The White House should know better than to use cheap, insulting language to describe immigrants. When the official website of the United States government warns that “aliens” walk among us — living in our neighborhoods, attending our schools, and threatening American families — it is no longer serious immigration policy. It is dehumanizing propaganda.

Yes, the word “alien” appears in our immigration law. But here is what the website conveniently ignores: in the law, “alien” simply means any person who is not a U.S. citizen. It is not a synonym for “illegal.” It includes the green card holder who has paid taxes for thirty years, the H-1B engineer keeping an American company competitive, the international student. These are people who followed the rules, stood in the lines, and earned their place. When the government packages that neutral legal term with fear, secrecy, invasion, and danger, the message is unmistakable: people who are here lawfully are being portrayed as something less than human.

That raises an obvious question: Is Melania Trump an “alien”?

Melania Trump was born in Slovenia, immigrated to the United States, and became a naturalized U.S. citizen. President Trump’s first wife, Ivana, was born in Czechoslovakia and also naturalized. His mother was born in Scotland. His grandfather was born in Germany. Immigration is not some distant issue in the President’s life. It is his own family story. If lawful immigrants are outsiders who “do not belong here,” then the President’s own family history is an immigrant story too.

America has every right to enforce immigration law. The country can secure its borders, punish fraud, remove people who commit serious crimes, and decide who enters. But enforcement does not require insulting human beings, and it certainly does not justify casting suspicion on the millions of people who are here legally. A nation can enforce its laws without losing its humanity.

The real danger of this language is that it does not stay aimed at the undocumented. It spreads. It breeds suspicion toward anyone with an accent, a foreign name, an immigrant background, or a foreign-born spouse. Lawful permanent residents, visa holders, students, naturalized citizens, and their American children all get caught in the crossfire. I see it in my practice already: people with valid status, valid work permits, and valid futures in this country are made to feel like intruders by their own government. When the White House demonizes “aliens,” it is law-abiding immigrant families who pay the price.

The White House is not a campaign rally stage. It is the official voice of the American government — paid for by every taxpayer, including the lawful immigrants it is now degrading. That voice should not be used to mock, scare, or dehumanize people who came here the right way. Strong enforcement and human dignity are not opposites. Immigration law should be firm, but it should never be cruel, and it should never lie about who belongs.

America was built by people who came from somewhere else. Some came generations ago and some came recently. Some are citizens, some hold green cards, and some are still waiting patiently in lines that stretch for years. They are not monsters hiding among us. They are our neighbors, our coworkers, our doctors, our students — and, yes, even the family of the President.

The White House page should be taken down or rewritten. America can protect its borders without insulting the immigrant story that helped build this country — and that even shaped the President’s own family.

By: Rahul Reddy

Rahul Reddy is the founding partner of Reddy Neumann Brown PC. He founded our firm in 1997 and has over 28 years of experience practicing employment-based immigration. Rahul‘s vast knowledge of the complex immigration system makes him an invaluable resource and an expert in the field. His personal experience with the immigration system has made him empathetic to each of his clients’ cases and empowered him to help others achieve the American Dream.

Rahul‘s dedication to serving the immigrant community is evident, from his daily free conference calls to his weekly immigration Q&As on Facebook and YouTube Live. He is an active member of the immigrant community and one of the founders of ITServe Alliance. He has been a member of American Immigration Lawyers Association since 1995.