Holder: Amnesty Is a ‘Civil Right’

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, in remarks that largely have escaped notice, has claimed that “creating a mechanism for [illegal aliens] to earn citizenship and move out of the shadows . . . is a matter of civil and human rights.”

Holder also said that the federal government will work hard “to safeguard the rights of language minorities.”

These claims are likely to add fuel to the growing controversy over the Senate amnesty proposal developed by the so-called “Gang of Eight.”

Holder made these remarks in an April 24 speech to the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund Awards Gala. {snip}

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Holder framed the amnesty proposal in grand terms:

“The way we treat our friends and neighbors who are undocumented–by creating a mechanism for them to earn citizenship and move out of the shadows–transcends the issue of immigration status. This is a matter of civil and human rights.”

Steven Camarota of the Center for Immigration Studies tells WND, “[T]he idea that people have a right to come and live in the United States is very problematic.”

He points out that, for centuries, sovereign nations have regulated “who may enter their territory.”

Camarota also rejects the “rights” language because amnesty favors non-citizens at the expense of citizens, particularly those who are less affluent.

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