The Immigration debate

1. The Immigration debate How much immigration is good for the USA?

2. The USA’s immigration laws The 1990 Immigration Act (IMMACT) limits the annual number of immigrants to 700,000. Controversy has arisen over existing immigration law and immigration outside the law, especially over the 7.5 million illegal alien workers with more than 12 million household members already inside the U.S. Another 700,000 to 850,000 are predicted to enter each coming year.

3. Illegal immigration and Mexico The USA more than most is a nation of immigrants. The debate in the USA is about who should be allowed in, how many should be allowed in and on what basis. Mexico is a pressing issue. Roughly half of Mexico's population lives on less than $5 a day. The US minimum wage is $7.25 an hour. It’s not hard to see the attraction of El Norte.

4. Economic Migrants and Refugees “America has constantly drawn strength and spirit from wave after wave of immigrants ... They have proved to be the most restless, the most adventurous, the most innovative, the most industrious of people” President Bill Clinton, 1998 As with all countries, it is important to distinguish between economic migrants, who generally do not gain legal admission, and refugees, as defined by international law, who can gain legal status through a process of seeking and receiving asylum. Refugees compose about one-tenth of the total annual immigration to the United States.

5. Operation Jumpstart “There's an important debate facing our nation, and the debate is, can we secure this border and, at the same time, honor our history of being a land of immigrants? And the answer is, absolutely, we can do both. And we will do both”. President Bush, 3 August 2006 President Bush attempted to neutralise the immigration issue with his Immigration Bill of 2006-07. “Operation Jumpstart” was his plan to solve the immigration problem. Like much else of Bush’s domestic agenda, the President ran into Congressional opposition and the bill ultimately failed in June 2007. He did though succeed in using the National Guard to patrol the US/Mexico border. Border Security USA

6. Pro-Immigration groups: A Day without Immigrants Strength of feeling on the issue was illustrated in March 2006 when hundreds of thousands of activists marched in California to protest against plans to criminalise undocumented workers. The Day Without Immigrants protest was a day when legal and some illegal immigrants stopped work to show the contribution immigrants make to America

7. Anti-immigration groups: The Minutemen "I think it is very important to have a secure border right now anyone can cross our borders and just come right in. How secure are we from 9/11 type attack if anyone can just walk over? If it keeps up we will not be Americans, but part of Mexico in the not too distant future." Spokesperson, The Minutemen By contrast, the Minutemen are a vigilante group who volunteer to patrol the US/Mexico border to keep out illegal immigrants.

8. The language debate The widespread use of Spanish in American cities has generated a public debate over language. Some English speakers are calling for a law declaring English the official American language. Others consider such a law unnecessary and likely to cause harm. They cite Switzerland as a place where the existence of multiple languages does not undermine national unity. Recognition of English as the official language, they argue, would stigmatize speakers of other languages and make it difficult for them to live their daily lives.

9. Are immigrants a drain on resources? It is argued that immigrants drain scarce resources. A study in the Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons concluded that the burden of illegal immigrants on the health care system in the US forced many hospitals to close due to unpaid bills.

10. Crime The lack of an effective immigration policy means that people traffickers (coyotes)can exploit poor immigrants. Even after paying to be trafficked into the USA, illegal immigrants can be used for prostitution, cheap labour or to smuggle drugs.

11. Do immigrants enrich America? Supporters of immigration point to the contribution immigrants make to the US economy. They claim that new immigrants work harder and they also add to the cultural melting pot which the USA has always been.

12. Are immigrants necessary for the US economy? It is highly unlikely that many businesses in Southern California, especially, could cope without immigrants. That was the essential message of the Day Without Immigrants protest. Vineyards, restaurants, housemaids, cleaners, low paid, insecure jobs are carried out by illegal immigrants, often paid less than minimum wage, with no holiday or sick pay.

13. A Human Rights Issue? Defending the rights of immigrants was one of the founding principles of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Just as African slaves played a key part in the building of America, human rights activists claim illegal immigrants are the slaves of modern America.

14. Arizona Law Arizona’s state law on immigration, SB1070, signed on April 23 2010, makes illegal immigration a state misdemeanour (in addition to being a federal civil violation). It empowers local police to make “lawful contact” in order to check the immigration status of people who cause “reasonable suspicion” and to arrest them if they lack documents. To the Hispanic community, this, in effect, means that Hispanic looking drivers will be pulled over by the police on potentially any pretext. Arizona Law

15. The New Politics of Immigration There is the possibility that other states, notably New Mexico and Texas, could follow Arizona’s lead. On the other hand, pro-immigration groups have been mobilised. There has been talk of boycotts of the state and private companies have cancelled conferences. “Your Vote is Your Voice”, slogan of the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project. Antonio Gonzalez of SVREEP says that SB1070 has made the Hispanic lobby “100 times larger than the Tea Party”. Todos somos Arizona demonstration

16. President Obama has promised “comprehensive reform” of immigration and while criticising Arizona, acknowledges the lack of federal action on immigration has encouraged actions such as SB1070. He has stated that illegal immigrants need a “pathway to legal status”. This would involve illegals registering, admitting that they had broken the law, pay a fine, pay taxes and learn English. Not, in essence, that much different from President Bush’s plan. Competition for jobs is rising with unemployment. If President Obama doesn’t move fast in 2010, reform would become an election issue in 2012. If the US economy is still in recession, immigration could be a vote winner for Republicans tapping into xenophobic feeling. Failure to act could lose him the support of the millions of Hispanics who voted for him and the Democrats in 2008. President Obama and Immigration Obama and Immigration reform

17. Unreported World: The Devil’s Highway The Devil’s Highway Part One The Devil’s Highway Part Two The Devil’s Highway Part Three This excellent programme looks at the fate of illegal immigrants trying to cross the US/Mexico border.