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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Archives Revels Classifieds Real Estate Menu Guide Wedding Weather Subscribe Contact Us May 22, 2006 Case In Point Strangers in a strange land By Chris Honore’ Tidings Correspondent In the days ahead Congress and the White House will struggle to find a solution to perhaps one of the most intractable problems to come along in years: illegal immigration. Like few other issues (abortion might qualify), this problem is profoundly complex, clearly divisive, and does not lend itself to easy CNN sound bite analysis. If there is a middle ground it will be geography not easily reached as positions harden and the rhetoric heats up. The House of Representatives, for example, stands firmly on the side of law and order, giving no ground on the position that those who are here illegally, for one day or ten years, have broken the law. Having done so, they are, in effect, criminals and should not be rewarded by any kind of amnesty or path to citizenship, no matter the hurdles (pay back taxes, fines, learn English). Those who are here without proper documentation should be deported. The president and the Senate are positioned in another camp, arguing that it would be impossible to seriously consider deporting some 20 million people, many who have children and homes and are deeply entrenched in America, though law breakers they may be. As the debate is framed, what is striking is that there is so little discussion about causation. Nevertheless, if this massive, ongoing migration is a symptom, then the cause resides in Mexico. What would motivate people to leave their homeland — their culture, where language is like air, where they have family ties and deep connections — to risk a harrowing journey that is costly and possibly lethal? What is there about Mexico — its economy, its way of life — that makes such a pilgrimage worthwhile? Is Mexico so riven with class disparity, lack of economic opportunity, and failed institutions that people would forsake all, even children, rather than remain in their homeland? By leaving they are declaring that it is preferable to work in the fields of the Salinas Valley, doing some of the most backbreaking work imaginable, than live in their country of origin. Their desperate migration speaks volumes about Mexico. And Mexico has quietly become the undocumented migrants codependent and enabler, exporting it’s unemployment problems to America. Illegal migration is a symptom. If Mexico is a full partner, then let it engage fully with us in a dialogue regarding solutions and securing both sides of the border. Another aspect to the debate is that of securing our borders. The politicians can spin this fantasy as a sound bite, and the president can posture by sending down the National Guard, but it will make little difference. If desperate people are desperate enough to enter the U.S. by any means necessary, they will find a way. Not mentioned in the discussion are the hundreds of thousands of illegal Asians that have been smuggled into ports and cities by worldwide human trafficking networks. It is hugely profitable, a spider web that is brutal, deadly, and traps people in an economic shadow world. Perhaps drug smuggling is a weak analogy, but for all the billions of dollars spent on interdiction, vast quantities of narcotics make their way across our southern border and we are powerless to do anything about it. It comes down to supply and demand. If we ever solved the demand problem we would see illegal drugs evaporate. Speaking of demand, part of the illegal migration equation is the demand of employers for cheap labor. But you will not likely hear much said about employers. In his speech to the nation last Monday, the president quickly passed over the illegal hiring of undocumented aliens; yet, employers are a major factor in solving the problem. Currently, illegals are used as a huge, cheap labor pool. It is profoundly cynical and exploitive for an employer to stop at a street corner and load up a truck with what are likely illegal workers, knowing they are desperate, without benefit of basic protections or recourse to minimum wage, and put them to work at substandard, some say starvation wages. It is immoral and it is wrong and if employers were held accountable (they too are breaking the law), part of the problem would begin to solve itself. One other thing: these are not jobs that no one else will do, a canard that is being hoisted at every opportunity. These are jobs that no one else will do at the meager wages employers are willing to pay (why pay a living wage when you can get someone to do it for far less?). The president’s base long ago abandoned the moniker of “compassionate conservatives” when it comes to this issue and have revealed themselves instead to be harsh defenders of law and order and little else. This is a problem of immeasurable complexity, and the solutions must reflect that. To come at this issue, which has been allowed to fester over decades and now reached critical mass, by suggesting deporting those who were allowed to enter and remain by default is unconscionable. This is a human problem, one of poverty and desperation, and there has to be a better way. As well, Mexico, the wellspring, must be fully engaged and held accountable if we truly wish long term, systemic change. America cannot be Mexico’s safety net. Chris Honore’ is a freelance writer living in Ashland DailyTidings.com Home Page Archives | Revels | Classifieds | Real Estate Guide | Weather | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2005 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Ceramic Piggy Banks Women's & Men's Slippers Accelerate Weightloss Products Backpacks Online Pharmacy Mailing Lists Vegas Travel Guide Search Engine Optimization Student Loans Hammocks Water Filter Custom Made Computers Helzberg Diamonds Online Casinos Community Bonus Casino Mortgage Calculator Security Systems Click Here Advertisement .:Advertisements:. Site Search: RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams