Illegal Immigration in the United States - Essay Example

Illegal Immigration Illegal immigration has become an increasing problem for both people in the United s and for the illegal immigrants, especially for those from Mexico. One of the greatest concerns surrounds how these immigrants are being treated in the workforce. They are underpaid and work in squalid conditions just to make a few meager dollars to send back home to their families. Since immigrants are so desperate to come to America for the job opportunities, and because it costs so much to attempt to deport them all, it has become vital to implement measures that might make it easier for these people to obtain their citizenship so that they may have the same job opportunities as the rest of the American citizens. This can be accomplished by granting amnesty, making legalization easier and quicker, deporting the illegal citizens who are in America without being of value to the workforce, and by fixing it so that businesses cannot take advantage of these hardworking people. There are millions of undocumented immigrants currently in the United States (Welch 1), many of which are here to work. It has been determined that it would be expensive and impossible to deport them all back to their home countries. Therefore, a smart solution would be to grant amnesty to the illegal immigrants already here. Amnesty would allow them to be pardoned for their criminal offense of being illegal in this country. Since they have already spent time working in the country, doing what they would be doing if they have legal residence in America, amnesty would make it so that they would not be in trouble for being illegally in the United States. The reason that these illegal immigrants are here is to take on the jobs and lifestyles of legal immigrants and native citizens (Welch 1). It would only make sense to allow amnesty for those that are already here, as long as they have proven to be hard workers that are serious about their citizenship. This can be proven based on how they have worked while living here and by obtaining testimony from their employers. Unfortunately, not all illegal immigrants are here for a better life, and so this process of amnesty must be done carefully to avoid granting pardon to someone who has caused trouble for this country. Amnesty should only be given to those that have proven to be hard workers and have not gotten into criminal trouble while in America. Some illegal immigrants are only in America to take advantage of rights and privileges that are only granted to citizens, and these are the people that should not be granted amnesty. The illegal immigrants that have shown that they can work and act like Americans should not be punished for their attempts. Similar to granting amnesty to the illegal immigrants who are working hard, illegal immigrants that are not working in this country or have gotten in trouble with the law should be deported. This will drastically decrease the amount of illegal immigrants that do need to be deported, making it easier and cheaper on American citizens, while presenting more opportunities to the undocumented citizens that truly want to be a part of this country. Deportation should be used for illegal immigrants who want the benefits of being in America without wanting to be American or without following the rules. However, this should not get in the way of illegal immigrants who really want to belong to this country. Also, after the eligible illegal immigrants have been granted amnesty, they need to be provided with ways to make it easier to obtain their American citizenship since that is why they are in the country to begin with - to belong. Many immigrants become discouraged at the thought of how long the legalization process can take, which can take anywhere from five years to ten years, and possibly longer (Anderson 18). This discouragement is often what causes immigrants to enter the United States illegally. They want the benefits of being a citizen and they want to show that they can work even harder than American citizens, but they do not want to have to go through the tedious waiting process. Therefore, the illegal immigrants that have been caught in this country but have a history of hard work while in America should be given easier opportunities to receive their citizenship. Since they are serious about being here, we should be just as serious in helping them obtain their citizenship. Furthermore, something does need to be done about the businesses that do hire illegal immigrants. If obtaining illegal employment is more difficult to come by, perhaps potential illegal immigrants would be more willing to apply for citizenship like other people. These businesses need to not only encourage potential employees to apply for citizenship, whether they adhere to the longer process of legalization or by being granted the simpler plan, so that they may attain legal employment, but they also need to be forced to stop taking advantage of people who are willing to work cheaply and in unbearable conditions. This is unfair for the illegal immigrants that do want to be a part of the country but are unable to do so. They come to this country knowing that they can get cheap, illegal work, and they know the consequences of doing so, yet this does not mean that businesses should take advantage of it. These businesses should not necessarily be fined or reprimanded for hiring illegally, but for taking advantage of honest, hardworking people (Bascio 112). By illegally offering jobs, business owners are only helping to condone illegal immigration. Sadly, in a land that boasts of freedom and equality, there are still people that are willing to exploit others for their own benefit, all the while pretending that the illegal immigrants will be the ones benefiting. On the opposing side of the argument, there are many people that believe if someone is willing to break the law to be in this country, then they should not be given special treatment. In America, we must abide by the laws and rules set down for us. If someone breaks those rules by doing something illegally, they are usually arrested or fined. The same thing should happen to illegal immigrants. If they want to be treated fairly in our country, then they need to expect punishment if they break the law while in our country, which would include being here illegally. Therefore, these illegal immigrations should not be rewarded for their crimes by being granted amnesty, nor should they be given priority in gaining their citizenship. Instead, like all criminals in America that must be punished, these illegal immigrants should be imprisoned and then deported. While it is true that illegal immigrants should be treated as if they were citizens, since this is essentially what they want, we have to also take into consideration that the legalization process is long and tedious; it may be worth the wait, but the impatience of these potential citizens makes them go to desperate measures. Many immigrants want to be here legally, but their families are in need of money or a better life sooner than what legalization can offer. It is because of this that America needs to strengthen and speed up its legalization process. There are plenty of illegal immigrants in our country who are willing to work hard to become citizens. They may not be going about it in a legal way, but not all of them are causing harm to America. Indeed, they are taking on the jobs that the rest of the legal citizens do not want. Without these illegal immigrants, and some that are legal, agriculture would fail (Welch 4). Some people may not want to agree or admit it, but these immigrants are a big, needed help to the well-being of our country. They take on the jobs that other American citizens are unable to, so without these immigrants some jobs would most likely go undone. Illegal immigration is a serious problem in America, yet it becomes even more serious when we stop and think about how these illegal immigrants are being treated and exploited, which is what many American businesses have been doing. By granting amnesty and better and quicker options to become legal, we will not only be making it safer for immigrants to work, but we will also be acknowledging the work that they have done to deserve citizenship. Deportation should only be used when individual illegal immigrants are either not working or are engaging in criminal acts. When we allow hardworking immigrants the chance to become citizens, we can then properly boast about being a free and equal country. Works Cited Anderson, Oliver C. Illegal Immigration: Causes, Methods, and Effects. New York, NY: Nova Science Publishers, 2010. Print. Bascio, Patrick. On the Immorality of Illegal Immigration. Rev. ed. Bloomington, IN: AuthorHouse, 2009. Print. Welch, Bryan. "Putting a Stop to Slave Labor." Utne Reader. N.p., 4 Mar. 2007. Web. 18 Apr. 2011. . Read More