How the West’s immigration policies clash with values

IN TEXAS an infant is separated from his mother by the federal government to deter others from coming. In the Mediterranean a boat with some 630 migrants on board is prevented from docking at an Italian port, and Italy’s deputy prime minister seeks to boost his popularity by threatening to expel Roma people. In Berlin a coalition government may fall over how to handle immigration (see ). These things might look separate; in fact they are connected.The failure to gain political consent for immigration has been implicated in the biggest upheavals in the West: Brexit, Donald Trump’s victory, the grip Viktor Orban has over Hungary, the rise of the Northern League in Italy. All these events have pushed politics in a direction that is worrying for those who prefer their markets free and their societies open. This creates a painful trade-off. Resist the demands for more brutal immigration enforcement, and electorates may keep voting for candidates who thrive on blaming foreigners for everything. Accept the solutions proposed by the likes of Mr Trump (see ) or Mr Orban, and Western societies will offend against their fundamental values.