Chapter 17 thoughts and observations

            Chapter 17 deals with the contemporary issue of immigration and its trends. The most revealing thing I found were the deficiencies evident in the INS. My specific interest was the question of illegal immigration and how we will go about defining the problem and then working towards a solution. One of the first issues that was brought to my attention in the chapter was how difficult it is to determine how many undocumented immigrants there are in the United States. The lack of reliable data makes it difficult for the INS to accurately estimate how many immigrants there are in the United States and where they are from. The chapter goes on to explain that public opinion has been increasingly mercurial in regards to how immigration should be legislated. I believe that this constantly changing opinion on immigration is due to the changing trends in immigration. The more immigrants there are in the country I am willing to assume the more resistance there will be for allowing new immigrants into the country and the more people will want to see undocumented immigrants removed. I believe that in regards to immigration out of sight is truly out of mind for the majority of people. As long as there is not a lot of attention being paid to the number of immigrants in the United States it ceases to be much of an issue or at least is not part of the national conversation. This is one of the reasons I think September 11^th has had such an impact on the national conversation regarding immigration. The intense scrutiny that the attack garnered brought focus to how the terrorist had entered into the country in the first place. This brought the discussion on immigration into the realm of national defense. The problem with this development is that the leeway we give legislators to protect us is much more than what we would give legislators to help protect our safety. As a result more restrictive laws for immigrants can be passed under the guise of protecting American lives. The opponents of immigration can successfully paint immigrants as a threat to our national security, and deemphasize the fact that the overwhelming majority of undocumented immigrants are hardworking people who provide an immense value of service to our country. Often times it is too easy for the opponents of immigration to frame the debate in a way that favors their position. There is a massive difference between securing borders and dealing with the question of immigrants, which are linked far too often. Allowing the hard-working undocumented workers in this country to stay here does nothing but benefit America. The textbook goes a long way in showcasing how America was built on the backs of immigrants. For the entirety of our history immigrants from various nations have played a vital role in the ongoing development of our country. Every domestic born American citizen has benefited from the open policy of immigration that has existed since our countries inception. As such it is our duty as a country to keep that policy alive and allow immigrants a chance to bring their dreams to fruition, just like our ancestors did.