Today, The Seattle Times reported that
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security will approve Washington state’s pilot project for use of enhanced driver’s licenses, rather than passports, by Americans crossing the border into British Columbia
This plan will make it more affordable, therefore easier, for Americans to travel to British Columbia. It is my fervent wish that every white American traveling from the U.S. to any other country would be treated the way Americans treat Mexicans trying to cross into the U.S.
Detained by border agent. Source: New York Times
There would be two important benefits to this plan. If white Americans experienced discrimination and brutality firsthand, then maybe we would do something about the way Mexicans, Central Americans, and South Americans are treated by the Border Patrol, the U.S. government, and the American people.
Holding room in Yuma. Source: New York Times
In addition, we must consider the safety and integrity of the countries to which white Americans travel. I can’t think of a group of people who have demonstrated that they are more dangerous, more destructive, or more selfish than white Americans. Don’t say you haven’t been warned.
The Bipolar View 
“I can’t think of a group of people who have demonstrated that they are more dangerous, more destructive, or more selfish than white Americans.”
As a white American women, I’d have to say I largely agree. Although, I do believe it might be more appropriate to state “white, Christian and/or Conservative American” rather than simply “white Americans”. I realize that statement is likely to seriously piss off some people reading; most of the people in my own family get pissed when I make statements like that. And yes, I do make statements like this around my own family (my family is mostly conservative and Christian) and Christian and conservatives in general in person, not just when I’m hiding behind a computer screen.
Faith-I used to specify “conservative”, though as an atheist, I usually leave religion alone. But seeing how the majority of liberals behave, I’m not letting them off the hook. Liberals are just culpable as conservatives are. While conservatives tend to be more outwardly hateful, liberals focus on “their” own issues too, and I don’t care that liberals sometimes pay lip service to “the immigration issue” or “illegal immigrants”. Too little, too late.
Well, I certainly didn’t mean to imply that Liberals should be “let off the hook”. But it is generally the conservatives that are the worst when it comes to being staunch “nationalists”. The liberals might not do much activism related to immigration, but at least they usually support immigration and do their best to stay the hell out of the way of immigrants whereas white conservatives/christians tend to be openly racist and would love to not only close the borders but kick anyone who doesn’t have white skin outside the borders before they do.
No, I didn’t think you were implying that. And you’re right about staunch nationalists generally being conservative. I just think that liberals do a lot more harm than we often think they do. They’re not out there joining the citizen’s militia (I can’t think of the name of the group that goes out and tries to catch people crossing the border), but they’re still protecting the status quo.
It was bill clinton that enforced increased militarization of the border thus forcing more people to cross in more dangerous places–there have been more deaths at the border since he implemented the militarization than all the other years combined. And that’s just the deaths we know about.
This was a deliberate choice he made to increase militarization of the border and he did it with the full support of his party.
*nods*
it’s sad, but one of the few things that i’ve seen propel the average liberal types into real advocacy and alliance is the feeling of the ever tightening grip of a government gone terribly wrong. and as lani guinier points out, white america feels the sting long after everyone else. what is disconcerting to us now has been an emergency for others for some time.
Bfp: “It was bill clinton that enforced increased militarization of the border thus forcing more people to cross in more dangerous places–there have been more deaths at the border since he implemented the militarization than all the other years combined”
If I’m remembering correctly, there was a lot of *gloating* at that time-people swaggering over how it would be impossible for anyone to cross. I remember activists saying that many more people were going to DIE, and they (Clinton, the rest of the govt, the public) just didn’t care.
Didn’t care.
Sly-Yes, white Americans don’t care until they personally feel the pain. But they’re so well-insulated from everything, that I’m afraid there won’t be a massive uprising until everyone else is long gone.
And crap, I’m a white American. I’m not trying to hold myself above all the privileged white people.
Beautifully put, SE.
Yep. Great post. The pictures really drive it home.