Victor Davis Hanson
American Greatness
Martha’s Vineyard has been all over the news.
The tony resort community so loves aiding and comforting the undocumented immigrants who were flown in from Florida that it hugged them—for barely 48 hours.
Oddly, the Left became unhinged when red-state governors—whose states the last two years were flooded with some 3 million illegal aliens—finally decided to spread welcoming chores among affluent blue-state communities.
It was a natural fit.
Most, like Washington, D.C., and New York, were on record as sanctuary city jurisdictions. In the abstract, they endorse open borders and celebrate diversity—from the serenity of thousands of miles away.
The uproar at Martha’s Vineyard prompted the Democratic hierarchy to do some explaining. Why had it not earlier objected to the federal government night flights of tens of thousands of border crossers to red-state communities that had opposed illegal immigration?
And why be angry with governors who were only emulating that policy by flying in a mere 50 newcomers—in the light of day—to a far wealthier and liberal-minded sanctuary resort?
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis gave the nearly all-white, rich vacation spot an opportunity to match noble words with even nobler deeds. But in response, the one percent screamed that their small community could not possibly cope with a mere 50 new arrivals.
So far, wealthy progressive enclaves in Malibu, Aspen, and Napa have not stepped up to alleviate the “burden” put on their Martha’s Vineyard brethren.
They should ask how does a poor Yuma or El Paso sustain hundreds of thousands crossing illegally into their communities—once Joe Biden effectively rendered federal immigration law null and void?
The Martha’s Vineyard vacation mansion of the Obamas is currently vacant, as are most of his neighbors’ estates. Their expansive grounds could still serve as ideal centers for hundreds of immigrants to camp out.
Almost all arrivals would surely prefer the Obamas’ estate, scenery, and view than crowding among the impoverished at the border.
Here where I live in southern Fresno County, California, often ground-zero for illegal immigrant arrivals, receptive communities try hard to make space for immigrants.
On my avenue, small farmhouses are now rented to landlords who often manage to accommodate 20 or 30 immigrants on their small lots.
In fact, almost all farmhouses in my environs are surrounded by trailers, shacks, and sheds where hundreds of the undocumented live—to the total indifference of the state and utter neglect of California’s left-wing elite.
Instead, our apartheid living elite virtue signal that increased crime, gangs, drug smuggling, prostitution, and child trafficking do not accompany open borders.
From personal experience, I can attest that many have found otherwise.
But, to be fair, Martha’s Vineyard could serve as a permanent way station for border crossers. That way it might offer a more disinterested long-term assessment of the impact of illegal immigration on U.S. social services and communities.
The Vineyard could also offer the nation a test case to ascertain whether the frantic panic of its privileged reveals their xenophobic racism and stereotyping—or if those are all too understandable reactions to the politically driven, reckless, and inhumane open-borders policies of the Biden Administration.
This new idea of redirecting undocumented immigrants from swamped communities on the border to more supportive sanctuary well-off cities might also serve as an ethical model for us all on a variety of other issues.
For those who object to establishing grounds for the homeless far away from urban parks and downtowns, might they instead offer their own yards to help spread the burden among the entire community?
For those who mocked the efficacy of border walls, might they take a vow not to erect walls around their own estates?
For those who decry the inordinate carbon footprints of the consumer classes, might they pledge not to fly in private jets until catastrophic climate change abates?
For those who believe that natural gas is too carbonized a fuel to generate electricity or warm homes, can they pledge not to heat swimming pools or cool down their homes below 78 degrees?
For those who supported defunding the police and decriminalizing an array of previous misdemeanors and felonies, might they highlight the ensuing safety and security by not hiring private security guards?
For those who call for extensive gun control and decry the ubiquity of handguns, might they pledge not to hire armed security details?
For those who feel that charter schools undermine the public schools as much as unionized faculty empower them, might they eschew private prep schools?
The Martha’s Vineyard experience marks a unique opportunity for modern bicoastal progressivism.
View it as a landmark teachable moment to prove to the nation that leftists’ loud theories and utopian agendas merely reflect—rather than are at odds with—their own prior concrete and well-lived experiences.
Amen.
Rep. Ilhan “Princess” Omar called the move human trafficking.
She sounds like her district could take on some of the unfortunates.
I’m sure her litter bearers could use some relief.
VDH the great and greatly missed Rush Limbaugh has passed the sacred torch to you. We are praying you beat this terrible long covid because America needs you more than ever. P.S. Jack Fowler’s Bronx accent ain’t that bad.
VDH doing three hours a day with Jack & Sami Boe & Snerdly would be great!
This is fantastic. Last year we took a red eye flight from Salt Lake City to Orlando. In the waiting area across from our family were six minor children, all wearing the same clothing. They had two adults with them official-looking lanyards. I’m assuming those children were “unaccompanied minors” being flown – on the red eye – to Orlando. Was this “human trafficking” or “kidnapping” as DeSantis has been accused of committing with his flight to the Vineyard? The hypocrisy of liberals is unparalleled. There is a phrase in Spanish – sin verguenza which means (as I understand it) shameless or brazen. This defines the left.
A trip to the SW Navajo Nation lands revealed the appalling poverty of these Native Americans. The roots of their condition are many and deep but it Illustrates the failure to lift these NA out of poverty while providing substantial support to illegal immigrants.
For future reference:
And easy way for people to confirme their dedication to the utopian ideology is to read the following and take the appropriate action:
The biggest environmental impact associated with our animal companions comes from producing meat-based pet food, which uses land, water and energy resources, and is a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions. According to one estimate, owning a medium-size dog can have a similar carbon footprint to a large SUV.
Victor, you bear witness to a reality that is becoming all too familiar to every American who lives in a communitiy where the housing prices fall in, or beneath, the low seven digit range. We moved from a suburb of Seattle with high six- and low seven digit homes. The police were contracted from the county (King) and they were constrained by the same nonsense that characterizes Seattle. A coin store located 100 yards from the city police headquarters was robbed five years ago. The alarm triggered at 2-AM with the breach of the front door. A second alarm noted the breach of the door to the safe room. The owner called the police. They said they wouldn’t respond until he was onsite and could verify the alarms. The owner was a retired soldier (UK.) He went to his store, ready to do battle. But the culprits had cleared his shelfs and fled. Another jewerly store owner had a simliar experience and he recalled having an interesting conversation with the police about the shotgun he’d brought for self-defense, since he had to arrive before the poice would respond. They approved his choice his of weapons. Again the crooks had fled prior to his arrival. In our rural area, those roads with wide shoulders fifth-wheel trailers that park for a day and then move on. They are said to be meth-labs. The county does nothing. Perhaps because it would probably cost half a milion dollars to decontaminate the trailer using approved potocols. Better to to pretend that all is well. Elections count.
Requiring the proprietor’s presence as a precondition for the police to show up is a great insurance policy for them. If the proprietor is present and not yet dead, the likelihood of police being present and not yet dead increases exponentially. Insurance for them but not for thee.
The outrageously dear “costs” and protocols for drug-lab cleanup is designed with nothing more in view than a means of condemning and taking the subject property from the erstwhile owners.
The area you describe sounds a lot like Monroe area.
Right on!
Mr. Hanson,
I always have been a fan of your reasonable, down to earth, thinking. This maybe one of your better columns/thoughts that you have put out there. The Left, not liberals, are number one, driven by emotions, “what feels good, not what does good.” With the small number on the Left in power, we will continue to see the erosion of the America that we love. It’s time for the majority of Americans to finally wake up and say, enough, is enough.
Major thankies for the blog article. Really Great.