posted on Apr, 30 2006 @ 11:06 PM
Immigration is a good thing. There is nothing wrong with immigration. My own parents were immigrants.
What is wrong is Illegal immigration.
There are laws that are in place for a reason. In the case of the United States, the U.S. had an "open door" policy on immigration for many years.
That is, in the earliest years of American history, all that was necessary to become a citizen was to, well, arrive to the shores of the United
States.
As the years went by, as the government grew and levels of bureaucracy increased, so did the regulations. There were, in the earliest years waves of
immigrants to the United States from England, Ireland, Italy and Eastern Europe. Really, from all over the world. These people took and worked the
worst jobs. They knew that they had it better than they had in the countries from which they came. In coming to the United States, they were seeking
a new life and they fully committed themselves in becoming Americans. Returning "home" was no option.
These people worked hard, they worked the worst jobs while facing the terrible working conditions and they faced discrimination and racism but they
were determined to make a life for themselves in the United States. In their effort to become "real Americans", they learned English, they learned
the history of their adopted land and they, for the most part, invested their lives, their energy and their dreams in THIS country.
However, as the years went by, more and more people immigrated to the United States. In fact, the U.S. became "the" destination of choice for many.
And they came in numbers that, quite frankly, regulations had to be imposed. Why impose immigration restrictions? That's a simple question to
answer...even for a country as large as the United States, there are limits to the numbers of people that can be assimulated without straining the
employment situation, the educational system and the infrastructure. This is why, as the years went on, quotas were imposed. Certain requirements
for citizenship were instituted (health, criminal record checks, education and skills), even then, an immigration lottery was instituted to allow
"random" access to immigration.
For the most part, this system has served the United States very well. Millions upon millions of immigrants from all over the world came to America
seeking a dream, often hoping to escape an existance that could only be compared to a nightmare in their country of origin. These people learned
English, learned American History and they worked hard in an effort to become "real Americans".
Somehow, this American Dream became distorted. People from Mexico had been among the most ardent and hardest working among the immigrant population
until, in recent years, a new form of immigrant developed....the economic refugee...the illegal immigrant.
The illegal immigrant has no desire to actually become citizens. They illegally enter the country for many of the same reasons as legal immigrants do
but they chose not to follow the rules. They, for the most part do not seek to become legal citizens of the U.S. Instead, they seek all of the
rights of citizenship without actually becoming citizens, it would seem.
But who could really blame these people for wanting to leave their particular countries.....Mexico and South America. These are countries with
repressive regimes that promise little or no opportunity. By coming to the U.S. they can earn in a few months what would have taken them years to
acquire. Nevertheless, they are not following the rules of the nation in which they seek to work. I find it odd that they are so organized and so
determined to obtain rights....by force, if necessary when they could very well have used that same organization, that same force, to demand rights in
their country of origin. They could have used their "new found" political clout in Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador, etc to make the government
responsive to their needs. They could have made their own countries, their own governments' better. Instead they seek to tear down the dream of
others. A dream that they don't share.....to live and work in a country of law.
Hiding behind a shield of racism, they flaunt the laws of the U.S. and if anyone opposes them, they are racists. If they are denied free access to
education....they are racists. If they are refused drivers licenses or jobs or even welfare, they are racists. And the politicians shrink from being
branded as racists instead of confronting these illegals for what they are....illegal. Out of fear of being branded racists, the government has, for
too long, turned a blind eye to the problem...instead, they have accepted the benefits of cheap labor, a workforce willing to work the most menial of
jobs and to work in the most intolerable of conditions (at least by American Standards). But being called a racist or not, it does not change the
fact that these people are ILLEGAL immigrants.
If these people are granted a general amnesty, it will only encourage the illegals to continue to pour into the country unabated with the hope of
another "general amnesty" in the future. Frankly, it must be stopped. The illegals must be treated as such -- illegal. Furthermore, those who
hire illegals are guilty of breaking the law themselves. By hiring people who do not contribute to the social security system, by not providing the
proper work environment or legal working hours and wages, the employers of illegals must also face punishment.
But the problem won't go away simply by arresting everyone and it certainly won't be stopped by a wall. What will work is to force nations such as
Mexico, Central and South American countries to be responsive to the needs of their people. If the people of those countries cannot force their own
governments to respond to the needs of their people then the U.S. through sanctions and economic pressure must.
All the talk of a wall has been in reference to the Southern border of the U.S. Most of the illegal immigrants enter the U.S. through this area. Why
isn't there a wall between the U.S. and Canada? Could it be because Canada is a country of laws? Could it be that Canada is country that is
responsive to the will of it's people. Even though the economy of Canada has often paled to that of the U.S., Canadians have remained in their own
country because they were committed to making their own country better. And they have done so through legal means, through legislative means and they
have done so peacefully.
May 1st is not a day of Immigrant protest...it is a day of ILLEGAL protest. These people are not citizens of the U.S. They have no voice in the U.S.
nor do they have the rights of an American to do so. Let them protest in their own county...let them return to Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador, etc. to
work, protest and demand to make their own countries a place where they can live and work with justice & equality.
[edit on 4/30/2006 by benevolent tyrant]