The Great Immigration Debate

There is a lot of debate these days on illegal immigration. I think it is fair to say that it is a divisive topic at the very least.

I find this a very intriguing topic because I myself am a legal immigrant to this country. I went through all of the standard procedures to be able to reside and work in this country legally and have the privilege to pay taxes just like all the rest of you hard-working citizens.

But then I found out that there are over 13 million illegal aliens and U.S.-born children in the United States, even though there are laws prohibiting it. There are laws prohibiting an employer from hiring an illegal immigrant. Do we need more hard-core immigration laws like they have instituted in Arizona, laws which some believe border (no pun intended) on racial profiling? Do we need to just build a big wall around the country? Or are all the solutions we need already in place?

In the political arena, immigration has been used as political fodder for election or re-election in 2012. Depending on who you talk to, illegal immigration has been tied to terrorism, to drug cartels, and to the demise of the NHL (well, maybe not quite). Illegal immigration has a way of evoking fear and loathing in many.

There is definitely a significant cost involved. A study released by the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) estimates that illegal immigration now costs federal and local taxpayers $113 billion a year. That is a lot of pesos and rubles. If my math is correct, that is about $375 per legal immigrant – and I already pay taxes!

In Texas, Governor Perry (he of Republican presidential nominee aspirations) signed a bill into law in 2001 “making Texas the first state to grant in-state college tuition rates and financial aid to immigrant children, regardless of their legal status. In 2009, roughly 1 percent of Texas college students - about 12,000 students — benefited from the law”. Now we’re paying for illegal immigrants to get an education as well. Thanks, Governor Perry.

The current law states that U.S. employers must check immigration status before hiring. They are only allowed to hire legal immigrants, right? In Texas, 9% of all employees are illegal immigrants. Who’s to blame here – the illegal alien or the person or company hiring them?

How about something that seems all-too-simple: enforce the current laws. Simply enforcing the laws regarding the employment of illegal immigrants would go a long way towards changing the dynamics of the problem. I suspect that more extreme measures wouldn’t be necessary if an illegal immigrant couldn’t make a living in the United States.

For those that move here legally and aspire to the American Dream and work hard to get there, more power to you. You will join countless others over the years that have built this country into what it is today - a melting pot of cultures with a common desire for the rights, responsibilities, and freedoms inherent to life within these borders.

This isn’t a conservative or liberal issue, nor is it Democrat or Republican. It is one of justice - as defined by the laws of this great country. 

Photo credits: Wikipedia