of the severe economic consequences to the U.S. Yuengert asserts instead that “the economic stakes of immigration policy are relatively small; if there are any real stakes, they are cultural,” and that “illegal immigration, with special emphasis on the qualifier ‘illegal’, as opposed to ‘undocumented’, is the source of our most severe immigration problems, and is our most urgent challenge.”
Related resources by Yuengert:
"What Is An American?," National Meeting of The Philadelphia Society, April 30, 2005.
"The Stranger who Sojourns with You: Toward a Moral Immigration Policy," Policyforum, no. 6 (Winter 2004).
Inhabiting the Land, no. 6, Christian Social Thought Series (Acton Institute, 2003).
On another note, Andrew Yuengert is also the author of The Boundaries of Technique: Ordering Positive and Normative Concerns in Economic Research (Lexington, 2004), part of the Studies in Ethics & Economics series, edited by Acton director of research Samuel Gregg. The Acton Institute has placed three books with Mind & Media, a blog book review service. If you have a blog and would like to review a free copy of Yuengert's book, become a Mind & Media exclusive reviewer today.
Article comments
1 - V. Ko
Interesting....I especially like how they state that the word "rights" is a debate-ender in the United States, and it shouldn't necessarily be one.
2 - Aaman
So where's the interview? Is it something you did?
3 - Jordan
The link is in the above post to this audio interview:
http://www.acton.org/press/mp3/2005-05-19_Yuengert.mp3
4 - Nancy
No one has a "right" to migrate anywhere. Immigration is solely at the goodwill and consent of the country being migrated to. If I want to go live in France, I go only with the consent and gracious acquiescence of the French government; not because I have a "right" to go, whatever is happening in my home turf regardless of whether I feel economically deprived or there's a war brewing or I just want more access to Starbucks. And if I want to migrate thence, I am also morally and legally obligated to observe the laws and requirements of France to prove I'm willing to be a citizen in good faith. The Catholic church makes all these grand socialistic pronouncements, but if you take their arguments apart, you find that their not-always-successfully-hidden agenda is to hopefully build up large populations of the Faithful, either by hook, crook, or incessant breeding, thereby enlarging their own power base. They would sell their souls to be able to rule the world again like they did in the middle ages. So much for the assertions of the Church for 'migration rights'. Sput! Into the circular file where they belong. As for immigrants, I don't think anyone in the US objects to LEGAL immigrants, but a lot of us object to illegals, with many good reasons, and I absolutely support denying them any kind of rights, including education, housing, or medical, I don't care where they come from or why.