This sponsored column is by Law Office of James Montana PLLC. All questions about it should be directed to James Montana, Esq., Doran Shemin, Esq., and Laura Lorenzo, Esq., practicing attorneys at The Law Office of James Montana PLLC, an immigration-focused law firm located in Arlington, Virginia. The legal information given here is general in nature. If you want legal advice, contact us for an appointment.
Note: In this Guest Essay, our anonymous friend, Prof. Erasmus, explains his rather unusual thoughts about U.S. asylum law, which — of course — we do not endorse or even pretend to understand. If you like Prof. Erasmus’s work, stay tuned, because he intends to make this a regular feature. We’ll see if he intends to pay our advertising bill.

I, Professor Erasmus, am here to further educate you on how American immigration law works. Remember the rule: We do not judge law by what it purports to do, but by what it actually does.
Today, I would like to remind you about the Old Way that the United States used to do immigration — what I will call the Ellis Island system. The rules at Ellis Island, circa 1910, were simple and clear:
- No passport or visa was required. Immigration officers checked your name against the ship’s manifest to determine whether your identity could be verified. Fraud was frequent.
- A government doctor would examine you to determine physical and mental fitness. About ten percent of people were held for further examination — heart trouble, mental instability and inability to do physical labor were all reasons for detention. (Think little Vito Andolini from The Godfather Part II.)
- Brief questioning from officials, aimed at determining whether you were a dangerous anarchist, led to a tiny fraction of migrants being detained and then deported.
98% of applicants for admission made it in. 98%!
Upon admission, immigrants received no paperwork of any kind — no summons demanding a court appearance, no green card, no work permit, no identification. Do you think that the Ellis Island system differs from our current system? It does not. If you think it does, you’re a fool, a lawyer, or quite possibly both.
In my next essay, I will explain to you how our current immigration system is, in fact, just like Ellis Island in every particular. Every border crossing station is a miniature Ellis Island. Lawyers, judges and bureaucrats pretend otherwise; let them pretend. Here, we tell the truth.
Recent Stories

Do you struggle with anxiety, depression, stress, grief, trauma or anger? Are
you ready to make a change?
Lauren K. Nickum, LCSW, CSAC from Peaceful Mind Solutions is now taking new
clients for psychotherapy. Lauren has over 10 years of experience treating
mental health disorders and general life stress in adults and adolescents. For
more information visit
peacefulmindsolutions.com.

(This Community Post was written by Signature Theatre and underwritten by Embracing Arlington Arts.)
Signature Theatre just released single tickets for all 33rd season productions, which highlights the organization’s long-time relationship with legendary composer Stephen Sondheim. Beginning with the musical adaptation of The Color Purple and irreverent No Place to Go, the season continues with three Sondheim musicals, the DC premieres of Off-Broadway hit Which Way to the Stage and Pulitzer Prize finalist Selling Kabul, the Tony Award®-winning rock musical Passing Strange, and return of Signature’s cabaret series honoring legendary artists.
“Last November, the world lost an icon. The death of Stephen Sondheim was a blow to everyone in the theater community. Signature Theatre would not be the same without Sondheim — he IS Signature’s ‘signature.’ This season, we are honoring the legend with productions of Into the Woods, Pacific Overtures and Sweeney Todd dedicated to his memory. These shows represent the diversity and range of Sondheim,” said Signature’s Artistic Director Matthew Gardiner about the new season.
MEGA Wine Tasting
Join us Sunday, Aug 28 from 12-3pm for our MEGA Wine Tasting
How it Works:
We’ve invited all our wine vendors that we work with to bring 6-10 wines in their portfolio (wines that are usually not carried at Osteria
Running & Strength Training Group Workout #1
Join our first workout of Coach Kate’s fall Running & Strength Training Program on Tuesday, August 30 at 6:30 a.m. at Oak Grove Park.
First/trial session is Free Of Charge. If you would like to join the program — which