Destroying of Freedom of Association and Liberty of Contract
UPCOMING EVENT: Wednesday, February 5 at noon. FFF is hosting a get-together in downtown Boston after the oral arguments in Ian Freeman’s appeal, where we will discuss the oral arguments. I will be there. Trillium Brewing Fort Point, 50 Thomson Pl, Boston, MA 02210; (857) 449-0083; https://trilliumbrewing.com. Reminder: The Court of Appeals is located at One Courthouse Way in Boston. The oral arguments are scheduled for 9:30 a.m. on the 7th floor of the courthouse. Trillium Brewing is about one block away. See here for more details.
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I was recently staying in a hotel and noticed that the two women charged with cleaning the guest rooms were Hispanic. I couldn’t help but wonder whether they were here illegally. If so, they are among the millions of other illegal immigrants who are currently experiencing deep fear over the possibility of being arrested and deported. What a horrible way to have to live life. Moreover, the hotel owner (or manager) has to also live in fear over the possibility of being criminally charged for knowingly hiring an illegal immigrant.
Let’s assume that those two women are, in fact, here illegally. What does that mean? It means that they entered the United States without the official permission of the U.S. government. Under America’s immigration-control system, foreign citizens are prohibited from entering the country without first securing official permission. Even if they are successful in securing such permission — say, after 7 or 8 years — that doesn’t necessarily mean that they will be permitted to work. To do that, they will have to get a government-issued “green card,” which is considered to be part and parcel of America’s “free-enterprise” economic system.
Yet, an important question arises: Why should the government play any role in the employment relationship between the hotel owner and those two women? Why shouldn’t the owner of the hotel be free to associate with whomever he wants? Isn’t that what the principle of freedom of association is all about? Moreover, why shouldn’t the owner of the hotel be free to hire whomever he wants? It’s his money, after all. Isn’t that what liberty of contract is all about?
Clearly, the hotel owner (or his mana
Article from The Future of Freedom Foundation
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