“We have lots of great social and political mechanisms for integrating people into the new society that they moved to.”

— Fabio Rojas

Is immigration a basic human right? Or is it a privilege?

This episode of Living Jewishly is an instalment of What Would You Do?, a podcast about ethics. In this episode, we explore the borderlines making up the ethics of immigration.

Immigration to Western countries is one of the most hotly debated and controversial topics of our time, sparking published thinkpieces, political debates, and arguments among acquaintances. 

Some people view immigrants with fear, seeing them as violent or criminal (a fear stoked by certain politicians), while others see them as people looking to move up the economic ladder, provide for their families, and lead productive lives, or as refugees in need of compassion and a safe haven.

Western governments must discern between these categories when developing their policies — and the line between “immigrant” and “refugee” can be life or death for millions of people.

Leading American scholars Fabio Rojas and Professor Kit Wellman join Dr. Elliot Malamet for a thought-provoking discussion on the ethical nuances of open borders, sovereignty, cultural integrity, moral responsibility, freedom of association, family reunification, and global distributive justice.

“The way I see it… you don’t fully have self-determination unless you enjoy freedom of association.”

— Professor Kit Wellman

This‌ ‌episode discusses:‌ ‌

• The concept of ‘open borders’ and what that type of policy could look like in practice 
• The idea of the right of the state to determine its own freedom of association 
• How global distributive justice ties into arguments about immigration, and whether it can be achieved through other means

Highlights:‌ ‌

• 00:51  Introduction
• 02:31  About Fabio Rojas & Professor Kit Wellman
• 03:10  What are open borders?
• 04:34  Argument for open borders
• 06:40  The sovereignty argument 
• 08:22  The “apocalypse” scenario
• 12:41  Culture & influence
• 16:20  The “moral responsibility” argument: Rojas
• 22:58  The “freedom of association” argument
• 27:29  What if the majority are wrong?
• 31:12  Family reunification
• 32:25  Distributive justice
• 39:55  The “moral responsibility” argument: Wellman 
• 45:07  American examples
• 47:51  The ‘hot potato’ problem
• 53:51  Rights v responsibilities

Links:‌ ‌

To get in contact or learn more about Living Jewishly:

Visit‌ ‌our ‌website: https://livingjewishly.org 

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Shalom!