Martin Luther King’s Position on Illegal Immigration May Surprise You
Dr. King’s lawyer, speech writer and confidant shares what he believes the leader would say on this issue — his answers revealed that King really loved America.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was a man who stood for nonviolence, justice and peace. He also had great vision. His friend, Rev. Billy Graham, believed that he was a prophet. As a result, people have used his name to validate and give their credibility their missions. They would say, “Dr. King would support this, or he would be against that,” not fully knowing what his position would be.
Only people who were really close to King would know what he would say on today’s issues. Outside of his best friend, Ralph Abernathy, and wife, Coretta Scott King, Dr. Clarence B. Jones is probably the best person that would know the futuristic thoughts of the civil rights leader.
Clarence B. Jones was Dr. King’s personal attorney, speech writer, confidant and good friend. MLK recruited him in 1960 to be the legal advisor for his organization, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). Jones remained in that position for the remainder of King’s life (and a few years afterwards). The two men were like-minded on many issues. That’s why it’s safe to say that Jones would know what King would probably say on many issues. In his book, “What Would Martin Say”, Attorney Jones provided great insights on how Dr. King would have viewed illegal immigration. He said that Martin would say this to immigrants:
“If you are in this country illegally, have you come here in order to protest what you consider an unjust law? If you haven’t, then for whatever other reason (even if it’s to make money for your sick child), you’re violating the immigration laws of this country and deserve no more consideration from the authorities than does a thief.”
“If you choose to stay here, I hope that you will come out of the shadows and apply legally and then jump through whatever hoops that entails, just as I would have to if I wanted to remain in your country without breaking the law. And should that lead to your deportation, I hope charitable people with means will help will help your child financially.”
Based on this position, King would have wanted what made sense to the welfare of both parties involved — from a legal standpoint. He would support legal immigration and an organized route for asylum seekers (not just catch and release).
Writer, Teresa Albano wrote an MLK article on the subject years ago. She argued that our immigration laws were “unjust”. She also implied that illegal immigrants have a battle that is similar that of the civil rights movement, led by MLK. Jones stated that Dr. King would have found this comparison offensive. During the civil rights movement, Blacks were AMERICAN CITIZENS who were denied their inalienable rights.
The Illegal immigrant situation is altogether different. Their ancestors were never dragged here in chains against their will. They were never slaves, nor lynched in America. They were never exposed to Jim Crow laws. Still, immigrants travel here waving their country’s flags as if they have a right to be here. At one point, Vice President Kamala Harris told them not to come America, but she was simply ignored.
Dr. King Would Want Our Country Protected And Secured
Martin Luther King supported the U.S. Constitution — it allowed him to march and protest, despite illegal injunctions that tried to stop him. He obeyed just laws. His issues were with “unjust laws.” In this case, he would practice civil disobedience (disobeying the law peacefully) to get them changed. Therefore, the question is — were past illegal immigration prevention policies, JUST or UNJUST? In terms of not spreading COVID-19, and protecting the country against unknown criminals (esp. after 9/11), they appeared to be just.
In contrast, many people who support open borders don’t seem to be care about the safety of the country. Fentanyl drug trafficking and those who were criminals in their own country should be of great concern. Even worse, terrorists are probably lurking within the crowds. Attorney Jones stated that at least four of the 9/11 hijackers were undocumented illegal immigrants who were allowed to roam the country. They went through illegal channels to get authentic-looking fake IDs which allowed them to board the planes. This lead to the worse terrorist attack in U.S. history, with 3,000 people dead. We should never forget that.
His point is very powerful. We should never allow our desire to help others, put our own country in jeopardy. It is believed that most immigrants are on their best behavior in order to enter the country. But we really don’t know who they are (not even those who appear to be harmless). Due to open borders, we may have already allowed in terrorists who will pull off the next 9/11 attack.
What Did Dr. King “ACTUALLY” Say About Illegal Immigration?
It is unknown what Dr. King actually said about illegal immigration during his lifetime. There is no record of him advocating for against it. If he did, Clarence Jones would have been a part of the discussions. King was primarily concerned about the problems that African-Americans were struggling with in America.
Recently, a Black woman in Chicago spoke at a town hall meeting. She said that she didn’t like illegal immigrants being dumped into her neighborhood, while those going thru the legal process had to wait years to become residents.
At the same meeting, an African-American man also expressed his feelings. “They (illegal immigrants) come in to compete for jobs, goods and contractor services. What about black children in the ghetto? We’ve got to make a future for them!”
To the contrary, others will say, “there are so many job openings in our land of opportunity.” This is only partially right. There are many job openings in some industries, but jobs are still hard to find in others.
Most of the abundant jobs are in the service sector. However, the economy never stays the same and eventually unemployment will be an issue, again. That means that American citizens will eventually compete for fewer jobs against illegal immigrants if the current policy continues. With his great foresight, MLK would have seen this as a potential problem down the road.
Pastor Corey Brooks, the CEO of Project H.O.O.D. in Chicago stated, “Most Blacks have no problem with legal immigration, we are welcoming (them) to our communities. The problem that we are experiencing is the illegal immigration that’s going on.” Brooks went on to say that the money that is used to assist illegal immigrants is being taken away from needy Chicago citizens. “A lot of the funds would have gone to our schools (which are deplorable) and fighting crime in our neighborhoods.” In other words, Brooks simply meant, “you have to take care of home, first.”
MLK would see a broken immigration system that needed to be fixed in a hurry. Since it takes time to pass laws (sometimes years), the president could issue an executive order to change things quickly. Building a border wall is also an option. Would Dr. King support these actions? We don’t know for sure. We do know that his decision would be based on what his conscience tells him. He would not worry about his popularity, or if millions of people disagreed with him. When he protested against the war in Vietnam, millions disagreed with his position, even other Black leaders. This did not deter King because he knew that his position was right.
Regarding illegal immigration, King would ask, “does our immigration policy violate God’s law?” “Does it protect our citizens?” If not, he would conclude that there is nothing inherently wrong for a country to enforce an immigration policy that would adequately screen people before they roam the country. MLK would suggest a plan that would determine “true asylum”, while protecting U.S. citizens and enforcing the rule of law. That means that many people would be deported, but some would make it through.
Conclusion
Finally, we should all have a desire to help our fellow man. However, we must use wisdom on who to help, and how many. Every year, the U.S. is the most generous country on earth. If we stopped giving today, no other country would even come close. But this country does not have an endless amount of resources. Not counting the slackers, there are many hard-working Americans who are struggling to survive. They should always come, first…. That’s just common sense.
