Letters: SC Senate’s anti-refugee bill is counter-productive

Smiling faces, beautiful places? It’s a great day in South Carolina? That was years ago. Now it is angst and paranoia in the Palmetto State; fear and loathing in Columbia. Now we have the S.C. Senate’s refugee registration bill, S.997 — a blockade of fear to keep refugees out of our state.

Perhaps some feel this is a good idea. Some legislators just might think it is such a great idea that next session they’ll want to create this kind of registry for all immigrants, or all Sikhs, Guatemalans, Jehovah’s Witnesses — or maybe everybody in Rock Hill.

It can’t happen here? It is happening here.

This kind of thinking, and acting, is wonderful public relations for extremists. It does not keep terrorists out of the state. It helps them recruit, and expand. We can take additional reasonable precautions to protect ourselves from terrorism. This bill is not reasonable. If it became law, it would be self-defeating.

Fear can be contagious. Small minds seek to cultivate and harvest fear. Where are the leaders who can think and behave reasonably? Where are the voters who don’t want to buy snake oil peddled by self-serving demagogue charlatans? I hope the House or our invigorated governor will bury this bad bill.

This story was originally published April 5, 2016 at 2:22 PM with the headline "Letters: SC Senate’s anti-refugee bill is counter-productive."