You broke it, you bought it…

If you are unaware of why conditions in Central America (being the nations from Guatemala to Panama) are so difficult, as a historian I work with those causes. Foremost in the economic and political instability in the region is the violation of the political and economic sovereignty of the region carried out by Great Britain and the United States for much of the nineteenth century, all of the twentieth century, and so far all of the twenty-first century (more recently Canada is also joining the fun).

On Law, Illegality, Borders and Morality: Thoughts on Central American Assylum Seekers

Friends and fellow voters: it is not unpatriotic to review both past practice and current policy in an effort to advocate for improvement. The real patriot and citizen looks at their country and aspires for it to live up to its highest potential instead of covering for its most primitive Hobbesian urges. If you believe the United States has the potential to be a shining city on a hill, there is nothing wrong in recognizing it hasn’t always lived up to that potential. Take the time in the upcoming voting season to select candidates who will reject our drift away from law when they declare asylum seekers and refugees “illegal,” and instead choose candidates who see the potential in what a truly inspired nation can accomplish. Keep our laws and provide asylum claim review on a speedy manner. Some people will be able to stay. Others will have to return to Central America. But live up to our moral obligation by providing livable conditions with united families now and engage in an act of repentance by healing the wounds caused in Central America by 150 years of intervention.