Illegals

Deportation of illegal aliens

Background:

"Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free...send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed, to me." This line from "The New Colossus", a poem by the nineteenth-century American poet Emma Lazarus, is found on a plaque at the base of the Statue of Liberty. This engraving greets everyone that comes on to New York Harbor and is a virtual symbol for what this country was built on, and what it represents. According to the Department of Homeland Security, illegal aliens is "a comprehensive term intended to include those foreign-born individuals who enter, reside, or work in the United States without complying with U.S. immigration law"(1). But are we really looking forward to welcoming twelve to fourteen million people, who are fleeing their home countries (Mexico, Cuba, Canada, China and many more) to find better opportunities, to escape harsh government regimes and to seek a better life? Are we willing to accept people who are breaking the law by crossing the American borders and getting false documents so they can work and live in the United States? Undocumented immigrants - that is a name the illegal aliens call themselves.

Thesis statement:

Although some politicians may disagree with deportation of illegal immigrants, it must be done because they propose threat for the medical system, economy and national security.

Reasons

First and foremost, illegal immigration is exactly what it literally means - it is flat out illegal. According to Gerald Leinwand, a former dean of education at the City University of New York and president of Western Oregon State College, crossing the United States borders without any proper documentation is unlawful. (96) American immigration laws are broken every time a person of different nationality enters the United States without proper permission from Immigration and Naturalization Service. Crossing the American borders is comparable to trespassing. An unauthorized entry on one's property without consent is illegal and unwelcome - much like the way entering the United States illegally is. Per Ashley Dunn, a prominent writer for the New York Times, "more than half of our nation's illegal immigrants ... casually enter the country as tourists, students, or business people, and then simply overstay their visas." (25) These people are given their temporary visas in trust that they would use them properly, i.e. business or leisure trips. They betray the trust of the United States government by staying in our country illegally, after their temporary visas expire. Visa fraud is a serious legal concern, and visa abusers rarely get caught. Crossing the United States boundaries and staying in the country for the time that exceeds the allowable limit on the temporary visas is against the American immigration laws.

Another reason for which illegal immigration is detrimental to the United States is the tremendous burden that it puts on national economy. According to Brent Ashabranner, a former Peace Corp director and author of numerous books on social issues, starting in the mid-1980's and up to current days, rates of illegal immigration are extremely high.(20) Federal government is forced to allocate an additional amount of money for border patrol. In addition, funds used for finding and deporting illegals also have to increase. Investigation of previously mentioned document fraud also takes a toll on our economy. Instead of spending these finances on improving the lives of citizens and valid taxpayers, the government has to allot a vast amount of money to fight illegal immigration. According to George J. Borjas, professor of economics and social policy at Harvard University, "illegal immigration has a severe fiscal impact". Borjas continues to say that as recent as 1998, "more immigrant households were receiving some type of public assistance than native households". The fact is that illegal immigrants are relatively less skilled than native citizens gives them more opportunity for government assistance. Once again, increasing funding for illegal immigrants is a big load on our economy. The money that could be spent on more important internal issues goes toward supporting individuals that are subjects of other countries. The millions of dollars are essentially lost.

Illegal immigration adversely affects the employment structure in the United States. According to Immigration and Illegal Aliens: Burden or Blessing, by Thomson Gale, the 1990 Census showed that a quarter of all foreign born adults (twenty-five years and older) had less than a ninth grade education, with a majority being illegal immigrants.(135-136) Another thing to consider is that usually illegal immigrants do not have a mastery of English language. All those factors prove that the illegals are mostly comprised of low skilled workers that compete for low wage jobs. In fact, Gerald Leinwand points out that most illegal immigrants would accept lower wages than native citizens. This creates a great deal of negative competition for the low-wage jobs, and usually, the illegals prevail. Employers care about paying the minimum for the labor being performed, without caring for the legal issues that come with hiring illegals, not to mention the countless number of hard working blue collar Americans that are being put on unemployment. The only real benefit comes toward the unlawful immigrants, whose wages in the United States are considerably larger than the salaries they got in their native lands. At the same time, native born workers struggle to find employment. Are the federal policymakers protecting the interests of illegal immigrants? Or are they suppose to protect the rights of lawful American taxpayers, American citizens and loyal people that are a backbone of American society?

Objections:

Despite popular belief, illegal immigrants could be considered an integral part of the labor workforce. It is documented that vast numbers of Mexican citizens cross the United States borders to work as pickers in agriculture businesses. According to Michael C. LaMay, a professor of political science and assistant dean at California State University, before the Immigration and Naturalization Act Amendments of 1965, breaking the borders were legal, as long as it was done for the purpose of working on a farm. The pickers would then return to their native land after the season is over. However, as Joseph E. Fallon, researcher on ethnic and racial issues points out, the Immigration and Naturalization Act Amendments of 1965 banned such migrations. Since then,