Colin Hanna

Colin Hanna, President, Let Freedom Ring

Open Borders Increase Risk of Swine Flu Pandemic

Washington, D.C.—The World Health Organization is now warning that the current swine influenza outbreak has “pandemic potential,” and that the illness constitutes a “public health emergency of international concern.” The disease is suspected in the deaths of 149 people in Mexico and dozens of serious illnesses across the United States.

With the World Health Organization raising its pandemic alert level, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also announced that it is recommending no nonessential travel to Mexico. Despite these warnings, the open U.S.-Mexico border continues to pose a great public health risk to Americans.

Let Freedom Ring, a national conservative advocacy organization which has long promoted a rational immigration policy and an end to wide-open borders, is arguing for stricter immigration rules and enforcement to combat the serious public health threat posed by unfettered immigration. One of Let Freedom Ring’s projects is WeNeedAFence.com, which argues that there are five dimensions to the illegal immigration problem, including the public health dimension. Most of the people entering the US across our southern border have had little or no health care and have no idea whether or not they may be carrying communicable diseases. Particularly during a pandemic, state-of-the-art physical infrastructure is an essential component of any effort to achieve meaningful border security. That means a fence, in simple parlance.

“The swine influenza outbreak is just the latest in a series of threats that continue to demonstrate to the American people that we cannot continue to have a lawful, prosperous, and healthy society with wide-open borders,” said Colin Hanna, President of Let Freedom Ring. “We cannot afford to have a wide-open border in an era of terrorism, drug wars to our south, and pandemic threats. It’s irrational.”

“Unprecedented human immigration and the movement of people and goods across international borders has brought unparalleled prosperity to our nation and the world,” noted Colin Hanna. “But we must not allow these great benefits to make us blind to the ominous side of open borders. The lawlessness, the drug cartels, and the threats posed by terrorism and infectious diseases must also be taken into consideration when making public policy.”

“While the swine flu can easily be spread by vacationers, the movement of millions of illegal immigrants across an international border threatens to transmit the disease on a mass scale,” said Colin Hanna.

Let Freedom Ring is a national conservative grassroots public policy organization. Let Freedom Ring promotes Constitutional Government, Economic Freedom, and Traditional Values through education, media, and grassroots advocacy campaigns, often at the intersection of faith and politics. www.LetFreedomRingUSA.com