As Executive-Director of a foundation which has had many Hispanic members of its various education programs, I have been enrolled in an on-going course in the dynamics of immigration. In 2011, I came to believe that dialogue on this subject would be enhanced by answering the questions listed below. They are in no order, as a method of getting people to think about each question separately, not as part of a group — where there is a tendency to believe that one answers covers an entire subset.
My premise was – and still is in 2016, as almost all the questions remain pertinent today, even with the political noise being generated on the right — that only by agreement on “yes” or “no” answers to these questions can conversation move to the challenge of immigration reform.
*Does immigration in the age of economical air travel, internet and cell phone have fundamentally different characteristics, because of these advances, from prior waves of immigration?
*Do “illegal/undocumented” immigrants exhibit wide differences in their commitment to being here?
*Can one discuss immigration and ignore the history of the United States’ involvement in the geopolitics of the majority of countries in central and South America?
*Has impartial research conclusively demonstrated that illegal immigration is a net economic benefit to America or a net drain from the collective wallets of American citizens?
* Did the 2007 Kennedy-McCain immigration bill fail because it was too anti-immigrant?
*Is entering the country without documentation a civil offense?
*Do welfare benefits in the United States provide more economic support than wages in many countries?
*Is English language usage by third generation immigrants twenty times that of first generation?
*Does it help create good immigration legislation for letter-to-the editor writers to equate illegal immigration with running a traffic light because both are violations?
*Does American illicit drug consumption drive up crime in Colombia, which reduces employment opportunities and causes some Colombians to come to the U.S. and overstay their tourist visas?
*Does the United States generate sufficient homegrown math and science college graduates to spur innovation and capital investment?
*Are the fees associated with obtaining a green card the most critical issue for immigrants?
*If you entered the country legally and are now undocumented, is this a criminal offense?
*Are 25% of young people in this country either immigrants or the children of immigrants?
*Would immigrants be willing to pay a large fine if they could apply for legalization without having to return to their home country?
*Is illegal immigration a political issue whose resolution requires an unusual set of compromises that fundamentally have no connection to party affiliation?
*Does it make sense for immigration policy to make no distinction between high school drop-outs working manual labor and master’s degrees holders?
*Are employers eager to be enforcers of immigration laws?
*Is the uncertainty and time delay in obtaining a green card its most critical issue?
*Is it good for immigrants to learn the “instrumental culture” of the United States in order to succeed?
*Can an immigration bill be passed requiring families to be split because of different legal situations?
*As a driver, would you prefer that others on the road be unlicensed?
*Is the United States entitled to have a border and a set of rules about entering the country?
*Is the American education system required to educate all young people through high school graduation?
*Are local police forces in favor of being trained under 287(g) to be junior immigration officers as well?
*Did the Kennedy-McCain immigration bill fail because it was too pro-immigrant?
*Do employers take advantage of undocumented employees?
*Are high school drop-outs from Mexico the biggest source of illegal immigrants?
*Can immigrants maintain their “expressive culture” and succeed in the United States?
*Did over half of undocumented immigrants enter the United States legally?
*Can anybody argue against the following person, who has overstayed his tourist visa, from becoming a resident: he entered the country legally, learned rudimentary English, paid his income taxes, has a high school diploma or GED or equivalent, is married, was at one job for three years, and has had the same home address for three years?
*Is the case for immigration reform helped when advocates (a) label their opponents racist, (b) defend every immigrant who commits a crime, or (c) march in the streets carrying the flag of their “home” country?
*Can taxpayers be repaid, for their investment through high school, if an undocumented young person is deprived of a college education and ensuing commensurate career path?
*Has the Supreme Court ruled that “children can neither affect their parents’ conduct nor their own undocumented status” as its reasoning for mandating free education through high school?
If you answered half “Yes” and half “No,” you are ready for political negotiations!
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