Immigration change won’t work
We are perplexed over Arizona’s new immigration law — S.B. 1070 — and we are concerned more states will likely follow suit as a growing list of politicians cave to extremists in re-election efforts. The law now makes it a misdemeanor to fail to carry proper immigration documents and requires that police determine a person’s immigration status.
On one hand, we support efforts to curb illegal immigration, and we expect our law enforcement to uphold the law and prevent “sanctuary cities” from turning a blind eye to one’s immigration status. We must hold illegal aliens accountable to our nation’s immigration laws. If we allow those who come here illegally to benefit from our services without paying taxes, we are only penalizing those who play by the rules. And knowingly allowing this to happen without penalty is ridiculous, no matter which side of the fence you are on.
On the other hand, we must be realistic and understand that this law will be difficult — if not impossible — to enforce and will create a series of financial burdens (replacement labor costs to businesses; law enforcement costs to taxpayers) on all states that implement it. Racial profiling will become the norm, and most of these illegal immigrants will simply move to a more accommodating state. This “solution” does not solve any problems, but only moves them from one location to another.
The answer lies in creating an easier system to become a United States citizen along with stiffer penalties for those who continue to choose to reside here illegally. The goal should be to create an environment in which all United States residents who are capable of paying taxes actually do so. A great number of illegal immigrants are hard workers with good intentions. They would make outstanding citizens (most, by all other measures, already are), but they must pay taxes. In this scenario, we all win.
We understand the post 9-11 need to be prudent in the citizenship process, but as so often stated, most of the illegal immigrants the Arizona law is aimed at are already here.
We applaud the efforts of Arizona legislators to implement immigration change, but their solutions will not create the results they desire. CV
