It's Less Immigrating and More Fleeing

The idea of self deportation has been brought up by many candidates in this years election. Most recently by Mitt Romney. When asked about immigration, Romney brought up the idea of self deportation. For those who are not familiar, self deportation is not a law, nor is it a policy. Its a phrase that was used by two comedians, Lalo Alcaraz and Esteban Zul, as a joke, protesting a California immigration measure in 1994. It however has taken on new meaning when Romney and the rest of the GOP refer to it. What the Governor is proposing is a belief that if we make the lives of "illegals" as difficult as possible, such as prohibiting them and their children access to the essentials, such as schools or medicine, they will "self deport" or return to their country of origin. Stores in some states that have enacted self deportation laws, such as Alabama, have taken the law into their own hands, requiring citizenship papers for anything from cashing a check to purchasing groceries. Even if no law had been passed requiring the refusal of service.

Honestly, in my opinion this situation falls into a gray area. On one hand we are taking people who have done nothing, other then escape a perilous life for the idea of freedom and prosperity, and placing what might as well be an embargo on them, forcing them to return to the dangerous drug ravaged land they risked everything to free themselves from. On the other hand we are in the middle of a serious economic situation  and illegal immigration has to be having a negative effect on the unemployment numbers, along with many other strains on social services.

I feel like the mainstream media has only put fourth two options when it comes to dealing with illegal immigration. Then first being the DREAM act, the second of which being self deportation. What most right wingers wont tell you is the DREAM act was originally a piece of republican legislature, designed to address the problems of immigration without the idea of a total overhaul to the system. Which was what the democrats had in mind at the time of the proposal. Now, for some reason it just isn't good enough, every republican candidate, minus Ron Paul and Rick Perry,  feels very strongly about being tough on illegal immigration.

Go home seems to be the main republican feeling. But can we even say that? Go home? Most of these people don't know what "home" is. They have never experienced what Americans take for such granted. Its likely that if someone is in this country illegally, they came from somewhere that they never felt comfortable, never felt safe, never felt any of the things that we would use to describe a home. That is why it is so hard for me to paint everyone with such a broad brush. There are many people who came here looking to provide for their families, and to escape the tyranny of the drug cartels only to live a safe and humble life. I believe that they not only should have the right to become citizens, but they deserve it. If you are willing to risk everything to live in a country that threatens to imprison or deport you. Just because you think its the greatest country on earth and that it gives you the freedom and opportunity to to live a life of prosperity. Thats more then I can say for myself, who was born with citizenship, but spends most of my time criticizing what we do wrong, rather then admiring the freedoms we have come to take for granted.

                                           (That's not the Taliban, those are Mexican cartel soldiers)

Fixing the situation. I feel there are two ways to fix the immigration issue. Neither of which being presented. We can either legalize all drugs, cutting off the cartels cash flow, essentially nipping the problem in the bud, no drugs, no money, no guns, no problem. Or the second option, I seem to recall us declaring a war on terror. This seems to be all these cartels do, from mass murders of police officers and their families to political bribes/intimidation effecting the countries laws. I am not a supporter of the current war, nor do I think we should get ourselves into a new one. I just think its a bit hypocritical when we travel half way across the world because we felt the need to get the bad guys, when there are plenty attached to us. Bottom line is, when immigration is as important as oil, then we'll address the issue.