Commentary: The ugly Mexican-American immigration debate - CNN.com

Hi Ruben—

Below is a column of yours I read on CNN.com. I want to comment on the column.

The first thing I want to say is that as an American, your feelings of outrage at the immigration debacle facing this country offends me. OK, that being said I hope I can support my position in a level-headed and unopinionated (that may be a new word) manner.

The examples of the moronic emails you shared offend me, too. They were probably written by folks with deep-seated prejudices against Latin Americans in general and Mexicans specifically. They offer no valuable discourse to the debate. However, I submit to you that the majority of the Americans fed up with the illegal immigration issue do not harbor ill-will toward a specific race or nationality; they are fed up with our government’s utter failure in resolving the issue. Unfortunately, too few of them have the capacity to express such frustration in a manner that does not smack of racism and nativism.

Still, the fact remains, the United States is facing a major issue with people coming into this country illegally. Many, if not most, are from Mexico, but there are plenty of other nationalities represented as well: Chinese, Haitian, various African nationalities, various other Latin American nationalities and still others. Admittedly many (most?) of these folks are employed in the underground market and are not a drain on the country’s already overburdened welfare system. And that’s a good thing. The problems start when the local public entities (schools, hospitals, police/fire departments) have to provide equal services to these folks.

Why is that a problem? Not because they aren’t US citizens or any other citizenship-based argument. It’s because they are not providing their fair financial share for supporting these services and institutions. Or, to be a bit blunt: they are not paying taxes. There are certain responsibilities to being a “citizen” of this country everyone must share. High on that list is paying the appropriate taxes to ensure our local public services can operate in a responsible manner. Does it make sense that hospitals in AZ and CA have had to close their doors because the majority of the patients coming in for treatment cannot pay for said treatment and don’t have any insurance? Does it make sense to have a school with the majority of the student body population consisting of children of illegal immigrants who are not contributing to the cost of educating their children? Does it seem right that any of the public services primarily support by our tax dollars are made available to those who do not provide their fair share in paying for them? The answer to each of those questions is “No”.

There is a well-documented process for gaining legal immigrant status in this country. As a resident of South Florida I am personally friends with a number of people who have gone through the process and are here legally. My friends willingly admit the process is long and tortuous…probably far too long and far too tortuous…but it is there. And it is there for a reason. Living in the United States, as troubled a country as we are, is still high on the list for people all across the world. But to come here illegally is wrong; to expect to be forgiven for that transgression just because you are here and working is ludicrous. And to forgive people who facilitate the law breaking by hiring illegal immigrants only perpetuates the problem. Illegal immigration is just that…illegal. And it is illegal across the board: doing it, hiring those who have done it, and aiding/abetting those who have done it.

Respectfully,

Martin Stockdale
Coral Springs, FL

Commentary: The ugly Mexican-American immigration debate - CNN.com