Free to Move by Ilya Somin

Author:Ilya Somin
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Published: 2021-06-15T00:00:00+00:00

Protecting the Culture

Immigrants can potentially introduce cultural values that are at odds with those of natives. This concern is often cited as a justification for restricting immigration. In Chapter 5, I criticized arguments to the effect that the dominant cultural group in a society has an inherent right to exclude migrants because of the principle of self-determination. That theory fails on multiple grounds.95

But even if nations have no general right to preserve existing cultures against potential change caused by migration, they might still have a legitimate interest in preventing the spread of cultural values that are likely to cause specific types of harm. For example, some cultures include invidious prejudice against women, gays and lesbians, and various religious and ethnic minorities. Others may promote violence and other types of crime.

Some immigration restrictionists also warn that unless migration is strictly regulated, culture clashes between immigrants and newcomers will lead to serious civil conflict.96 In the extreme case, some contend it might even result in “civil war.”97

Immigration restrictions can potentially inhibit the “importation” of various harmful cultural values. If the harm caused by them is great enough, the benefits of preventing it can potentially outweigh the benefits of allowing the group in question to immigrate—even including the benefit of enhancing political freedom.

Some of the danger potentially posed by migrants with harmful cultural values can be mitigated through restrictions on the franchise.98 If the migrants are not able to vote until they have become significantly assimilated into their new country’s culture, their potentially problematic values are unlikely to significantly influence government policy.

But culture can potentially influence society even if its bearers have little or no influence on public policy. If immigrants with “bad” values do not assimilate, they can have a negative impact on society over time, even if they cannot vote.

Fortunately, the problem is not nearly as severe as often claimed. Despite concerns about the supposed unwillingness of immigrants to assimilate,99 social science research indicates that recent immigrants to the United States have assimilated at least as quickly and thoroughly as those of past eras.100 It simply is not the case that they and others like them pose any significant threat of corrupting America’s culture and values. Complaints about current immigrants are no more defensible than very similar indictments of past immigrants, including the Irish, Eastern European Jews, and Asians, all of whom were once widely regarded as unassimilable threats to American values.101

The situation in Western Europe is more complicated, with some arguing that Muslim immigrants, in particular, pose a danger to European culture, citing polling data showing high levels of anti-Semitism, homophobic hostility to gays and lesbians, and other prejudices among Muslims living in European nations.102 Europe has clearly had greater difficulties dealing with Muslim immigration than the United States and Canada. However, it is far from clear that this is because Muslim immigrants’ culture is inherently inimical to Western liberal values.

The experience of Muslim immigrants in the United States suggests otherwise. Assimilation of Muslim migrants in the United States has

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