Racist

One of the surest tells of a racist is: when you ask them to explain their offensive behavior, they have one standard talking point they fall back on: they can’t be racist because they have ‘friends’ belonging to the race in question, whom they use as props to claim they couldn't be racist. In Washington D.C., it is a cliché for a racist lawmaker to have token staffers to point to, as if it excuses their behavior.

Senator Durbin is no exception to this rule. Whenever Indian immigrants approach him to not be a racist and support S.386 - The Fairness for High Skilled Immigrants Act (which removes national origin discrimination on employment based Green Cards), he repeatedly brags about his “Indian friends”. He brags about hiring Mahatma Gandhi’s great-grandson to serve him on his staff. Senator Durbin hasn’t just hired a token Indian immigrant to serve and cover for him, he has hired the very best available pedigree of Indian to serve him - no less than Mahatma Gandhi’s great-grandson! It is like he has no shame.

American Interests

Senator Durbin’s racism against Indian immigrants causes him to adopt policy positions that are bad for Illinois and bad for America. In a study titled “Higher‐paid Immigrants Forced to Wait Longer Due to Per‐country Limits”, the CATO institute estimates that removing national origin discrimination on employment based green cards will result in raising the average wage of an employment based immigrant by $11,592 - which is a 12% increase. Additionally, the same CATO study finds that passing S.386 - The Fairness for High Skilled Immigrants Act would result in America welcoming better educated immigrants.

But the per-country limits are also economically senseless. They prioritize the right birthplace over the right skills...Discriminating based on nationality, rather than skills, undercuts the productivity of the United States and lowers the average wage of new immigrants to the United States. … The per-country limits depress the average wage for new employer-sponsored immigrants by $11,592. In other words, the per-country limits strongly discriminate against higher-paid immigrants...Indian and Chinese immigrants are also more likely to be offered positions that require more experience and skills than other employer-sponsored immigrants.
- CATO Study

So, why does Senator Dick Durbin not want America to get higher paid and better educated immigrants? Senator Dick Durbin would rather Iranian pizza delivery drivers get immediate Green Cards than Indian Immigrants be treated equal to any other human being trying to immigrate to America.

Separate is not Equal

In any discriminatory system, when the discrimination is removed, those accustomed to their unearned privilege are bound to express equality as a loss. When we desegregated schools, white students adapted to larger class sizes and desegregated schools - and society adapted to desegregated lunch counters, swimming pools and buses.

Why then does Senator Durbin find it so reprehensible to adapt to a single line for equally qualified Green Card applicants? Why does Senator Durbin so desperately want to preserve an unearned privilege based solely on country of birth? Does Senator Durbin want to see job advertisements that say “Immigrants from Country X need not apply”?

By opposing S.386 - The Fairness for High Skilled Immigrants Act and not negotiating in good faith, Senator Dick Durbin is guilty of racist behavior, just as he would have been for opposing desegregation of schools, lunch counters, or buses.