2008 Woodie Awards
Immigration reform
Jerome Lewis
Issue date: 4/13/06 Section: Opinion
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For the first time in 10 years, the U.S. government has finally recognized the importance of immigration reform.
On Capitol Hill, lawmakers, under political pressure, have decided to draft new laws to alleviate a problem. But legislation isn't the remedy.
In fact, fresh laws would offer only temporary relief to the symptoms of illegal immigration rather than directly addressing the problem emanating from Latin and Central American countries.
Without a doubt, lawmakers have ignored the issue for too long, and what we are now witnessing is the result of years of neglect.
Larry Birns, director of the Council of Hemispheric Affairs, a group that monitors U.S. relations with Latin American countries, says lawmakers "are coming up with a solution that postpones the problem for a future generation to deal with."
Another point of view comes from an insider who worked closely with the Mexican government.
Fredo Arias-King, a former speechwriter for Mexican President Vicente Fox, says that during Fox's reign, "Corruption [had] actually increased and the quality of government deteriorated."
He also estimated that "Mexican illegal immigration to the US under Fox [had] actually increased and [was] likely to continue at the present level for at least 20 years more."
Even more troubling: statements made by Ernesto Zedillo, the former Mexican president (1994-2000). In a recent Forbes magazine article, he said citizens in Latin American countries "spend their lives worrying about security and crime … burdened by corruption and aggrieved by the power of special interest groups."
Unlike American politicians, King and Zedillo recognize that corruption is the main ingredient that impedes progress in the Western Hemisphere.
Furthermore, a number of misconceptions and myths remain about the role of illegal immigrants in our workforce. For instance, take the one-sided story that they do the jobs Americans don't want, a notion that has some merit but is not entirely true.
On Capitol Hill, lawmakers, under political pressure, have decided to draft new laws to alleviate a problem. But legislation isn't the remedy.
In fact, fresh laws would offer only temporary relief to the symptoms of illegal immigration rather than directly addressing the problem emanating from Latin and Central American countries.
Without a doubt, lawmakers have ignored the issue for too long, and what we are now witnessing is the result of years of neglect.
Larry Birns, director of the Council of Hemispheric Affairs, a group that monitors U.S. relations with Latin American countries, says lawmakers "are coming up with a solution that postpones the problem for a future generation to deal with."
Another point of view comes from an insider who worked closely with the Mexican government.
Fredo Arias-King, a former speechwriter for Mexican President Vicente Fox, says that during Fox's reign, "Corruption [had] actually increased and the quality of government deteriorated."
He also estimated that "Mexican illegal immigration to the US under Fox [had] actually increased and [was] likely to continue at the present level for at least 20 years more."
Even more troubling: statements made by Ernesto Zedillo, the former Mexican president (1994-2000). In a recent Forbes magazine article, he said citizens in Latin American countries "spend their lives worrying about security and crime … burdened by corruption and aggrieved by the power of special interest groups."
Unlike American politicians, King and Zedillo recognize that corruption is the main ingredient that impedes progress in the Western Hemisphere.
Furthermore, a number of misconceptions and myths remain about the role of illegal immigrants in our workforce. For instance, take the one-sided story that they do the jobs Americans don't want, a notion that has some merit but is not entirely true.
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