Immigration is a human right

This young family & 49 other immigrants were traveling in an inflatable boat trying to reach the coast of southern Spain when they were intercepted by Spanish border guards & the Red Cross a few miles off Alboran Island. Their countries were not identified except as sub-Saharan. In a matter of days, they’ll likely be deported. These are the faces of modern immigration. These are the kind of people Greek police are rounding up & deporting in a manner reminiscent of Nazi storm troopers. These are the kind of people trying to cross the US-Mexico border & dying in unspeakable misery. These are the same kind of people the Obama administration is rounding up & deporting in record numbers. In the US, the immigration rights movement is the most active social movement today (even larger than the antiwar movement) & has the potential to help revitalize a moribund labor movement--since it’s comprised mostly of working people & people who know how to fight for their rights. The labor movements in European countries appear to need some of that same energy & should begin with defending immigration rights as human rights. Open the borders! (Photo by Paquet/EPAT)