‘Les Misérables’ and the moral questions behind migration April 22, 2026By Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio OSV News Filed Under: Commentary, Immigration and Migration On a recent vacation, I read Victor Hugo’s “Les Misérables.” Hugo was truly a poet and philosopher. “Les Misérables” became one of his most popular works through its musical presentation on Broadway and later as a film. It tells various stories about life with distinct and complicated moral issues that need resolution. The words ‘les misérables’ appear only once in the whole book. It is a description of the poor who were seeking justice, not necessarily a revolution, but just the basics of life. “Les misérables” is hard to translate, but it means those in difficult straits; the French dictionary explains the word more. When I was a young boy, I asked my paternal grandfather why he had come to America from Italy, and he answered me in two words — “la miseria.” I understood the meaning from my grandparents’ description of life in Italy at the beginning of the last century. There was no work, no education and little food. That is why the Great Migration at the beginning of the last century brought les misérables to America from across Europe. The flow of the unwanted was stopped by the racist Immigration Act of 1924. The new immigrants of today come for the same reasons as did those in the great migration. There are few opportunities to work in their countries, little opportunity for education for their children, as well as other deprivations. The scenes of roundups of immigrants in Minneapolis and other cities in the U.S. certainly remind us of the food riots depicted in “Les Misérables.” The new migrants integrate quickly by working. This is why they have come to America to work, contribute and find a new life for themselves and their children. Accessing social benefits, which are few for the undocumented, is only justice for low-wage earners. If we had policed the workplace as was promised in the legalization program of 1986, we would not have needed border enforcement. The workplace is where the problem begins and where it can be solved. Undocumented workers will continue to fill labor gaps as long as our economy depends on low-wage jobs. The brutal tactics displayed by ICE in Minneapolis and other places, which ended in the killing of two innocent protestors, are unnecessary. They were in the wrong place at the wrong time with a gun and in a car because they saw it as just cause. They did not merit the death penalty. In a previous article, I mentioned the immigration roundups and workplace invasions of the 1970s, which caused harm to immigration agents as well as migrants. There are better ways to control our unknown population. Unknown legally, although most pay social security and taxes. In the workplace, some have become les misérables, and sometimes they are treated unjustly. What we learned from the 1986 legalization is that it is possible to regularize the workers among us and to give them the justice that comes from their contributions earned by hard work. The enormous amount of money being spent on enforcement could easily be turned into a massive legalization program. We could register all those working and, more easily, detect the criminal element. In the book “Les Misérables,” the revolutionary elements who participated in demonstrations did not even understand the causes for which they risked their lives. But they did see injustice that needed a solution. The American way of protesting comes from our constitutional rights. We believe in justice as defined by our laws. And if we do not like the laws in a constitutional democracy, we can peacefully change the laws. We cannot suppress opposition with brutality against the undocumented or those who choose to defend them. If we take time to understand the root causes of our working immigrant population, we will understand better solutions. In 1924, racially biased laws blocked certain groups of migrants, namely from southern and eastern Europe. Today, the unwanted are being penalized by the cancellation of their previous legal status and deportation. Every social issue has some moral content, but it seems that only the poets and philosophers can discern possible solutions to our human problems, while lawmakers are reluctant to collaborate in finding them. read more commentary In the garden Question Corner: Can a Catholic date a person whose marriage has not been annulled or is this a sin? Father John Courtney Murray: Advocate for cooperation between church, state In thanksgiving for the gift of baptism An overnight trip to see an off-off-off-off-off-off-Broadway musical What the Easter Scriptures teach us about how to live as family Copyright © 2026 OSV News Print
