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Myths abound in immigration reform Emily Byers Posted: 11/15/06 Iraq isn't the only place the Bush administration has made mistakes. In last week's exit polls, voters cited "corruption and scandal" and the war in Iraq as their top concerns. It would seem that illegal immigration-which ranked only sixth among voters' concerns according to exit polls-got lost in the midterm shuffle. Let's hope this doesn't mean Americans are content with the utterly embarrassing border-wall bill President Bush signed into law at the end of October. For those of you who missed the memo, the passage of that bill approved plans to beef up border security and build a 700-mile wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. To call this legislation "incomplete" is an outrageous understatement. Not only does it fail to allocate the estimated $9 billion necessary to construct and fortify the wall, but it smacks of the anti-immigrant, enforcement-only approach advocated in far too many Republican candidates' campaign ads this year. The "Great Border Wall" may have been a defensible idea if it were part of a program of comprehensive immigration reform. As it stands, however, it is a symbol of American xenophobia at its worst, a sloppy, sorry attempt to sweep the "immigrant problem" under the rug. Coming up with a comprehensive, effective solution to the problem of illegal immigration is no easy task. On the other hand it's pretty easy to identify the widespread misconceptions that prevent such a solution from coming to fruition. Myth No. 1: All undocumented immigrants are dangerous criminals. Although they've broken the law by coming to the United States illegally, most undocumented immigrants are trustworthy, hardworking individuals who have made great sacrifices to provide a better life for their families. That is, they are not drug smugglers or "threats to national security." To equate illegal immigration with the war on drugs or the war on terror is a sign of invincible ignorance. Don't get me wrong; we need to secure our borders, but we cannot continue trying to enforce an immigration policy that has proven to be ineffective. Our government has failed to prosecute employers who hire undocumented workers, and we've been operating under a broken system that practically invites immigrants seeking employment to slip through the cracks. An estimated 12 to 15 million undocumented immigrants currently live in the United States. If those were all dangerous criminals, our country would be far less stable and far less safe than it has been for the past several decades. Myth No. 2: Undocumented immigrants are a "drain on our society." People who've done their homework know that this argument has no factual basis whatsoever. Immigrants do not take jobs away from Americans; neither do they lower American wages. On the contrary, they help the economy by filling positions that Americans could not and would not otherwise fill. Our population has dropped below the replacement rate, and the food service and construction industries are creating new jobs faster than Americans are born to fill them. With so many Americans pursuing college degrees, employers in those industries are especially hard-pressed to find Americans willing to work at low-skill, low-paying jobs. Myth No. 3: Deportation is an option. The deportation of all undocumented workers would cause the economy to collapse in those regions of the United States that have become dependent on immigrant labor. Deporting illegal immigrants with criminal records would be feasible, but all of them? What about the estimated 3 million children who are American citizens but have at least one parent who is undocumented? Myth No. 4: The border wall will stem the flow of illegal immigrants into the United States. First, we're talking about a 700-mile wall to secure a 2,000-mile border. Second, as long as jobs are available and workers are needed, we will continue to see people immigrate illegally. This is precisely why a federal guest-worker program is necessary. Myth No. 5: Amnesty, or "earned citizenship," for undocumented immigrants would be a reward for breaking the law. Creating a pathway to legal status for the illegal immigrants currently living in the United States would not solely benefit immigrants and their employers. A one-time transitional measure to integrate their income into the national economy would help the entire country. Allowing undocumented workers to register for a guest-worker program or even become citizens would reward them not for immigrating illegally but for putting their trust in the United States, for risking everything to come here and work hard to support their families. Why should we deny them the chance to participate in the democracy we believe in? Let's not forget that we are a nation of immigrants. Immigration is our unique heritage, and we would be foolish to claim that today's immigrants have no place in our country. Essentially any comprehensive approach to the immigration issue must include more realistic policies-such as a federal guest-worker program and a path to legal citizenship-and reasonable, humane enforcement measures that target employers as well as undocumented workers. How do these reforms translate into legislation? That is one of many daunting tasks awaiting the 110th Congress when it convenes in January. If our representatives are serious about making progress these next two years, let's hope they seize this opportunity to make the "bipartisan cooperation" rhetoric of the past week more than just talk. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: [email protected] Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. 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