Topic: News and Analysis
The other night I watched President Bush's speech to the nation about Immigration and the unsecured border this country shares with Mexico. His speech got me to thinking about the United States and what it stands for to people around the world. We are certainly a nation of immigrants. That fact has been a steady reality right from the beginning when the first Europeon settlers arrived on these shores. Even before that time the native Americans who were already here also arrived form distant shores, many traveling on foot across the land bridge that is now the Beiring Strait separating Russia and the United States.
For seven years of my adult life I have lived in Texas, a border state. In Texas there is a huge dependance on the migrant work force to provide laborers for construction, farming, and other jobs that Americans typically don't want to do. The house that I owned in Texas was built primarily by the hands of Mexicans who come up from Mexico and spend the week camping and working at the construction site. Then, in the afternoon they pack up and drive south to return to Mexico and their families for the weekend. The lifecycle repeats itself over and over again. And, when the houses have been built, the workers move on to the next gig and start all over again.
The love and dedication these men show in their work is a pride that, in my opinion, has been lost by many Americans workers. American business is focused on the bottom line, and the constant search for a cheaper pool of labor to draw from. That is what outsourcing is all about, and that is how the migrant labor force in this country can exist. The wealthy business owners cry out for tougher laws for immigrants, yet they are letting migrant workers sneak in through the back door because it is good for their businesses.
From the very beginning, the United States has always been a nation of immigrants. It was originally set up as a beacon on the hill, so to speak, that allowed hope to shine brightly from these shores to the rest of the world. And, despite what many in the world might say against our policies and actions, the fact remains that for many in the world, the United States is a destination that they are trying to achieve. People thirst for our freedoms and the fact is, there is simply no place on this earth like the United States.
We are not a nation that has police running around in jeeps with machine guns. The police forces here try to remain as transparent as possible as they uphold the rule of law and protect the citizens of this great land. Here, you are free to travel anywhere you want--the government does not restrict you. You are free to start a business, or choose whatever career you want. The only limitations placed on you are the ones that you place on yourself.
And, our history has always been that the people of this great land are generous. Not only are we generous with our money but we have always been willing to welcome the stranger to our land where they can come and make a new life and a new future for themselves.
Consider Emma Lazarus' poem that is engraved on a tablet within the pedestal on which the Statue of Liberty stands.
The New Colossus
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
"Keep ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
With that said, the uproar over illegal aliens and the immigration laws has created yet another politically charged issue. Is the United States really trying to stop immigration and the steady inflow of illegal aliens from our southern borders? I don't think that they are. After all, we are a sovereign nation and we have the right and responsibility to protect our borders. If we had been more dilligent in our security and enforcing the immigration laws in effect 2001 we might have had a different outcome of events in September of that year. Is there anyone to blame? Is this a failure of the current administration running our government?
I don't believe that it is. This is an issue that has been bubbling in the background for years, and the events of September 2001 and recently simply point to the fact that it is a problem that will not go away until we deal with it. So in 2006 a debate starts up with what should be done to our immigration laws. Part of that debate includes the politicizing of the issue in an attempt by some to gain the upper hand in the debate.
Thankfully, our system of government works well, and the debate has taken place and Congress and the Senate have made changes to our immigration laws. We haven't shut the door and we have attempted to deal with the question of what to do with all of the illegal aliens currently living in the United States. If they follow the new laws, we are going to give them a chance to become legal residents and ultimately citizens. And, that is the response that I would expect from the government of the United States, a nation of immigrants, and a nation who lives under the rule of law.
--Brian
