Many on the Left, and in the media, attempt to dismiss those who oppose illegal immigration as anti-immigrant bigots. However, what does it really mean to oppose illegal immigration?
Let’s be honest, many of those who stand at anti-illegal immigration rallies, shouting and holding signs, don’t appear to have a positive immigration message. Add to that the fact that, through short sound bites and video clips, a more comprehensive immigration stance is difficult to enunciate. But are those at those rallies purely anti-immigrant?
It’s impossible to speak for all of them, but in a conversations with many of those at these rallies, one might find an interesting thing.
When asked if they would support a simplified immigration process, enabling a quicker legal immigration process, most of those asked would give a resounding “yes.” The only caveat, would be that there be a process of getting immigrants to embrace those attributes which would make them assimilate in the United States.
What does that mean? Just a few simple things, such as learning some English, making an attempt to learn American History, and in general be a good citizen, (look out for your neighbors and such). These are not overbearing requests. Most of these request don’t require laws, they are simply common sense.
That’s is the point, these aren’t hateful requests. They are what should be required, by implication, of every citizen of the United States. Even one element of the “Dream Act” before Congress would be acceptable by many. Military service as a agent to legal status has been part of immigration policy in the past and worked well. The education aspect of the bill would unacceptable because higher education is not always a net benefit to society, because not all degrees lead to employment or good citizenry. Who decides? That’s the whole point, the bill would have to created a new bureaucracy to decide, making the whole immigration process more complicated.
A simplified immigration process is what the country needs, not more complicated red-tape. If anything, the current immigration process creates disincentives to legal immigration (status through a legal process) and gives incentives to illegal immigration (such as illegal border crossing and overstayed visas). In fact many who are opposed to the illegal process have family members who have faced the juggernaut of the legal immigration process. These people often see the current legal process as a heavy burden, which needs to be fixed so more legal immigrants can add to our society.
So, as the immigration debate continually resurfaces and evolves, it is important to remember that it does not have to be an insurmountable and purely divisive issue. Unless those who would describe the issue that way are seeking to gain political points rather than compromise.
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