Path to Citizenship

Immigration has become a very relevant topic in the past few years and has sparked various arguments between Americans. No agreement has been reached regarding an immigration reform. Possibly because many people view it as an immediate amnesty rather than a possibility of legalization for hard-working immigrants. Despite of the negative meaning associated with it, an immigration reform would be beneficial to the U.S. in both social and economic aspects.

Policymakers from both political parties have attempted to find a solution to the illegal immigration crisis and have currently submitted several immigration proposals before the senate. Some of these proposals are: “The McCain-Kennedy Secure America and Orderly Immigration Act by Senators John McCain (R-AZ) and Edward Kennedy (D-MA), The Cornyn-Kyl proposal Comprehensive Enforcement and Immigration Reform Act by Senators John Cornyn (R-TX) and Jon Kyl (R-AZ), and The Specter proposal, a compromise proposal from Senate Judiciary Chairman Arlen Specter”. (Pan1) In spite of all the proposals presented by these policymakers, none of such proposals have been good enough to be approved by the senate. An extensive migration reform has evaded Congress for a long time now, moving decisions in between different branches of the government, and leaving the issue without any resolution. meanwhile, the legal status of an estimated eleven million undocumented immigrants living and working in the U.S, lie in a legal limbo.

If it were up to you, and you had the choice whether or not to give undocumented citizens a chance at citizenship, would you? Many people believe that they should not have a chance at citizenship because they came here illegally. Every person has their own opinion on this topic. This debate is one of many debates going on in between the candidates or even the politicians, but of course they all have their own views and reasons on it. Everyone should consider that they should because either we are hurting families or they can help improve our economy. In the next three paragraphs this argument will be influencing you to side with my claim, that undocumented citizens should get a pathway to citizenship.

A recent push to provide amnesty for millions of illegal immigrants in today’s society has become a very contentious issue for Americans. While most United States citizens agree that illegal immigrants violate the basic core of fundamental immigration laws, there remains an unprecedented controversy regarding the possibility of granting amnesty to this growing sector of the population. While some citizens may argue that a mass legalization of immigrants could spark growth in the United States, others speculate that amnesty could create turmoil throughout the country. In the preceding testimony titled “Mass Legalization for Unauthorized Immigrants Is a Bad Idea” by the American Immigration Control Foundation, the author claims that a mass

Immigration has become a very relevant topic in the past few years and has sparked various arguments between Americans. No agreement has been reached regarding immigration reform, possibly because many people view it as an immediate amnesty rather than a possibility of legalization for hard-working immigrants. Despite of the negative meaning associated with it, an immigration reform would be beneficial to the U.S. in social aspects, such as having undivided families, and by stimulating economic growth.

America has, is, and will always be a nation of immigrants: the great melting pot. In the years that have passed since Emma Lazarus' poem was inscribed on the Statue of Liberty "the golden door" Americans have seen times when the door was open wide and times when it was close shut to most immigrants (Sure 4). Many people look at the present immigration problems as a purely modern dilemma. The truth is America has always struggled with the issue of immigration, both legal and illegal. Changing times, however, makes it imperative that our government reexamines and adjusts today's immigration laws to today's standards. Those standards, however, are not easily defined. Too often the issue of

In the United States, there are over 40 million immigrants, both legal and unauthorized (Auclair, Batalova, Nwosu 1). Of that 40 million, an estimated 11 million immigrants are not authorized to be in the country (Krogsadt, Passel 1). In recent news, there has been quite the debate over whether or not there should be amnesty or citizenship offered to some or all of the undocumented citizens in America. I have a personal attachment to the subject. I believe there should be a clear and easy pathway to citizenship for immigrants with some restrictions. I support this idea because they provide for older generations, younger generations, and fill jobs

Although the issue of immigration policy has been at the center of political debates, largely discussed in the media and newspapers, no one has yet found a solution to this ill-defined problem, that would comply with the America’s core values. While I think the immigration policy does need a reform, the solution to this problem certainly is not a deportation of all undocumented residents.

In recent discussion s of illegal immigration, a controversial issue has been whether or not to grant amnesty to illegal immigrants in the U.S. On the one hand, some argue that amnesty shouldn’t be granted to illegal criminals. From this perspective, there are downfalls that many ignore and is unjust and stereotypical that all illegals are dangerous criminals. On the other hand, however, others argue that amnesty should be granted to illegal immigrants and how all of us are immigrants. In the words of one of this view’s main supporters,” Our country is strong because of generation after generation of immigrants… were all immigrants” (We Are All Immigrants.). According to this view, Obama’s saying immigrants have a huge impact economically within the U.S that makes it stronger and how we are all immigrants in this country. In sum, then the issue is whether amnesty should be dismissed and deportation take place or pardon illegals with amnesty and recognizes basic, simple fact that immigrants are a benefit to the U.S. My own view is that Amnesty should be passed. Though I concede that many are against this and there are some illegals that are criminals escaping into the U.S. I still maintain that amnesty should be given because it’s what keeps the United States strong and should apply to what the United States stands for and how we are all immigrants.

The current U.S. legal immigration and visa system is inefficient and flawed. Immigrant workers who would help grow the U.S. economy often face time-consuming paperwork and bureaucratic nonsense. The current immigration bill does not improve the legal immigration and visa system effectively. Policies that would effectively reform the system are more H-1B visas, a streamlined application, a reduction is fees. Currently, H-1B visas which are capped at 85,000 annually, should be raised as well as simplified to renew. Highly educated and skilled workers benefit the U.S. economy and provide companies great employees. A streamlined application will help make it simpler to obtain a visa. This application would not reduce security measures that help ensure we are only allowing safe immigrants, it would simply remove the time consuming nonsense that hold up most applications. The expensive application process deters many first time applicants and H-1B workers from attempting to re-new their visas. Many well deserving applicants

Furthermore, the proper outlook here is one where we acknowledge that we have these potentially undocumented individuals living and working in the United States, and they aren’t going be be removed all at once, so while these individuals are here, why not give them the necessary tools and programs to allow them to function as productive members of society without restriction. In many of our readings, we’ve witnessed legislation that has also played a role in the deterred success of illegal immigrants and those here legally. Legislation such as barring immigrants from being able to acquire driving license or being able to receive healthcare benefits are laws that not only hurt the immigrant population, but also the American population.

Immigration is a highly contested issue in the United States. The most recent immigration reform that was proposed passed the Senate in the summer of 2013 but has yet to be introduced onto the House floor. At the same time, the country is home to 11 million immigrants without authorization to live in the United States. The current immigration policies are outdated and do not benefit those wanting to live in this country or the legal citizens of this country. With a new policy that reintroduces worker visas for unskilled labor, a clear path to citizenship and the close monitoring of employers, the United States could regain control of the immigration system while benefiting both the immigrants and citizens of this country.

For many years, immigration reform bill proposals have taken part in the House and Senate floor but it has been obstructed by the conflicting views from both Democratic and Republican parties. However, in 2013 the Democratic Party created a bipartisan bill with prospects to leave enough space for compromise. In this arena, both Republican and Democrat Representatives can be united to find consensus on immigration for the sake of fixing our dysfunctional immigration system. Every year, millions of undocumented individuals face an avalanche of barriers due to their lack of legality. Their legal and socioeconomic status denies them the opportunity to improve their lifestyle and to contribute back to their community through human and monetary capital. A comprehensive immigration reform would boost American economy, reduce deficit by 850 billion over the next two decades, provide 300 billion dollars to the Social Security Trust fund and extend the life of this fund for two years (White House, 2013). Moreover, it will create a sense of accountability between the government and undocumented immigrants, which will encourage these immigrants for legalization to remain on the right side of the law. As a consequence, fear will fade away from the hearts of immigrants and they will begin actively participate

The author's response to the Atwan collection as well as the journal articles reviewed by the author of this paper is pretty simple. It can be concisely stated as the following. Open immigration is never going to be a viable solution, amnesty (for the third time in three generations) is not a good idea without some major follow-up, and the economic consequences of allowing 12 million (estimated) immigrants becoming legal overnight is not the panacea and feel-good fest that some people may think it will be. If amnesty recipients agree to do so and complete the requirements, they can and should be allowed to stay and be fruitful members of society. However, if the enforcement mechanism is not dialed up at the same time, then this country will be doing this yet again 20-30 years down the road"¦for at least the fourth time in a century. An American is someone who legally immigrates to this country and meets all the necessary requirements or is born to at least one American parent.

The United States is known to have one of the most accepting immigration in the world. It has contributed to the country's population growth as well as social change. However, the policy remains to be a controversy because of the topic that is illegal immigration. According to the Department of Homeland security in 2010, there are 10.8 million illegal immigrants residing among the 300+ million Americans. Since then, the number has grown to 11+ million people. The U.S. Congress has always sought to find the solution for illegal immigration, with amnesty being an option. If enacted, an amnesty will give unauthorized immigrants a path to legalization and eventually citizenship. The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA) is a prime