Immigration Reform is a Matter of Injustice

t felt a bit disheartening to read the news today; more than 500,000 people gathered in Los Angeles to oppose immigration reform. Immigration reform isn’t a matter of xenophobia, or a matter of racism, it’s a matter of injustice, insecurity, and economic disadvantage. America’s laws are not supposed to be interpreted loosely, nor are they supposed to be interpreted at will. Our immigration laws are being enforced and interpreted at will, and something needs to be done about it.

There are at least 11 million illegal immigrants in the United States right now, knowingly and openly breaking the law. Thus far the government has done very little about it.

The Minutemen Project is a testament to the futility of the US Border Patrol. Fortunately we have American citizens willing to spend their own time protecting the borders of our country. It is the job of the Executive branch of government to uphold the law, not the citizens of America. President Bush, of the Executive branch, is trying to do his job, and there are over a half million people protesting this.

There is still the issue of 11 million illegal immigrants already in the country. It is very frustrating as a legal American, to know that I have absolutely no recourse against them. As a citizen, if I were to try to forcefully remove an illegal immigration from the country, I am the one that would be arrested. Calls to an Immigration Officer would fall on deaf ears; they are already aware of the illegal immigrant communities throughout the country.

Circuit Judge Robert Bork once said “A judge who departs from the ConstitutionâÂ?¦ is applying no law other than his own will.” The same can be said of the executive branch. In allowing the illegal immigrants to remain in the country, we are applying no law; we are departing from the Constitution.

If 11 million immigrants were able to cross the border into the country, surely a terrorist is able to do the same. The security risk is a very legitimate reason to strengthen the border and take illegal immigration seriously.

The economic disadvantages are very important too. Although Illegal immigrants pay the same sales taxes in stores that the rest of us do, they still circumvent income taxes. This means less money for education, defense, social security, and more. This also amounts to more Americans without jobs, living on government assistance. It is a double edged sword, cutting away at the federal budget.

Simply deporting every illegal immigrant in the country would be a big disturbance to the areas and industries they populate. Although most Americans oppose it, we need to provide a pathway for a portion of the illegal workforce to work legally. Then we can strengthen the borders, and start to impose punishments on employers of illegal immigrants. Amnesty for all 11 million workers is not the correct solution, and neither is deportation. Our goal should be a realistic medium between the two.