The Autonomist Covenant
America welcomes immigrants. Immigration is a mutual promise. Come legally, wait your turn, sign the covenant, embrace what it means to be American.
A Nation of Immigrants
America is a nation of immigrants. This is not a slogan — it's a fact. Unless you're Native American, your ancestors came from somewhere else, seeking something better.
"Give me your tired, your poor,
— Emma Lazarus, inscribed on the Statue of Liberty
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
That promise is real. It's beautiful. It's part of who we are.
But it was never the whole promise.
The Promise Was Never "Come and Recreate What Failed"
When your great-grandparents came through Ellis Island, they weren't invited to recreate the Old World in the New. They came to become American.
They learned English. They studied the Constitution. They embraced the values of their new home — not because their old cultures were worthless, but because becoming American meant joining something larger than where you came from.
They brought their food, their music, their traditions — and America was enriched by them. But they also adopted American values: individual liberty, rule of law, free speech, religious tolerance, equality before the law.
That was the deal. That was always the deal.
Immigration is not a one-way gift.
It's a mutual promise.
America offers opportunity. Immigrants offer commitment.
What's Broken Now
The Current Mess
- Millions entering illegally, bypassing those who wait
- No meaningful assimilation expectation
- Parallel communities that never integrate
- Legal immigration backlogged for decades
- Asylum system exploited and overwhelmed
- No agreement on what "American" even means
- Employers exploiting illegal labor
- Border security treated as partisan issue
What Autonomism Offers
- Secure borders — legal entry only
- Clear, enforceable covenant for all immigrants
- Assimilation as expectation, not option
- Streamlined legal immigration
- Asylum for genuine refugees, processed abroad
- Defined American values to embrace
- Employer accountability for illegal hiring
- Immigration as unifying value, not wedge issue
The Autonomist Covenant
We propose that every immigrant — upon legal entry with intent to stay — signs a covenant. Not a loyalty oath to a government or a party. A commitment to the idea of America.
The Immigrant's Covenant
-
I come to become American.
I am not here merely to work and send money home, nor to establish a colony of my homeland. I am here to join America, to make it my home, to raise American children, to invest my future in this nation. -
I will learn English.
Within [X] years, I will demonstrate functional English proficiency. I understand that a common language is necessary for a common society. I may keep my native language, but I will add English to it. -
I will learn American history and civics.
I will study the Constitution, the founding principles, and the history — both the achievements and the failures — of my new country. I will understand what I am joining. -
I embrace the principle of autonomy.
I accept that in America, every person is sovereign over their own life, bounded only by the equal sovereignty of others. I will not seek to impose my religious, cultural, or political beliefs on others through force or law. -
I accept equality before the law.
I understand that in America, no person is above the law and no person is beneath its protection — regardless of race, religion, sex, or origin. I accept this for myself and for all others. -
I accept freedom of speech and belief.
I understand that in America, people may say things I find offensive, believe things I find wrong, and live in ways I find objectionable — and that this is their right. I may disagree, but I may not silence. -
I will contribute, not just receive.
I come to work, to build, to create, to add to America — not merely to consume its benefits. I will be a contributor to my community. -
I enter through the front door.
I have entered legally, through proper channels, waiting my turn. I respect those who waited before me and those who wait after.
This is not a blood oath. It's not a renunciation of heritage. It's an affirmation of addition — adding American identity to whatever you bring with you.
What "American Values" Means
We should be specific. When we ask immigrants to embrace American values, what do we mean?
These aren't "white" values or "Western" values. They're human values — articulated here first, imperfectly practiced, still worth defending. People from every nation, every race, every religion have embraced them and thrived.
The Process: Legal, Orderly, Fair
Apply From Abroad
Immigration begins in your home country or at a designated processing center — not by crossing illegally and claiming asylum after. You apply, you wait, you're vetted.
Background Check and Vetting
Criminal history, security concerns, health screening. America has the right to know who's entering. This protects both Americans and honest immigrants.
Sign the Covenant
Before entry, you sign the Autonomist Covenant. You affirm you understand what you're agreeing to. This is a commitment, not a formality.
Legal Entry Through Port
You enter through a legal port of entry, documented, welcomed. The front door, not the back window.
Probationary Period
A period (5 years?) during which you demonstrate commitment: learning English, staying employed or in school, obeying laws, integrating into community.
Citizenship Eligibility
After demonstrating commitment, you're eligible for citizenship: civics test, English proficiency, and the full rights and responsibilities of an American.
Border Security: Non-Negotiable
A nation that cannot control its borders is not a nation. This isn't xenophobia — it's basic sovereignty.
Why Borders Matter
- Fairness to legal immigrants: Every illegal entry is a slap in the face to those who waited, who followed the rules, who did it right. We owe them a system that rewards compliance.
- Security: We cannot vet people we don't know are here. Open borders mean unknown criminals, unknown terrorists, unknown health risks.
- Rule of law: If immigration law is optional, which other laws are optional? A nation of laws enforces its laws.
- Labor protection: Illegal immigration creates an exploitable underclass, drives down wages for legal workers, and lets employers avoid accountability.
- Social cohesion: Uncontrolled mass migration strains communities, services, and the social fabric. Controlled immigration allows integration.
The border must be secured. Physical barriers where effective. Technology where appropriate. Personnel sufficient to the task. Illegal entry must be stopped, and those who enter illegally must be returned.
This is not cruelty. The cruelty is the current system: incentivizing dangerous journeys, enriching cartels, leaving migrants in limbo, punishing those who follow the rules.
Asylum: Real Refugees, Processed Properly
Asylum exists for a reason: to protect people fleeing genuine persecution. It does not exist as a backdoor for economic migration.
The Autonomist approach:
- Asylum claims processed abroad — at embassies, consulates, and designated processing centers in other countries. You don't need to reach American soil to claim asylum.
- Genuine persecution only — Asylum is for those fleeing government persecution based on race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group. It is not for poverty, crime, or general hardship.
- Safe third country agreements — If you passed through a safe country to reach America, you should have claimed asylum there. America is not the only safe harbor.
- Rapid adjudication — Claims should be decided in weeks, not years. Genuine refugees shouldn't wait in limbo; economic migrants shouldn't exploit delay.
What About Those Already Here?
This is the hardest question. Millions of people are in America illegally, many for decades, many with American-born children.
We don't pretend there's an easy answer. Mass deportation of millions is neither practical nor humane. Blanket amnesty rewards lawbreaking and incentivizes more.
A possible framework:
- No path to citizenship for illegal entry — You can regularize your status, but you cannot become a citizen if you entered illegally. The front door matters.
- Legal residency possible — For those with long presence, no serious criminal record, and demonstrated integration, a path to permanent legal residency (not citizenship) may be offered.
- Back of the line — Any regularization puts you behind those who followed the rules. You do not jump the queue.
- Sign the covenant — Even for those already here, the covenant applies. Commit to American values or leave.
- Children brought as minors — Those brought illegally as children, who've known no other home, may have a path to citizenship after demonstrating commitment. They didn't choose to break the law.
- Secure the border first — No regularization until the border is demonstrably secure. Otherwise we repeat the cycle.
What Autonomism Rejects
- "Open borders" — A nation without borders is not a nation. We reject the idea that anyone who wants to come should be able to.
- "Papers please" police state — We don't want internal checkpoints and constant ID demands. Secure the border; don't harass legal residents.
- Family separation as punishment — Children should not be weaponized. Families should be kept together — and returned together if necessary.
- Exploitation of illegal labor — Employers who hire illegal workers should face serious penalties. They're the demand that creates the supply.
- Multiculturalism without integration — Celebrating diversity is fine. Permanent parallel societies that never integrate is not. E pluribus unum — out of many, one.
- Immigration as political weapon — Neither "let them all in" nor "keep them all out" is serious policy. Immigration is too important for slogans.
The Vision: A Nation That Welcomes and Expects
Imagine an immigration system that works:
- The door is open — America welcomes immigrants who want to become American. The lamp is still lifted beside the golden door.
- The door is the only way in — Legal entry, through ports, after vetting. No back windows, no tunnels, no "catch and release."
- Those who enter commit — The covenant is signed, understood, and meant. Immigrants know what they're agreeing to.
- Assimilation is expected — Learn English. Learn civics. Participate. Become American, not just American-resident.
- Heritage is honored — Bring your food, your music, your traditions. Add them to the American tapestry. But add to America, don't separate from it.
- Citizens are equal — Once you're a citizen, you're fully American. No hyphenation required. No perpetual "other."
America says: "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free."
The immigrant answers: "I come to be free — and to be American."
That's the deal. That's the covenant. That's how immigration works when it works.
Welcome to America. Now become one of us.