The Illogical Illegality Of Immigration

Milo sits on the roof of his grandpa’s store as he looks at the city lights; tonight is the last night that Milo will be in his comfort zone, for deportation awaits for him at 7:30 in the morning. America has been his home for as long as he can remember, but tomorrow will be his first day back in Brazil- a place he knows nothing about. His family will have little to no money after the trip, and none of them know anyone in the area. “What if kids bully me because I don’t talk like them? What kind of jobs will hire someone who doesn’t speak Portuguese? Why, after all these years of hard work to build my grandpa’s store, are we getting deported?” Milo thinks to himself. The detention center is hot and crowded with a putrid odor, and no parents are in sight; they all await deportation. “You immigrants disgust me; you’re like roaches that invade a home and never leave!” a man shouts at Milo as he shoves a small plate of food at the children in a gratuitous manner. Milo is in the same situation as thousands of immigrants in America: young and old. Little do they know what awaits them.

Notably, Immigration has always existed. Christopher Columubus, Albert Einstein, Iriving Berlin, and Sergey Brin were all immigrants, yet “Illegality as we know it today came into existence after 1965.”(Chomsky 1) The author of Undocumented, Aviva Chomsky, who is also a professor of the history and the coordinator of Latin America Studies at Salem State University, has written several other books about her activity in Latin American solidarity and the rights of immigtants. She has proven that the adjective “illegal” has not always existed. America onced lived in a world of open border policy, yet after America declared its independence, ethnicity began to be the determinant for who belonged in the policy. This illustrates that America presents animosity towards certain races. In the past, African Americans worked as slaves and the Chinese and Irish worked on the railroads with little to no pay. The majority of the nation has chosen to turn a blind eye to the contribution that many immigrants make. In 1980 through 2008, Mexican and Central American immigrants accounted for three fourths of the population growth which also boosted the economy into one of the longest periods of sustained economic growth. During this time, many Americans lived comfortably with well paying jobs. Although some Americans believe that immigrants harm the job market and economy, research proves that immigrants benefit the country; therefore, the current immigration policy must be reformed to make the process of legalization shorter and less expensive.

It is important to realize that immigrants are quite useful in the ongoing financial development of America. Many aliens come at a young age but not young enough to attend school, so “...they work and pay taxes before consuming hundreds of thousands of dollars in public schools costs and welfare benefits-meaning they give an immediate fiscal boost.” (Alex Nowrasteh) This fiscal boost allows the government to strengthen America while meeting needs and exceeding the wants. Since the immigrants work sedulously, at a progressive rate, and with cheap labor, more money is able to be made off of them alone. This helps out the country in all, but it can also benefit local businesses as well. Since the immigrants take the jobs that Americans aren’t satisfied by, the local businesses can employ more natives. Once more natives are employed by local businesses, the community can begin to build upon that foundation and become financially stronger and more independent. After independence has been established, more businesses can be made and the production of items can grow.

The workforce is also benefited by the presence of immigrants. Studies have declared that “...the workforce is expected to grow to 183.2 million if Immigration levels remain steady.” (Claire Felter and Danielle Renwick.) This foreshadows the denouement workforce and its capability to grow. A growing workforce results in a higher employment rate for America. A larger workforce also presents more opportunities for natives to not only invest in business, but to be included in the business themselves. This will provide inspiration for others to get a higher education in order to become part of the growing business community. As these steps are taken by Americans to become more involved, everything begins to rise within itself. Immigrants are given the undesirable jobs which leads to Americans becoming more educated to pursue careers. Once Americans are willing to go to college, the education rate will rise and more Americans will become graduates, but immigrants should have that same opportunity.

Another key point is that the current immigration policy is a time consuming and pricey process. An immigrant must first live in America for five consecutive years or be married to a citizen of the United States for three years to even be considered for legalization aside from being 18 years of age. After morality, principality, reading, writing, and history have been tested, one can begin the application for naturalization. Naturalization is the legal process in which a non-citizen must undergo to become a citizen. After an approximate thousand dollars has been paid, the process can take up to 2 years before legalization can occur. Overall, it is “...a costly and lengthy process in itself.”(“How Immigrants and Refugees become U.S citizens.”) Most immigrants do not have the time nor the money to complete the process correctly which results in illegal crossing. Coming into a country illegally is wrong, yet for many immigrants that come to America, it is the only option.

With this is mind, many immigrants come to America in an attempt to flee descrimination, violence, corruption, and countless situations in which one cannot live and prosper. They come in hopes of helping their loved ones and having the American Dream. Immigrants come to America seeking a way out, seeking a promised land. Who are we to deny those that have helped build this country on their backs? Who are we to turn away and cast out the ones that continue to help us today? The immigrants go to great lengths to make it here. Many leave families behind and bring only the clothes on his or her back. Others bring families with them and lose some along the way. Children get separated from their mothers and fathers, money is lost, and time is precious; this is all done just to get to America. In an interview, a man describes the process of crossing the border to get to a free land: “While he took the women away from the men, we could hear noises. They were not good either. We could do nothing about it because [The Leader] had men with guns trained on the groups of men.” (Raufael) These people risk their lives to come to a place that once had open arms. Many also risk jail time for being illegal; “Almost 95% of foreign-born inmates in American prisons are here illegally.” (Ward, Kelly) The possibility of a life in the United States of America outweighs every possible downfall that may or may not occur for each individual immigrant.

Although Immigration is beneficial to the United States, a number of Americans claims that immigrants abuse healthcare and steal American jobs. Alex Nowrasteh notes that “Illegal immigrants don’t have access [to welfare]-expect for emergency Medicaid.” (Alex Nowrasteh) This challenges the statement that “immigrants abuse healthcare” because an immigrant is incapable of accessing such a necessity. An immigrant works while knowing that one accident could ruin everything for his or her family. Immigrants also create jobs; “Each immigrant creates 1.2 local jobs for local workers, most of them going to native workers.” (“Understanding Why Immigrants are so Crucial to America’s Economic Growth.”) This argues that each immigrant produces more jobs than he or she may take. Overall, immigrants don’t abuse healthcare or steal jobs from Americans; they benefit America by making more opportunities for natives.

To recapitulate, the current immigration policy must be reformed to become shorter and cheaper because immigrants contribute to America’s growth as a country. Many kids like Milo have absolutely no idea how to live a life outside of America, so why send them back when they can help us? Immigration has been a controversial issue for many years, but the real issue is much deeper than that. “When the United States declared itself an independent nation, race was the key factor in determining who belonged to the policy.” (Aviva Chomsky 32) This shows that America has always been racially biased. The problems go beyond immigration. America has had the tendency to treat a Citizen as a race on its own, for African Americans worked as slaves and Central Americans worked for less due to their place of birth. America has gotten to be the best with help from the best, for we did not create such a wonderful country on our own. We have cast our benefactors away into a vast, second-rate, poverty stricken land that pelts them with discrimination, dehuminization, and dejection. It is time to start making the path to citizenship easier for those who wish to come into a place that needs them as much as they need us.