Summary: Undocumented Immigrants

In the United States, there are roughly eleven million people who can be classified as illegal immigrants, which is by far way too many. When it comes to the history of illegal immigrants, most United States citizens could be considered as an illegal immigrant. In the early years of American history, our ancestors fled into this country for better life styles and to start their own families. During this time there were not laws dealing with who could and could not enter this country illegally, so we cannot be classified as illegal immigrants. The United States of America needs to place more rigid laws regarding immigration by enforcing stricter border control policies and place a greater emphasis on becoming a legal citizen.

More than 11 million undocumented illegal immigrants fill the US. Over the past hundreds years immigrants have been coming into the United States,this process has continued. And some may disagree and believe in that immigrants should not have a path to citizenship. It is immigrants should have a path to citizenship. Undocumented immigrants should get a path to citizenship

The authors of “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” and “My life as an Undocumented Immigrant” both use rhetoric appeal in their letters to society. Jose Antonio Vargas uses it to tell his story of being an unwanted American. Martin Luther King Jr uses it to tell the leader of church to keep fighting for their equality just as the Declaration of Independencies states “all men are created equal”. Vargas and King both had task that they each handled differently and similar.

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.

Throughout the various books that we have read, one of the many concepts that stood out for me was the well-being and healthcare of undocumented workers. Due to the current criminalization of immigration, most undocumented workers live in a constant state of fear and anxiety. This really made me think about the psychological and somatic outcomes of fear, stigma, trauma, and prejudice for undocumented workers. This brought into question the structural and symbolic violence that causes undocumented workers to suffer from mental and physical illnesses and how the treatment, if any, is administered.

In Undocumented Latinas by Grace Chang, Chang mentioned some of the ways undocumented latinas got abused and were not treated equally. For starters, she mentioned how women working in private households were underpaid by a great deal and worked for an insane amount of hours. Chang also mentioned two cases against the INS for not allowing women to receive the amnesty program because they receive public assistance to feed their children.

For many years, people from all over the world have come to the United States seeking a better life for themselves, their spouse, their children and even their children's children. However, not every immigrant comes into this country legally and many of these illegal immigrants are poor, uneducated and may be carrying contagious diseases. They may arrive here via human trafficking, smuggling or other methods. There is one thing we know for sure that many of them choose to remain silence when they become victims. The three main reasons they become invisible victims are they are not aware they are victimized, they don't know the right way to ask for help and they are afraid to be fired or even deported.

The article “My Life as an Undocumented Immigrant” was written by Jose Antonio Vargas. In it, Vargas tells of the time when his mother brought him to the Phillippines’ Ninoy Aquino International Airport when he was twelve. His mother told him that she wanted to give him a better life so he boarded onto a plane with a man he had never met before and was told that he was his uncle. He arrived in Mountain View, California and moved in with his grandparents Lolo and Lola. Vargas says that he grew to love his new home and when he entered sixth grade that’s when he found his passion for language. He tells of his struggle of making a distinction between “formal English and

Undocumented: How Immigration Became Illegal by Aviva Chomsky is a compelling book that addresses the hot button issue that is immigration in the United States. With immigration being one of the main focuses in the most recent presidential election, it is clearly evident that immigration, both legal and illegal, plays an important role in today's society. Chomsky addresses this issue with a modern liberal outlook and questions the legitimacy, if any, of the illegality of immigration.

There are many solutions that the United States can do to slow down or maybe stop the illegal immigration. They can resolve these problems by providing a pathway for the undocumented immigrants to earn the citizenship because there is more than “66% of undocumented immigrant adults have been in the U.S. for over a decade”without paying taxes (Merino 1). According to the article Introduction To Immigration In The U.S. Today by Noel Merino, it shows that if the U.S. government gave those undocumented immigrants a way to earn the citizenship, they will start to pay the taxes that they didn’t pay because they were illegal immigrants, which will “increase state and local tax contribution by an estimated $2.2 billion a year”(Griswald 1). In the article, How to Fix Illegal Immigration? Earned Citizenship, Griswald, D explains how providing undocumented immigrants citizenships will help the economy of the U.S. to grow up, also that will help those

George W. Bush, former president of the United States of America once said, “America is a nation of immigration; immigration is good for America and for those who come here seeking freedom and opportunity.” In our country today, one of the most heated ongoing debates addresses illegal immigrants and their right to benefits as people residing in the United States. Undocumented illegal aliens should unquestionably receive benefits because our country itself was constructed and founded by immigrants, the tremendous amount of money they pump into our economy through taxes will never return to them as they do to us, and they are willing and able to do work that most Americans wouldn’t even think of attempting to do.

I chose not to include the discussion of a pathway to legal status for undocumented immigrants for personal reasons. My opinion on this subject is too strong for me to be objective. As an immigrant myself I have gone through the daunting and intimidating process of obtaining the United States citizenship. I am very happy and proud to be an American citizen. Nevertheless, I believe, that giving legal status to people who chose to disrespect the law of the United States and put financial stability of their families above the law just sends the wrong message. It undermines the legal and administrative struggles many people undergo on their way to legally become U.S. citizens and permanent residents. It is just my personal opinion though.

Immigrants who came to the United States to join our nation from all different places on the world, would combine into one American people and culture. They left behind their friends, family, culture, religion, etc. Immigrants came here because we have freedom. Freedom does not come free. Thanks to the men and women in our military, we have freedom. Franklin D. Roosevelt thinks about the inbound vessels (ships or large boats) that made the port. He thinks about these ships likes I think about food. Roosevelt thinks about the people who have strained (used intense effort) their eyes to the west for a glimpse of the New World.

Of course if these high denomination notes were unavailable, there are substitutes to pay for these crimes: precious gem stones, weapons, gold coins, and prepaid cards you can find at the grocery store. Far and away though, cash is still king in the crime world. Paper currency delivers absolute anonymity, portability, liquidity and near-universal acceptance (Rogoff). It leaves no trail the government can follow to the crime, unlike if we went cashless and the government could have the chance to see every transaction. Something else at the forefront of everyone’s mind this election is the rise of illegal immigration in the United States (which some might point towards cash as be enabling the problem for so long). If American employers had

Should immigrants that live in the United States be giving a pathway to citizenship? Although some people believe that giving them citizenship will harm the nation, illegal immigrants already in the United States should be given a path to citizenship because they are hardworking and contribute to society and should, therefore, reap the benefits of this nation. For example, they argue that immigrants don’t contribute in any way to the society. Yes, many of them have no jobs. However, Back in March 10, 2006 Immigrants left their jobs and they join the protest “A Day Without Immigration” , many industries were disrupted by the protests, especially those—like agriculture, food service, and construction—that largely depend on immigrant labor (Thomas).