In the America of respectable conservatives, the term “undocumented worker” is perfectly accurate. In a paper country, why should one person be allowed to work on one side of the border and another not? To respectable conservatives, there is nothing racial or inherited or even cultural about Americans. To conservatives, being an America is entirely a matter of paperwork.

Why should one Julio get five times the wages of another Julio because he has papers?

When the Immigration and Naturalization Acts were passed in 1921 and 1923, it was decided that America was made up of a certain people, and immigration would keep that identity. Calling something illegal immigration made sense, since those laws followed a racial and cultural policy.

But for a melting pot, where the choice of citizens is openly random, no one can really take the word “illegal” seriously. In terms of American policy today, nothing about you matters except the papers.

The documents.

The term “undocumented worker” should be “undocumented citizen.” A bumper sticker ought to say, “I’m not a citizen, I’m just documented.”

Our borders are collapsing because we have declared they no longer make any sense.

A melting pot cannot be selective.