Is Illegal Immigration Harmful to the United States?

“The mighty tides of immigration… bring to us different languages, opinions, customs, and principles…” (Immigration opposing views 26). Immigrants from all over the world contribute to the United States by revitalizing cities, building the economy, and bringing their energizing culture to the bland society of America. About 12 million people in the United States are living illegally (scholastic, New York Times Subtitle) only because of the U.S code title 8 1325, which states that you have committed a federal crime if an improper entry has been attempted by an alien (legal information institute par.1). Illegal immigration should not be considered harmful to the United Sates; hence, it molds society into a multi cultural and prosperous country.
The current immigration policy brings tension to family ties and tears them apart. About one million spouses and children wait daily for visas in hopes of reuniting with their families (immigration opposing views 138-139). In some cases children are left behind in the care of their grandparents or uncles, while their parents go in search of a better job and a new life in order to support their family, or go back to their home country to resume their lives while their children get a better education, which causes many children separation anxiety. A reporter interviewed a 23 year old who now is in the process of becoming legal because of the Dream act. From now on she will be known as subject A. She first came here from Nicaragua legally with her mother on the year of 2001 to spend Christmas with her family. She has an older sister (Subject B) who was already here when subject A arrived. Subject B came to the United States from Nicaragua legally in the year of 1998, as her 15th birthday present, as she was visiting a category 5 Hurricane, known as hurricane Mitch struck all of Central America and the Yucatan peninsula but Honduras and Nicaragua were especially hit hard, on October 22 of 1998 (history par.2 & 3), which did not allow her to go back to Nicaragua. As a result of all the damage done by the deadly storm the United States lend a helping hand to those countries in need by granting TPS (temporary protected status) to migrants of those countries.
Subject B was eligible to receive TPS on January fifth 1999; she was given an employment authorization document (EAD) and was granted travel authorization if it was needed, as well as the reassurance that she could not be removed from the United States. Subject B was not able to fly out, so she had to stay with her mother’s sister also subjects B aunt (subject D). Subject D was very close with subject A and B; they even sometimes saw them as their second parents. Subject A and C had to fly back home, as Subject A had to return to her regular life, as Subject A approached the age of 13 she was told she had a colon disease which could not be treated in Nicaragua because of the lack of technology advancement. She quickly returned to the United States with her mother. As she stayed for about 3 months, her medical conditions worsened, Subject A’s family came to a mutual decision that she should stay in the care of her aunt (subject D) her uncle and her older sister (subject B). Soon after her mother flew back, and subject A was getting accustomed to the fast pace American life. The validity of her visa card came to an end, and she was now an illegal immigrant. She felt comfortable for only about two to three months, little by little she started to shut down and talked less and started to have pessimistic thoughts about life.
Growing up as an illegal immigrant Subject A did not fell indifferent, only because she did not now situation she was in. Everything changed once she entered high school; she did not have the ‘normal teenage’ experience. But as she got older she grew to understand and started to have hatred feeling towards her mother for what she called ‘abandoning’ her and her sister. She grew jealous of certain family members because they growing up with both parents and they were able to go to parks with their dads while she went with her sister or aunt. As other kids were learning how to drive and taking the streets on their own, she was not able to, she had no driver’s license and that’s when she was seen as the ‘weirdo’, both Subject A and B had different responsibilities than just the normal chores. Subject B, while in high school worked because she was given the TPS, but she didn’t have the luxury to spend her pay check on herself, she was to send it to her mother back home in Nicaragua. She was starting to have ideas of wishing her mom would supply her financially instead of her, as she saw her teenage friends buy the trendiest clothes while she used thrift shopped clothing items. Subject B had a different experience than her younger sister besides everything, because she was older and was able to build a mother daughter relationship. In school Subject B would be bullied and sometimes harassed, what she saw as jokes because of her lack of understanding for the English language were actually meant as hurtful remarks, which lead her to become insecure about herself and her life. Subject A saw it as betrayal from her mother’s side, and she would have wished her mom was there to experience her first date, prom and several other high school milestones. Not only that but she was rejected from several colleges and universities because she was an undocumented immigrant. She grew frustrated, because she was brought up into a family that saw education as the only thing the government or your peers can’t take away from you, so she was always the top of her class, graduating with a 3.97 GPA. Just to know that all those study halls, sleepless nights, and put down hangouts with her friends were in the end worth nothing.
She was not able to qualify for scholarships, as a legal immigrant would be granted with the grades she acquired. Because of her situation she was charged as an international student, when her life was very well seen as the ‘American’ one. As she saw she had no hopes in enrolling into her dream university she entered a technical school, Robert P. Morgan. She was able to study in there for a few months as a business administrator for a few semesters because of the grants the government would gift certain community colleges to help man young adults in Subject A’s situation. She was later kicked out of the school because of the many budget cuts. Subject A felt as if her hands were tied to her back and she could not do anything to further her future, while she saw her friends and family move on with their lives. Her dreams were shuttered and many doors were closed in her face until they government would pass a bill aiding many illegal young adults in the education aspect of life, which in the 90’s it was not even thought of.
As a result they both look back on their experience and are thankful for it. They have grown from it to become independent. Subject A has now been eligible for a driver’s license, id, and work permit because of the Dream Act, thanks to the endless protests and inspiring words of illegal high school and college students along with their teachers, mentors and peers. Once she is done with the lengthened process she will finish school, and hopefully in the near future will open a business that will give kids a helping hand, if it is only by giving them a shoulder to lean on o someone to talk to. As when she was growing up, her community discriminated against ‘aliens’. She would like to show them and lead them through different routes other than the one which many teenagers fall into; ingesting drugs, theft. Subject B did not have as many struggles as Subject A, she was able to wok a well paying job, and did not have to use public transportation everyday to get to and from work. She is now a single parent attending school to acquire her master’s degree in business administration, with a six year old attending kindergarten, which she is proud to know she can share her story with when he reaches and understandable age. Both subject and Subject B are strong believers of the idea that even though adults are not granted a legal life in the United States, illegal children should be. Because by denying them a legal status in this country you are shutting down possible opportunities of them ever having a proper education, a well paying job, and the future they deserve, not only because children are the future for this world but because they do not decide how they are going to live at the age of six.
In other cases, parents are the ones who struggle financially and emotionally. Many are willing to leave their families in stable hands to come to the United States crossing borders in dark nights where the only light seen is the moonlight, just to make sure food is being placed every night and day at the dining table, and that their children have clothes to put on their backs. Many adults face discrimination when it comes to jobs, they are given low wages because many employers are aware that their employees are desperate for a job. Furthermore they are faced with abuse and harassment, which many are scared of the consequences if they report their employers, so they tolerate the mistreatment. Others go to sleep with regrets, thinking that maybe if they would have waited they could have found better opportunities, selling illegal drugs at a local corner they would have made it out better. Not only do they face hardships once they have been ‘settles down’ but also while they are crossing borders, many immigrants running away from patrols during their crossings are beaten with batons, fists or even their feet. Others are being tortured in their jail cells by being denied water or food, and many times they are sexually abused by border patrols (immigration opposing viewpoints pg 130-131). Usually the local residents of Arizona and Texas which tend to be Native Americans or anti- immigration citizens do not agree with the ‘felony’, but even though they have committed a crime by chasing the ‘American dream’ they have heard so much about, in an illegal way because it was their only option since all their other doors have been closed, they should not be treated like animals (immigration opposing viewpoints pg.130-131). They have not taken a life away from the earth; they are only on a search for a better life. Many local residents decide to take matter into their hands and go ‘immigrant hunting’ as a recreational activity, which consists of gong late at night searching for immigrants crossing the border which they can target with their rifles (immigration opposing viewpoints pg.130-131). Many of the patrol officers are thankful for all the ‘help’ the residents of the area have given them (immigration opposing viewpoints pg.130-131)
Many American citizens tend to see immigration as nothing but a disgrace to this Country. But there are others that strongly disagree. Illegal Immigrants revamp the economy by adding an extra 50 billion dollars of federal income taxes to the economy in the years of 1993 to 2003 (procon.org par.11). A lot of citizens believe that by abolishing and making several laws to remove illegal immigrants out of this country will only make it better, but by several researches it has been proved that it will only make it worse, annually aliens contribute about 625 billion dollars, in sales tax, home rents, and utility payments (scholastic magazine par.8). Usually the government just brings new technology to replace several problems in society but this is one is irreplaceable.
Americans have to big of an ego to do jobs like clean toilets, work in construction or coal mines, all the work the call ‘scum work’, and these types of jobs are necessary, and illegal immigrants are willing to do it without complaints. Even though there are good amount of aliens that did not obtain doctorate degrees, much less are wealthy, but they do have patience, gratitude and most of all common sense, which gets the work that is looked down upon done.
Many media circuits tend to believe that illegal immigrants do nothing but bring down the wages of American citizens, many are yet to be proved right. There are several statistics to prove that this is just false, also as logic and common sense when one gets a hold of something better they will not let go, they will fight for it. Some do receive low wages because they are forced to, but they will not go down without a fight.
It might be hard to gain raises for them, but as they have been grown up to believe they will not give up. Sometimes America tends to forget that to empower their economy they need cheap labor. Not only that, but if you were to be unemployed all the aliens, there would still be more than 1.4 million jobs opened, which cannot be left untaken. There are 8.1 million illegal immigrants and 7.5 million unemployed Americans (Houston chronicle 2008). Even if they were to build the highest walls, cannot deny that they need them, the market is talking (Houston chronicle 2008).
Employers, men of affairs and industry leaders say immigrants are not a curse they are a blessing. They are still needed for industrial and commercial development, and credit should be given to them for the art they are playing in American industries. Consequently, they should be able to receive certain benefits and be able to use their gaining’s freely, even though many American that live in the immigration zone can say otherwise, it is only common sense to have equality (immigration opposing viewpoints pg.83). The idea of having open borders throughout the United States scares many, because it may open doors to terrorists and the ones who want to do harm. The rate of illegal immigration is increasing rapidly, which may cause corruption, unless immigrants keep in touch with the technology and ideas of the government (immigration opposing viewpoints pg.31). The problem seems to be keeping the wrong people out and not letting too many people in (pg.174), that’s when the idea of putting up a wall seems comforting. “Immigrants come here to realize the American dream; terrorists come to destroy it” (pg.174). Terrorists come from all over the world to cause harm to those living in peace, and because of the tragic event that occurred on September 11, it has ruined many opportunities of a bill passing that will legalize illegal aliens. The best thing to do is to allow immigrants into this country but stronger restrictions should come into play, that way the welfare status of the country is safe from fraud (pg.31-41). By adding regulations it offers all (immigrants and non-immigrants) a comfortable way of living (pg.31-41). Because certain events have given immigrants a bad representation, they are not welcomed, and the government thinks they have found a solution to their problem by building a wall keeping all the ‘unwanted’ out. The border would cost about 1.2 million dollars per mile for it to come to life. The wall will have an annual cycle of 25 years, which will cost anywhere from 1.64 to 70 million dollars to keep it standing (procon.org little did you know?). Much of this money will come from taxpayers who include teachers, small business owners, and many employees with low income wages. Money will be taken out from their already invisible paycheck to set up a barrier for people who are trying to give a better life to their family by working. As seen to millions of dollars will be needed to withhold the ‘wall’ so many people are willing to put up, and these people are known to be big business owners, the ones that are well off, who don’t mind to pay for something with that high of the cost but they tend to forget about the ones that are already having a bad time as it is. Opening up the borders, will give an immense boost to the economy in the United States because of tourism, work and visitation, and as a result all the bad effects of illegal immigration will soon go away (Latino Americans and immigration laws 2006). The Idea of the U.S. being a melting pot has worn off and is now to be said it is a mosaic, because many newcomers and Natives prefer to keep their own heritages and to mix them than to give up on their traditions in order to adapt to the ‘normal American’ one (Latino Americans and immigration laws pg.12-13). The United States of America has been known to have a foundation and to be a country of immigrants. Most seem to have been taught that the U.S. was first a British colony, when historians strongly disagree and state that “it is very clear that Spanish settlers were the first Europeans to have a colony permanently in North America” (pg.34). Because the United States has been seen as a country of immigrants it is strange to many that there have been several disagreements on whether America should accept foreign born citizens (immigration opposing viewpoints pg.69). Immigration from all over the world is what keeps the U.S. growing, a regular American women has an average of 1.93 children throughout her whole lf time with a replacement rate of 2.1. With immigrants the U.S. population in 2050 would be 397 million without it would be 328 million. Without immigration illegal or legal the American population will shrink little by little (pg.82-83).
Denying immigrants contradicts the base this country was founded on; as a result we should extend the same welcome to them as our ancestors extended to us (pg.139).
Illegal immigrants should not be seen as harm to the United States; hence it mold society into a multicultural and prosperous country. Due to all the research there should be no doubt that immigration in general, is needed because of the mere fact that it revitalizes out cities, boosts our economy, adds an energizing culture and reinsures our basic values. If one was being persecuted because of basic right like religion and freedom of speech or equalities one should already have or just to chase the infamous ‘American dream’, would you like to be seen as criminal that has committed a felony for something anyone would do if they were to walk a mile in one of the citizens shoes that lives in a underdeveloped country? Several illegal immigrants have devoted their lives to this one country because they have hope for this country and their families, as a result they should be seen and be given equal rights especially those who have not committed any other crime than the one of entering this country illegally.
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