“We are all immigrants” — photo by Robert Stribley

Sinister Step: The DHS Plan to Collect Social Media Info from All Immigrants

DHS will gather social media data from permanent residents and naturalized citizens. What are the implications?

Presuming the accuracy of this report that the Department of Homeland Security will begin collecting social media information from all immigrants, including both permanent residents and naturalized citizens, I have a few thoughts to share as both an immigrant and a citizen.

Some important questions first:

How does the DHS plan to collect this information from all immigrants and naturalized citizens? How would they vouch for the accuracy and complete submission of the information? What is the penalty for not providing this information?

Possibly the answer to the first two questions is that some of the information will be gathered by the DHS without our submitting it. So that practice would assume some important accuracy on their part. They would have to ensure, for example, that they were not confusing people. They would have to determine whether an account they’re reviewing is real or fake, etc.

All that said … this is insane. More importantly tho, it’s unjust, discriminatory and sinister. Yes, sinister. The sinister thing about this practice would be that it’s creating an increasing distinction between the rights of “natural born” citizens and “foreign born” or naturalized citizens. Now, guess who has long been advocating for this sort of distinction? Right wing nationalists and white supremacists. Many of you who are immigrants have probably encountered this sort of thinking before. The idea being that if you weren’t born here your actions and opinions aren’t valued like those of “natural born” citizens. And that by right of your simply being born here, your opinions, your vote is more important. It also clearly puts an emphasis of suspicion on the “foreign” characteristic of naturalized citizens. As such, it serves to “otherize” foreign-born citizens of the United States.

So if asked to provide this information, I will refuse to cooperate. On principle. My social media accounts are all public anyway, except for selecting posts individually on Facebook. It’s not a question of whether I have anything to hide. As Edward Snowden said, “Arguing that you don’t care about the right to privacy because you have nothing to hide is no different than saying you don’t care about free speech because you have nothing to say.”

So many people like myself will have to call upon the services of the ACLU if need be in response to this activity. (Presuming these early reports are accurate.) It certainly appears this hostile proposal would prove unconstitutional and specifically would violate the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment.

All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside. No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. — 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution

I hope that everyone reading this understands this need not be a partisan issue. It’s simply a matter of privacy and justice. The U.S. government under the Trump administration is trying to broaden its already creeping rationale for discrimination.

Let’s refuse to view naturalized Americans as second-class citizens. They’re simply … citizens.