Why the Argument that Illegally Coming Here is Wrong Because it is Illegal is Flawed

Whenever possible, it is arguably best to do something legally. That way, we can better ensure that we will not be in legal trouble, and most laws. When I see someone who I know doing something that is illegal, has minimal-to-no benefits, and can easily be avoided, I always try to remind them that they not be doing whatever it is they are doing that is illegal.

While breaking the law should be avoided as much as possible, it is important to note is that it is not the fact that something is illegal that makes it wrong. Rather, it is the fact that the person committing an illegal act will probably face negative consequences and that the illegal act in question would be unlikely to do much if any good. Whether something is illegal or not does not determine the morality of it. Lots of things that have been illegal were not actually immoral. For example, it was illegal for slaves in the US to try to escape their owners. It was also illegal when Rosa Parks sat in the part of the bus that was reserved for white people. So if a person's position is that coming here illegally is wrong because of it being illegal, they would have to condemn the actions of lots of people who fought for various rights that people have today. It is an appeal to authority fallacy, which is a fallacy that assumes that a person or people deemed to be authority figures on a certain subject are necessarily right.

The other problem with arguing that illegal immigration is wrong because of it being illegal, which slightly relates to the problem with it previously mentioned, is that even the people making the argument have probably unknowingly done something they would not deem to be a criminal act that is illegal. For example, parking in certain spots is illegal. Yet, we usually do no call people who have done that "illegal drivers". This may be arguing semantics, but the fact is, if someone is saying that illegal immigration is immoral because it is illegal, that itself is a semantics argument.

There may be an argument or two against illegal immigration that is convincing, but the fact that it is illegal is not one of them. Otherwise, we would basically be saying that whatever lawmakers say is good for us is good for us. As most of us probably know though, that is far from the truth.