Politics & Paranoia vs People. Some Thoughts on Immigration Reform

The very founding concepts of this country, and the laws establishing such a system, have been established for a couple centuries, since the beginning, were based upon the right for people to immigrate to this country to pursue happiness, amidst the security of freedom and liberty. The United States was conceived as a haven for those yearning for liberty. At that juncture, the people coming to the USA were viewed as a great and valuable resource! Should we not appreciate many of these immigrants that made this country successful, in so many aspects, by welcoming their brainpower, the might of their ideas and their work towards making a better life for all those in this land? What has happened to this structure and our motto, which were the founding pillars of the United States of America, as the land of opportunity and freedom? The United States is, unquestionably, a nation of immigrants. It is as much our identity as anything else we can name. The value of immigration, in our history, is clear and need not be belabored.
What must be asked of our politicians and our voting public is, if we are going to claim we welcome immigrants, why do we make it so difficult for them? The current requirements for immigration are staggering. Most Americans seem to feel any hard-working, law-abiding applicants can become citizens, legally, with a minimum of hassle. This is not the case! We ask all Americans to become educated on these issues. It can require tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees alone and even hundreds of thousands of dollars in investments to become a US Citizen, legally. It can take years. But it’s not the same for all nations. A citizen of the UK, for instance, will have a much easier time than someone from a what the government might consider a “less desirable” country, despite how desirable the individual applicant may be. How “desirable” the government considers an immigrant is heavily steeped in politics and the relationship the US Government has with that particular nation at the time. This is grossly unfair and bigoted treatment of individuals, their destinies determined by politics and not their individual merits.It is staggering what is required and asked of those seeking to be US Citizens. The USA purports to welcome immigrants, yet makes legal immigration extremely difficult. We have out the welcome mat – but won’t open the door. This results in a mixed message of hypocrisy. Either we need to welcome immigrants and help them come here legally, or we need to roll up the welcome mat, land mine all the borders and sell the naming rights of the Statue of Liberty to some banal corporation – she might as well become “One of these Corporation’s Harbor Gal”! If we claim to welcome immigrants, then we must make policies which reflect it. Else we need to change the Statue’s inscription to read, “Keep, ancient lands, your yearning people. I extinguish my lamp and close the door”.
Immigration reform, making it easier for immigrants to enter the USA legally, is not only in line with our national identity and the message we claim, but it has positive impacts on illegal immigration. How many people, we must wonder, would come here legally if that choice were open to them?