There is perhaps no more difficult subject to discuss as a citizen of the United States than how to determine and control the immigration policy of this country. From its earliest explorers by land and sea to the explosion of migration during the industrial revolution, America has grown thanks to the contribution of individuals from all over the world who have chosen our country as their new homeland.
Politics, bigotry, religious intolerance, and economic competition have and always will play a part in how we Americans accept our new citizens. From Benjamin Franklin who was hesitant to allow the Hessians into colonial America, to fear of Irish Catholic immigration in the mid-1800’s, to the Emergency Quota Act of 1921 aimed at limiting southern and eastern European migration, there have been ongoing governmental efforts to control legal immigration.
Of course, I cannot discuss immigration without mentioning the tens of thousands of individuals brought to this country by slave traders which is a part of our country’s history which was regrettable even if such efforts were common worldwide at that time. Thankfully, our country is now at the forefront of providing equality to all of its citizens.
I am proud to be a descendent of my late maternal grandfather who was born in this country in the late 1800’s and was awarded a Purple Heart during World War I. And I am proud to be a descendent of my late paternal grandparents both of whom came to America because of religious persecution in Eastern Europe in the early 1900’s and who worked hard to become a part of this country by learning English, learning this country’s customs, and toiling in the garment industry of Baltimore to be able to afford a decent way of life for themselves and their three children.
Our country has also been a liberal recipient of war and economic refugees from around the world except during World War II when Japanese immigrants were kept in internment camps and European Jews were regularly refused entry including by the Roosevelt administration in 1939 to allow 800 passengers of the MS St Louis cruise ship to debark in Miami. Forty year later President Carter allowed more than 125,000 Cubans to come through those same Miami waterways in a controversial decision which changed South Florida in many ways.
Flash forward to today and our citizens are again in an uproar about migration to the United States. But this time the issue is about those entering our country illegally or staying intentionally beyond their visa expiration date. The State of Arizona even passed a law empowering its state and local police to get involved in immigration matters which are typically the sole responsibility of the federal government. That law is now being challenged in federal courts and I, quite frankly, hope that the law is upheld because of the failure of the Obama administration to meet its national responsibilities in securing our international borders be they in Arizona or in Florida.
Instead it is the goal of the Obama administration to give a path to citizenship to the estimated 20 million illegal immigrants, mostly of Hispanic heritage, currently in our country since he believes they will eventually register as Democrats and give that party a notable edge in elections thereafter. Even Harry Reid, the leader of the US Senate has said he can think of no reason why any person of Hispanic heritage would not be a Democrat. In 1986 President Ronald Reagan signed a law giving amnesty to illegals and all it did was encourage tens of millions more to enter the United States expecting amnesty would be offered again.
Our country survives because of the rule of law. Therefore, I cannot support any efforts by our federal government to allow and encourage illegal entry into the United States. I believe that employers should be heavily fined for hiring illegals and that social services should be denied to illegals except in life threatening emergencies. If we eliminate this cheap source of labor and the associated government giveaways of social and health services, there will be no incentive for illegals to stay nor for others to come to our country illegally. We cannot expect a wall to solve this problem.
