The debate over immigration in America: boundaries between humanity and politics

The debate over borders and politics, and the debate over immigration in America, has led to a loss of humanity and created boundaries between humanity and politics.

Recent statements by Vice President J.D. Vance have once again put the issue of immigration at the center of the political and theological debate in the United States. In defending the Trump administration's strict policies, he has attempted to portray the Catholic Church and the Pope as aligned with this approach, a narrative that has both supporters and serious critics among the American Christian community.

In an interview with Breitbart, Vance cited the words of Pope Leo XIV, saying, “I think every country has the right to determine who, how, and when can enter their country.” A self-described devout Catholic, he explained the official church view as follows: “You have to treat immigrants with humane principles, and at the same time, every nation has the right to control its borders.”

"How you strike that balance is very important," Vance added. "There's a lot of room to really control your borders for your own people."

Although Pope Leo XIV has emphasized: "No one said the United States should have open borders."
But he also warns that treating immigrants who have lived in the United States for years with "extreme disrespect" is unacceptable. "These people have a good life and have been in the United States for 10, 15, 20 years," the pope reminds us.

These remarks highlight a glaring divide between the right to control borders and the moral duty of Christians to uphold human dignity, a divide that is now deeply activated at the heart of American politics.

Vance continued his conversation, warning that open borders are not good for the dignity of illegal immigrants themselves. He also gave examples of human trafficking and child exploitation, claiming: "We had young children being trafficked for sexual purposes. Under the Biden administration, we had 300,000 missing children, and in some cases, cartels were using 9- and 10-year-olds as drug traffickers."

“When you empower cartels and human traffickers, whether in the United States or anywhere else, you empower the worst of the worst,” he concludes.

This literature, often heard in right-wing media, presents illegal immigration not only as a security problem, but also as a moral and human threat.

In contrast, a recent message from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) struck a very different tone. The bishops warned that the climate created around immigrants is one of fear, humiliation, and cruelty. “We are concerned about the conditions in detention centers and the lack of access to spiritual care,” they wrote. “We are saddened to see parents fearing arrest when they take their children to school.”

They also called for an end to “mass and indiscriminate expulsions” and “inhumane rhetoric and violence” against migrants. Indeed, the church’s perspective has its limits, but these are Christian moral boundaries, not barbed wire.

These teachings dictate that immigrants, especially the vulnerable, are not merely an administrative issue but a human being in need of love and justice.

Today’s debate is between two approaches: “The political-security approach, which emphasizes border control, preventing smuggling, and protecting citizens. The theological-moral approach, which focuses on human dignity, family, refuge, justice, and Christian compassion.” These two approaches can both be aligned and contradictory. The problem arises when politics reduces humans to a “threat.”

It seems that America's main challenge is not in "border control", but in how people are treated when controlling borders.

J.D. Vance's statements show that part of the government sees immigration as a security issue. The bishops' statement and the Pope's words also clearly show that the Church sees immigration as a human and moral issue.

The question now for the Christian community, many of whom are also immigrants, is: Can we maintain border security and still treat immigrants with the dignity that Christ demanded of his followers?