Looking for Resolution
Recently I saw some security camera footage of an ICE raid at a car wash in Hamden CT. It reminded me of the continued unsettled issues regarding treatment of immigrants in our country. We cannot let the status quo ride without resolution. It is not good for immigrants, and it is not positive for Americans’ feelings about their government agencies either. Rather than bemoaning or stoking division, we need to look for a solution.
Key Points
I thought about several key and sometimes conflicting points that nevertheless all need to be kept in mind as we look for a way forward.
- Immigrants are part of the lifeblood of our country. They provide vital workforce. They help balance the age demographic to prevent us becoming an aging country like Japan which doesn’t like immigration. And they are a source of added innovation and brainpower. They are of great value. And besides, all of us except native Americans are descendants of immigrants, so it seems rather arrogant to object to the current ones.
- It is certainly the right of every country to control its borders. For a long time, our country has not done that very well. The current emphasis on enhanced border control is long overdue. And needed also because of increased spying and terrorism risks in today’s world.
- The Bible instructs us to treat aliens already living among us as if they were native born. This agrees with the principle of Jesus that we do to others as we would have them do to us. This norm tempers justice with mercy.
- It is essential for every country to have ways to keep track of those who overstay their privileges and call them to accountability. For decades our nation has done this poorly as well, resulting in many residents whose visas or permits ran out long ago. Now they have American spouses, children, and business connections that tie them to our country in new ways.
- The current punishments where illegals are being separated from families and summarily deported, sometimes without hearings, seems unjust, cruel, capricious, and in many cases a punishment that does not fit the crime. It seems like for each case like the one of the Des Moines, Iowa, school superintendent whose fraudulent record was thankfully outed by ICE, there is another like the relatively innocent milkmaid and mother from upstate NY whose sudden departure produced letters of protest from the rural school over grade school students gone from their classroom.
- We must acknowledge that ICE is a necessary branch of government. However, it is getting an unsavory reputation currently which is not a good thing.
What’s the answer?
So where does all this leave us? We can’t just wring our hands and declare a political stalemate as Congress and the Executive Branch have done for decades. What can we do? To me the solution is not too hard. We can begin by simply revising the penalties involved.
What happens to you and me if we violate government regulations? Do we get ripped away from our family and deported? Of course not! Barring complications, we get cited and fined. And if we fail to cooperate with that legal process, then we immediately become eligible for higher penalties.
That schema should guide our thinking as to what should happen to immigrants whose only violation is being undocumented. If there are no complicating circumstances such as criminal records, gang involvement or other security concerns, they should be immediately required to register as our government would require and then subsequently also pay a fine(s) as a penalty for the original transgression. Then if they do not cooperate with the process, they would become eligible for increasing penalties including jail and deportation as the judge felt appropriate. Those who do have complicating circumstances would be immediately eligible for higher penalties. Trying to get rid of illegal immigrants just because we can’t figure out a process for dealing with them is not a viable or responsible option.
Good results
If my concept is pursued, then many good things happen.
We begin to take steps out of the legal no-man’s land that undocumented people are in, bringing undocumented people out of the shadows and registering them with the government. We treat our immigrants both justly and mercifully. Through the process, we are able to make an initial crucial determination as to who might be a problem and who a valued asset. Overall, we regain greater respect for our immigration system and for its necessary enforcer, ICE.