Another Perspective on the Immigration Issue

Virtually every American has his or her own opinion about immigration and what should be done about it. Some would like to see things remain as they are. A few believe our borders should be open, with people allowed to come and go as they please. Others think that only immigrants from certain countries or ethnic backgrounds should be allowed entrance into these United States. And, of course, there are those who believe that immigration should be scaled back dramatically, at least for awhile, and extra measures taken to ensure that those who are here illegally are deported.

No matter what your position, I'm sure you have good reason to believe the way you do. It's a difficult issue and, quite frankly, I'm not entirely sure where I stand. I will, however, share some of my thoughts on the subject.

President Bush's "guest-worker" proposal isn't the answer because it rewards those individuals and businesses that continually violate our immigration laws and singles out one particular group of immigrants for special treatment. It is a stop-gap solution to a long-term problem, and until we differentiate between the "jobs Americans just won't do" and the jobs American businesses just aren't willing to pay Americans enough to do, we won't make any progress.

But I am hesitant to jump on board the anti-immigration bandwagon. One reason is that I am concerned about what might happen to the otherwise law-abiding immigrants who are affected by circumstances beyond their control and find themselves lumped in with those who willingly, knowingly, and flagrantly violate our laws.

One such example is a close family friend. He came here from Russia on a student visa in 1991, before the collapse of the Soviet Union. He applied for asylum in the U.S., was denied, and filed an appeal.

Years went by while his appeal was being "reviewed." During that time, he found himself in a catch-22. He couldn't travel on his current passport because it wasn't valid; the Soviet government that issued it no longer existed. What's more, he couldn't obtain a new passport or visa because his Russian citizenship expired when he was unable to return to his home country before the arbitrary deadline set by the new government.

When the ruling he had been waiting for finally came, the news wasn't good. His appeal had been denied and he had thirty days to leave the country. He retained the services of an immigration lawyer who was able to get an extension, but that meant plunging headlong into the nightmarish quagmire that is the American immigration system.

The treatment he received courtesy of Uncle Sam was inexcusable. In order to prevent him from fleeing-as if he had anywhere to go-he was forced to wear a monitoring device on his ankle. He was allowed to go to work, but he had to show up at the immigration office three times a week to check in with his case worker. He also had a curfew, and he faced harsh consequences if he wasn't home to answer the random phone calls and surprise visits from immigration officials.

Needless to say, our friend wasn't too happy with the situation. All these years spent as a law-abiding resident in the "Land of the Free" only to end up being treated like a common criminal.

My wife got to see firsthand how our government handles the "threat" posed by these immigrant "criminals" when she accompanied our friend on one of his visits to the immigration office. She met a Laotian woman in the lobby who, along with her four-year-old daughter, was waiting for her husband to take his citizenship test. Unfortunately, he never got the chance.

It turned out that he had been arrested on a misdemeanor charge back in the early 1990s and that meant he was ineligible for citizenship and subject to deportation. As he was escorted into a holding cell, his wife kept insisting that everything was going to be all right. The daughter, who started to cry and say that she didn't want her daddy to be taken away, seemed to have a better understanding of what was happening.

My wife tried to console the little girl and to convince the woman that she should seek the services of an immigration lawyer right away. We never found out what became of them. We can only hope that whatever happened, the family was allowed to stay together.

Relief for our friend only came when the Russian consulate finally provided our government with a letter officially declaring that he was no longer a Russian citizen. I suspect that this caught the immigration officials off-guard. They didn't know what to do. They weren't about to grant him the permanent residency he wanted, but, ironically, they couldn't bring themselves to ship him back to a country where he would be treated as an illegal immigrant.

In light of this development, the tracking device has since been removed and he only has to check in with immigration officials once a month. But he is still in bureaucratic limbo, a man without a country. Meanwhile, he continues to work, pay taxes, purchase goods and services, and obey the law. What more could Americans expect of their fellow citizens?

We live in a truly amazing country. Whoring crack heads can be elected mayors of major cities and be looked upon as role models. Drunken murderers can serve lifetime terms in the Senate and retire as millionaires on their fat pensions. Lying rapists can win the presidency, be allowed to fornicate in the White House, and win a special place in the hearts of feminists everywhere. Coke-snorting cheerleaders can send teenaged girls off to fight a war, kill tens of thousands of foreign civilians, and still be held up as model Christian heroes.

And these are the "good guys"? These are the ones who get to make the rules for the rest of us?

I'm sorry if I can't muster up the energy to get passionate about the immigration issue. Given the current state of affairs, I just don't see how immigrants, legal or otherwise, pose the most immediate threat to this nation.