One does not have to legalize border jumping in order to forgive the migrant farm worker and the nanny, one must only forgive the relatively small evil of working illegally in America to avoid the greater evil of tearing families apart, of economies disrupted, of terrible racial tension and mass deportation.

FORBES: Law And Grace In Best Picture Nominee 'Les Miserables'

According to a recent estimate, one in three Beijingers is a migrant worker and many are employed in service industries.

BBC: A Beijing state of mind

On July 12, 2008, a group of white high school students, out on the prowl after a night of drinking, encountered one of their female classmates in the company of Luis Ramirez, a 25-year-old migrant worker from Mexico.

CNN: Behind the scenes: An interview interrupted in Shenandoah