Immigration - - - in da' House!
Jul 6, 06:56 AM by Darryl Crum
All of this talk between President Bush and certain members of Congress about an immigration bill has slowly but surely gotten under my skin. At first ot seemed like a well intended thing – giving an estimated 11 million undocumented workers in this country legal rights and the opportunity to become citizens. But as the points of the proposed bill have been debated in public (both the House and Senate versions), I am starting to realize a truth about us. We are an abusive nation and many of our leaders are the worst among us.
In the heat of the debate over the past two months, have you heard any discussions about improving the lives of the estimated 11 million as a justification for this bill? As a Liberal, I am proud that some members of Congress, such as Senator Kennedy, have raised this point, but it seems as though they’ve stopped mentioning it as of late in fear of making the bill seem ‘too Liberal’ or too ‘Christian-like’ to ever have a chance of passing through the Conservative faction of Congress.
Less face it, the very Christian idea of amnesty has suddenly become a bad word among Conservatives and their primary support, the Christian right. They don’t just use the term to protest the immigration bill. They spit the word out of their mouths as if it were somehow poison to them. It may be. It is Christian like and probably doesn’t fit their taste. Our Pledge of Allegance includes the phrase “one nation, under God, with liberty and justice for all.” Based on their objections to the proposed immigration bill, I suspect we should put certain parts of this phrase to test, such as the “one nation” part (red state / blue state, pro-choice / anti-abortion, gay marriage / definition of marriage ammendment, pro war in Iraq / pro peace) or the “under God” part, or the “liberty and justice for all” part. The “under God” part was added by Congress in 1954. I wonder what they were thinking at the time.
As I hear more about the bill, hear more single-thought condemnations from toothless, gun-totin’, Bible-thumping European immigrants who seem hell-bent to speak out on this subject, I am starting to change my mind completely. Suddenly to my surprise, I find myself opposed to the proposed immigration bill.
My quandary
I believe in open migration, but more and more I am opposed to the immigration that is occuring on our southern border. I am not bothered so much by that fact that it is happening in such large numbers but more as to why it is occurring. In short, it is a symptom of an illness that is being ignored; and as a result, is being exported to the United States.
This migration, as I understand it, stems more from problems in Mexico than from a desire by these immigrants to live in and be a part of our culture. For example, racism, more like the racism seen in the South Africa, is a major problem for Mexico.* The conflict is between the lighter skin Mexicans (criollo who are direct Spanish descendants or the mestizo who are a mixed race of Indian and European) and the Indian natives. The Indians are kept in a state of second class citizenry, and are denied equal jobs, equal pay, equal education, and equal housing. They can, however, find their way to the Northern border and once across, can find themselves being denied equal jobs, equal pay, equal educaton and equal housing. The difference, and the draw to this country, is that they can get a job and send money back to their families in Mexico.
*For more information on this issue, please read the article “Racism in Mexico” by Erika Robles
Immigration Nation...... Migrants, Immigration, ImMOREgraton, IMMORALgration?
