All Undocumented Immigrants Should be Detained

Immigrant rights groups have lately been complaining about discriminatory treatment of illegal Haitian immigrants. On October 29, 2002 about 200 Haitians entered the US illegally. They had run their boat aground off Key Biscayne, Florida, then waded ashore. The Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) detained them, and an immigration judge ruled that they could be released on bond pending asylum hearings. The INS immediately put an "automatic stay" on the bail, preventing the release of the Haitians, citing national security concerns.

When Cuban refugees arrive in the US under similar circumstances, they are generally free within a few days to await their asylum hearings. This happened recently when a family of eight Cubans landed a small plane in Key West, Florida.

Immigration advocates claim that the difference in treatment is a symptom of racial discrimination. Federal officials counter that the Cubans receive special treatment because those living under Castro's communist rule are much more likely to be eligible for asylum due to political persecution. US immigration law grants asylum to people who escape such persecution, but denies it to those who flee other forms of bad living conditions.

I think there are valid concerns on both sides of this conflict. While I don't believe for a minute that our nation still harbors institutional racism, we do need to be careful to give equivalent treatment to people in similar situations. Chinese refugees, for example, are not generally accorded the courtesies that Cubans receive. The communist government of China is at least as repressive as Cuba's. The trip in the belly of a freighter across the Pacific Ocean is even more hazardous than the Haitians' or Cubans' flights. Why shouldn't they receive the same treatment that we give escaping Cubans?

On the other hand, we have a growing problem with aliens freely roaming our nation. No one knows how many terrorists or common criminals have entered the US undetected under the guise of seeking a better life. It is critical that we bring our borders under control.

The problem is not that the Haitians are being treated too harshly and with too much suspicion. Instead, the standard that is now used for Haitians and Chinese ought to apply to all undocumented aliens. It is even more likely that Castro will plant spies or saboteurs among Cubans escaping his prison island than it is for an enemy to slip in among entering Haitians. Cuban refugees should be detained until they prove that they are subject to political or religious persecution in their home country, just as those from Haiti and other nations are required to do.