Is building a wall a response to national security or an exercise in ethnocentricity?
I believe it is both. At least in the minds of those who want to build a wall. They believe that it is in response to national security. Any psychiatrist (or other outside observer) might suspect ethnocentrism. Their reasoning might follow the saying "Good fences make good neighbors," but that "rule" only works as long as an entry point exists somewhere along the property to allow for kind and concerned neighbors or the occasional Jehovah's Witness. When one attempts to shut out everyone, one merely creates a stronger desire for outsiders to break through one's barrier, if only to see what's on the other side. This applies to physical as well as mental walls. In fact, one might argue that some put up their "walls" with the subconscious intention for others to break them down.
It is in man's nature to raise walls, generally to create some sense of security. But if walls invite, or dare I say, challenge outsiders, then what kind of security is one actually creating? Mostly that of the mental kind. Walls will never give total and complete physical security, but they sure can make one feel more secure. I believe supporters of the wall simply want to feel safer, regardless of actual, proven security. They may feel that all illegal immigrants are a danger to their way of life or actual life, and thus, they begin putting up their walls. First, they mentally build them in the form of ethnocentrism, racism, etc., then they start construction on their physical walls.
When our society begins putting up walls, we, as its citizens may want to look inwardly and ask ourselves, "Why do I feel as though shutting out differing cultures and, subsequently, differing thought processes will help me be safer?" The answer to this question may be difficult to accept, but it will be the first step to discovering humanity's true purpose: working with each others' differences to synergystically evolve our race as humans.
So I was watching Mulan (the Disney movie) last night with my kids. and the "Hun's" or the bad guys said to the emperor that when he built the way (Great Wall of China) that he challenged the Hun's army. I believe that when we cut ourselves off from the outside world a lot of situations/people will become hostile. I agree with what Vinnie is saying above. We need to ask an internal question to ourselves when we feel we need to build a physical wall to keep people out of our country. I feel that there are other ways to manage the issue.
ReplyDeleteI just don't see why we are treating the southern border different than Canada and say airplane customs borders? If someone was to enter illegally on a plane, they would have strict consequences. Why do we not keep the consequences consistent no matter what "border"?
ReplyDeleteI agree with you and here is why: Walls have been built for centuries to protect people's geographical areas, also to protect themselves from enemies. If someone is a lawbreaker, comes across the boarder illegally, he or she is defying or disregarding the laws of this country and thus the citizens feel violated. In this case walls do give a sense of security. On the other hand, I mentioned in my post that, people in general value their own ethnic groups. There is a sense of pride built in people, pride for their culture and country. And Americans do want their values protected and to have the right to exercise their own beliefs.
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