Comments on: HELP!!! (you could get your name printed in our magazine)

By: Bert

Bert — Tue, 11 Sep 2007 05:43:55 +0000

Since it’s equally illegal for US employers to hire undocumented workers, it seems that making it prohibitively expensive for those employers to hire such workers would do much to stop new immigration: no more jobs, no more new undocumented immigrants.
Of course, this would need to be combined with a way to “legalize” the existing undocumented workforce or the US would face an unprecedented economic catastrophe if a significant number of our undocumented workers left.

By: John

John — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 11:42:44 +0000

Thank you very much for sharing your thoughts. It is always great pleasure to read your posts.

By: Aaron Weatherford

Aaron Weatherford — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 18:49:20 +0000

How do our imigration laws compare to those of other nations? Say Mexico or Canada our two next door neighbors. I hear Mexico has some of the most strict immigration laws on the books.

By: Kate

Kate — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 05:47:22 +0000

I know you said one topic is the history of immigration in the U.S. However, it might be interesting to compare U.S. immigration to immigration in other countries. I think a lot of people forget that the idea of immigration laws or regulation is very old and not unique to the U.S. Rather, it’s a basic characteristic of a sovereignty to control who comes within its borders. If I remember correctly, France recently announced it would not allow illegal immigrants within its borders to obtain citizenship but no one really talked about that because everyone focuses so much on immigration in the U.S. So, I think some comparison with immigration around the world might be interesting.

By: Annie

Annie — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 01:13:00 +0000

What would it take to change one’s status from “citizen” to “alien”? I’ve always wanted to belong somewhere other than Earth.

By: Rosemary

Rosemary — Thu, 23 Aug 2007 21:52:14 +0000

I would like to know why the U.S. admits so few refugees, comparatively speaking, and whether the policy is ever going to change. To illustrate why I am asking the question, consider this: In the first six months of 2007,Sweden granted residence permits to 4,881 refugees from Iraq. Last year, the U.S. admitted 202. This year, the word is that 7,000 Iraqi refugees will be admitted to the U.S. That may seem like a lot until you think in terms of relative population size (US: 302 million, Sweden: 9 million).

By: Lance

Lance — Thu, 23 Aug 2007 17:35:13 +0000

Barbara spends a great deal of time and energy chastizing us for our “blind hatred”, then ends her note with:

¡Viva la raza! (Long live the Race)

How long would anyone get away with ending a comment to this discussion with “White Power”?

I think a good question for this posting would be what are the current immigration laws in Mexico vis-a-vis their southern border. Are they as open with Guatemalan, Hounduoran, and El Salvadoran immigrants as they demand that we be with Mexican immigrants?

By: Christine

Christine — Thu, 23 Aug 2007 15:10:59 +0000

What are the sociological implications of building a giant wall/fence between the US and Mexico?

How does the actual number of illegal immigrants in the US compare to other countries? How does the US’ handling of/reaction to illegal immigrants compare to that of other countries?

What are the pros and cons of easing the legalization process for immigrants who would like to stay in the US?

How does illegal immigrants working in the US really effect the job prospects of US citizens?

Have immigration raids increased recently or has news coverage of them just increased? How will an increase in these raids affect the US economy?

By: Meagan

Meagan — Thu, 23 Aug 2007 15:09:19 +0000

I took some high school students down to Vera Cruz this spring for some volunteer work. The head of the mission told us this story of 3 Mexican men who applied for visas:

The mission needed to replace some pick-up trucks because of the bad roads in Vera Cruz, which break down trucks on a yearly basis. The head brother took the 3 top Mexican men at the mission, had the head of the Catholic organization (the Marianists here in the US) to which the mission belonged write letters asking that the men be allowed entry to the US in order to drive these trucks from St. Louis back to Mexico.

In order for these men to even get appointments to have their applications seen, they had to pay over $100 each, then travel to Mexico City (9 hours by bus) and be there in time for a 7:30 am appointment. The mission paid for these appointments, the bus tickets, and lodging expenses.

The men arrived on time, stood in a looong line, then each of them arrived at the front. The first man took his application to the desk, the woman barely glanced at it, said his format on the application was wrong, and denied him a visa. The 2nd man took his to the desk, the woman didn’t even open up the folder, stamping DENIED on the top of it. The 3rd man–a good, hard-working man but one who had lived illegally in the country for almost a year some years ago–had his application accepted within minutes of him giving it to the lady.

I tell this story to show the unfairness of getting a Visa. There seems to be no rhyme or reason to getting one. Good, honest people who are going to the US for good reasons can’t gain entry, but those who have lied on their applications (by saying they have never worked in the US illegally) can gain entry.

I also have to say, having lived in Texas my entire life (and in south Texas for 4 years now) I have had no problem with living around illegal immigrants or the children of illegal immigrants. They are generally polite, hard-working people who just want to be given their due. They take jobs most Americans shun, teach their children to work hard, and bring a wonderful culture to the US.

By: JcB

JcB — Thu, 23 Aug 2007 14:58:04 +0000

I think it’d be beneficial to provide some background on immigration to the US. At what point did mass immigration become illegal? What was the quota system all about? Was that in place at Ellis Island? Wasn’t there some legal worker visa program for Mexican/Latin American migrants in the 1960s? What happened to that? Wasn’t there a big amnesty thing for immigrants in the 1980s? or was that only for certain countries (I want to think El Salvador, for some reason)? When did the current influx of immigrants really take off? How many are here now? How many depend on the US’s welfare/social service system to survive, and how many are self-supporting families and workers?