The argument is
that people who have not respected our immigration laws should not be
rewarded with normalization, that it is not fair to potential immigrants
who are waiting in line and that this kind of measure would undermine
the rule of law.
It is a simple, attractive argument. It is also dead wrong.
There
are 40.4 million immigrants in the U.S. Most are economic immigrants,
leaving a morass of poverty and corruption in search of better futures.
Where
opportunity and enterprise are squelched by the unfair playing field of
weak rule of law, the opportunistic and enterprising find the greener
pastures where rule of law is strong and respected. This is the
fundamental story of a great number of the immigrants in the U.S. It is
surely the story of virtually all 11.1 million unauthorized immigrants.
There
is a place in this country for these 11.1 million. They are working,
paying rent, buying consumer goods and, yes, paying taxes. According to
the Social Security Administration, three quarters of unauthorized
immigrants pay into Social Security, although they will never reap a
penny of benefit.
If anti-immigration groups could wave
a magic wand and deport all 11.1 million unauthorized immigrants, the
economic effects to our country would put us back into recession. There
would be huge labor shortages, driving up prices and inflation. Entire
blue-collar neighborhoods would be ghost towns.
Current
immigration law does not reflect the reality of unauthorized
immigration in the U.S. This unfairness weakens American rule of law. It
is time to make a correction that includes normalization of those who
are already part of our communities.
It is the only fair thing to do.
—Jake Fisher, Oklahoma City
