The world continues to face the challenges of immigration. Something feared, relied upon, misunderstood, and something we all struggle to manage. The answer isn’t open or close the border, or simply build barriers. This quandary is more complex. Campaign sound bites and tweets won’t solve anything, they just inflame. Defining and solving this conundrum will require compassion, toughness, common sense, economic principles, and multi-partisan leadership.
Ever wonder what you would do if your family was under constant threat of violence and torture? What would you do if the only way to protect and care for them was to leave your homeland? Our forefathers migrated due to religious persecution, famine, and wars. Fear is inversely proportional to the proximity of the danger. As we see snapshots of the events in Central America and Middle East, we have no sense of their fear. A person is brave and honorable in proportion to the personal risk taken for their opinions and actions. The fear which would drive you to travel across several countries isn’t a hoax; it’s real. The courage to make the journey is astonishing. So, if you’re tired of pulling bodies out of the river, go up stream and find out why they’re jumping in. If you want to stem immigration focus on demigration. Create an environment in their home country which encourages them to stay. Cutting off aid and influence just perpetuates the intolerable conditions which already exist.
Intertwined and mutual dependent economies require a clear minded approach toward immigration. According to the Texas Comptroller (2015), the 29 Texas ports of entry support an estimated 1.6 million Texas jobs and annually adds $224.3 Billion to the states GSP. The El Paso ports of entry alone account for $72 Billion in trade, and annually adds $18.4 Billion to the state’s GSP. These are daunting figures of economic reality, which don’t include the ports of entry of the other southern border states which can’t be underestimated.
Immigration isn’t only about the unskilled and untrained. The high-tech industry has a different perspective on immigration than does the unskilled labor markets. If we focus only on the issues and concerns of the unskilled, the high-tech industry will be inappropriately impacted. I wonder, how many unemployed American’s would be willing to relocate and work the fields or manual labor jobs as the immigrants do?
However, a country without a secure border isn’t really a country. Porous borders have created significant security issues in the European Union and Central America. Make the right thing easy and the wrong thing hard, rather than the opposite. The path to citizenship isn’t easy or inexpensive. Thus, undocumented immigration is the preferred option and establishing sanctuaries only exasperates the problem. Citizenship should be encouraged, all the while enforcing our laws. The Dreamers need a clear path to citizenship as do all other immigrants. The laws should be clear, firm, balanced and apply equally to all, regardless of education, religion, or country of origin. We have the room for those who want to assimilate into our multicultural, multiracial, and religiously diverse community. For those who don’t, we should hold them accountable.
Immigration can be managed if we are willing to clearly understand the intertwined issues and recognize we can not solve just one at a time. A fact based holistic approach is needed. One which is clearly articulated with a multi-partisan consensus and then actioned consistently across the country. Maybe we should first face our unwillingness to work together to solve anything anymore.
(#NeverFearTheDream)
simplebender 