Last month 's Supreme Court decision in the landmark Arizona immigration case was groundbreaking for what it omitted : the words `` illegal immigrants '' and `` illegal aliens , '' except when quoting other sources . The court 's nonjudgmental language established a humanistic approach to our current restructuring of immigration policy . When you label someone an `` illegal alien '' or `` illegal immigrant '' or just plain `` illegal , '' you are effectively saying the individual , as opposed to the actions the person has taken , is unlawful . The terms imply the very existence of an unauthorized migrant in America is criminal . In this country , there is still a presumption of innocence that requires a jury to convict someone of a crime . If you do n't pay your taxes , are you an illegal ? What if you get a speeding ticket ? A murder conviction ? No . You 're still not an illegal . Even alleged terrorists and child molesters are n't labeled illegals . By becoming judge , jury and executioner , you dehumanize the individual and generate animosity toward them . New York Times editorial writer Lawrence Downes says `` illegal '' is often `` a code word for racial and ethnic hatred . '' The term `` illegal immigrant '' was first used in 1939 as a slur by the British toward Jews who were fleeing the Nazis and entering Palestine without authorization . Holocaust survivor and Nobel Peace Prize winner Elie Wiesel aptly said that `` no human being is illegal . '' Navarrette : `` Illegal immigrant '' is the uncomfortable truth . Migrant workers residing unlawfully in the U.S. are not -- and never have been -- criminals . They are subject to deportation , through a civil administrative procedure that differs from criminal prosecution , and where judges have wide discretion to allow certain foreign nationals to remain here . News : For immigrants and opponents , court 's ruling hits their real lives . Another misconception is that the vast majority of migrant workers currently out of status sneak across our southern border in the middle of the night . Actually , almost half enter the U.S. with a valid tourist or work visa and overstay their allotted time . Many go to school , find a job , get married and start a family . And some even join the Marine Corps , like Lance Cpl . Jose Gutierrez , who was the first combat veteran to die in the Iraq War . While he was granted American citizenship posthumously , there are another 38,000 non-citizens in uniform , including undocumented immigrants , defending our country . Justice Anthony Kennedy , writing for the majority , joined by Chief Justice John Roberts and three other justices , stated : `` As a general rule , it is not a crime for a removable alien to remain present in the United States . '' The court also ruled that it was not a crime to seek or engage in unauthorized employment . As Kennedy explained , removal of an unauthorized migrant is a civil matter where even if the person is out of status , federal officials have wide discretion to determine whether deportation makes sense . For example , if an unauthorized person is trying to support his family by working or has `` children born in the United States , long ties to the community , or a record of distinguished military service , '' officials may let him stay . Also , if individuals or their families might be politically persecuted or harmed upon return to their country of origin , they may also remain in the United States . While the Supreme Court has chosen language less likely to promote hatred and divisiveness , journalists continue using racially offensive language . University of Memphis journalism professor Thomas Hrach conducted a study of 122,000 news stories published between 2000 and 2010 , to determine which terms are being used to describe foreign nationals in the U.S. who are out of status . He found that 89 % of the time during this period , journalists used the biased terms `` illegal immigrant '' and `` illegal alien . '' Hrach discovered that there was a substantial increase in the use of the term `` illegal immigrant , '' which he correlated back to the Associated Press Stylebook 's decision in 2004 to recommend `` illegal immigrant '' to its members . ( It 's the preferred term at CNN and The New York Times as well . ) The AP Stylebook is the decisive authority on word use at virtually all mainstream daily newspapers , and it 's used by editors at television , radio and electronic news media . According to the AP , this term is `` accurate and neutral . '' For the AP to claim that `` illegal immigrant '' is `` accurate and neutral '' is like Moody 's giving Bernie Madoff 's hedge fund a triple-A rating for safety and creditworthiness . It 's almost as if the AP were following the script of pollster and Fox News contributor Frank Luntz , considered the foremost GOP expert on crafting the perfect conservative political message . In 2005 , he produced a 25-page secret memorandum that would radically alter the immigration debate to distort public perception of the issue . The secret memorandum almost perfectly captures Mitt Romney 's position on immigration -- along with that of every anti-immigrant politician and conservative pundit . For maximum impact , Luntz urges Republicans to offer fearful rhetoric : `` This is about overcrowding of YOUR schools , emergency room chaos in YOUR hospitals , the increase in YOUR taxes , and the crime in YOUR communities . '' He also encourages them to talk about `` border security , '' because after 9/11 , this `` argument does well among all voters -- even hardcore Democrats , '' as it conjures up the specter of terrorism . George Orwell 's classic `` Nineteen Eighty-Four '' shows how even a free society is susceptible to manipulation by overdosing on worn-out prefabricated phrases that convert people into lifeless dummies , who become easy prey for the political class . News : For immigrant graduates , a 'leap of faith has been answered , ' educator says . In `` Nineteen Eighty-Four , '' Orwell creates a character named Syme who I find eerily similar to Luntz . Syme is a fast-talking word genius in the research department of the Ministry of Truth . He invents doublespeak for Big Brother and edits the Newspeak Dictionary by destroying words that might lead to `` thoughtcrimes . '' Section B contains the doublespeak words with political implications that will spread in speakers ' minds like a poison . In Luntz 's book `` Words That Work , '' Appendix B lists `` The 21 Political Words and Phrases You Should Never Say Again . '' For example , destroy `` undocumented worker '' and instead say `` illegal immigrant , '' because `` the label '' you use `` determines the attitudes people have toward them . '' And the poison is effective . Surely it 's no coincidence that in 2010 , hate crimes against Latinos made up 66 % of the violence based on ethnicity , up from 45 % in 2009 , according to the FBI . In his essay `` Politics and the English Language , '' Orwell warned that one must be constantly on guard against a ready-made phrase that `` anaesthetizes a portion of one 's brain . '' But Orwell also wrote that `` from time to time one can even , if one jeers loudly enough , send some worn-out and useless phrase ... into the dustbin , where it belongs '' -- just like the U.S. Supreme Court did . Follow @ CNNOpinion on Twitter .
Justice Kennedy : Supreme Court majority was wise to avoid term ` ` illegal immigrant '' The majority holds that words , rather than actions , are unlawful , he says . He says foreign nationals residing unlawfully in the U.S. are not criminals . Repetition of phrases like ` ` illegal immigrant '' is like a poison that infects people , he says .