Whenever the topic of illegal immigration comes up, the concept of "fairness" immediately triggers a gut reaction for many: they see them as "people who leech off infrastructure without paying a dime in taxes while stealing jobs from legal citizens." Right-wing regimes worldwide are having a field day using this for populist appeal. Though the context varies, Japan’s Sanseito party recently gained huge traction with this, and the ruling LDP, feeling the heat, has made restricting foreigners their top priority.

I’m not saying I don’t get the global backlash against foreigners, especially undocumented ones. If I had to pick a side, I’d also say all residency should happen within legal boundaries. But are world issues ever that simple?