American political elites and their bobbing talking heads in the media continue to labor under the misapprehension that a people are defined by their borders, not that borders are defined by their people. Many of the intractable conflicts across the globe resist solution due in large measure to this utopian mindset. The middle-east provides the most vivid example of this straightjacketed thinking. As even the most casual observers know, the national boundaries established at the end of World War One had little to do with the ethnic and tribal allegiances of the people who were actually living there. Ukraine is another example. The borders of this nation have shifted nearly every generation for the past thousand years despite the arduous efforts of international elites to fix them in perpetuity. What the oh so wise diplomats fail to consider are those pesky little people who actually live in these places. The American South-West is not immune to these forces. If as a result of mass immigration, both legal and illegal, the South-West reverts to a majority Spanish speaking enclave with ethnic and historical ties to Mexico, of what value will the current border be? Furthermore, if at some future date, perhaps as early as fifty years from now, the population of this area seeks to secede from the United States or desires an anschluss with Mexico, will the US use force of arms to stop them? This is what we are witnessing all across the globe today - the phenomenon that borders do not define a people, people define borders. The indigenous people of Ireland insist on having an Irish political entity with borders they define - not outsiders. The same can be said of the Russians who inhabit eastern Ukraine, the Basques who inhabit northern Spain, the Bretons who inhabit Brittany, the Scots who inhabit Scotland, the Kurds who inhabit northern Iraq, the Armenians who inhabit eastern Turkey, the Francophones who inhabit Quebec. The list goes on. We share a collective sigh of relief that in Scotland, Quebec and elsewhere these questions are being decided peaceably and democratically in referendums. Elsewhere, as we have seen, dominant national elites are not so eager to see their existing borders changed or their countries fragmented. What is abundantly clear is that violence, tragedy and grief will persist as long as powerful national governments seek to impose their will on restive, indigenous independence movements. Self-determination cannot forever be repressed or denied. For we Americans, who have the potential to wield the most devastating power, it is advisable to exercise the greatest restraint, to refrain from taking sides in these ubiquitous disputes, to be sure we are doing nothing to make matters worse or more dangerous for the people caught in these conflicts. Moreover, with sobriety and foresight, we must to look to our own national cohesion and our own national unity as a people - before we too sink into the balkanized conflicts of Europe and the Middle-East. Yes, we too are a people. Our peoplehood is worthy of respecting and cherishing as we work out sensible and compassionate solutions at our own southern border.
Posted on: Wed, 23 Jul 2014 12:59:39 +0000
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