Boston City Council Takes The "Pledge"

This week, Boston City Council unanimously passed a resolution sponsored by Sam Yoon and Michael Flaherty "supporting the principles of the 'Welcoming Massachusetts Pledge,' thereby committing to publicly reject the politics of division and isolation, blah, blah, blah." (I paraphrased that last part.)

You can read the "Welcoming Massachusetts Pledge" for yourself, but here's the part that jumped out at me:

"[We] Believe that harsh immigration enforcement policies violate civil and human rights of [illegal] immigrants and therefore the core vale taht all people are endowed with unalienable rights."

To quote Thomas Jefferson, "Holy crap!"

So illegal immigrants have the "unalienable right" come to America? Illegal immigrants who are denied the "civil right" to live in America are equal to black Americans denied their civil rights during the Jim Crow era?

Is that really what the Boston City Council believes?

I could give a more accurate answer if the sponsor of this resolution, Sam Yoon, had the guts to come on my show and explain his support for the Pledge. Instead, his office told us that "he's not going to engage in destructive dialogue." Whatever that means.

If you're looking for some "destructive dialogue," you might want to try Steve Bailey's column in that notorious right-wing rag, the Boston Globe-Democrat. He quotes economists from Harvard and Northeastern (two more havens of reactionary xenophobia) confirming that illegal immigration hurts low-skilled Americans--particularly black and Hispanic Americans.

Does City Councilor Chuck Turner understand that's what he voted for?

Who knows--he ain't talkin', either.