In the first place Ham Fish was a champion of a decent policy protecting the human rights of people all around the world. Ham Fish spent an awful lot of time on people who were never going to be able to vote for him. were never going to be able to vote at all in the United States. He was a man who became an expert in the intricacies of immigration law so that he could give full vent to his burning desire to help people live in freedom. I say burning desire because Hams quiet. relaxed demeanor may have fooled people. One of the things we can learn from him Is that being civil and being thoughtful in no way rules out being passionate. This was a man of great passion on behalf of human rights. and he exerted a good deal of his own influence and his own resource of time and energy on people all over this world. Immigrants are not the most popular people these days. and people who live in other countries are not the most popular people in America. I wish the spirit of Ham Fish informed this place a little bit more today when it came to recognizing that we. with the great blessing of living in this wonderful free country have some obligation to help people elsewhere. Similarly Ham. hardly from a district where civil rights in the traditional sense was a burning constituency issue for him. was a consistent defender of legislation that said America has an obligation to end discrimination. to do what we can as a Federal Government to reach into those pockets that unfortunately persist of racism and of sexual discrimination.
Identified stereotypes
Immigrants are not the most popular people these days.