Immigration
While
immigration may seem to be an unusual thing for a religious group to take a
stance on, the truth is that immigration affects religious groups just as much
as it does education, health care, and employers. For instance, not so long ago
in New York City, a 39-year-old woman was given probation for illegally
importing monkey meat. Claiming that the meat was being used for religious
rituals, she tried to get the charges against her dropped under the freedom of
religion clause in the US constitution. The fact is, many indigenous religions
in places like Africa still incorporate special foods, such as monkey meat,
into their rituals and rites, in spite of the fact that it is known to carry
diseases such as Ebola and tuberculosis. And, when these people move to the US
to live, they bring their religious inclinations with them. So, if we want to
be open to accepting their beliefs, we have to be at least sensitive to the
fact that they may practice some things that we may find unpalatable.
Today,
the process for becoming a US citizen may be a long and arduous procedure. It
requires at least five years of continual presence in the country (three if
already married to a US citizen), a background check, and passing tests that
show a working knowledge of the English language, knowledge of how the
government works (presumably in preparation for voting), and a knowledge of US
history. All of this incorporates not only time, but also expense when it comes
to taking classes that are aimed at, not only teaching the language, but also
the government workings and history requirements. The present presidential
administration has tried to pass laws making this process a little less
strenuous, but has met with resistance from those who believe that these things
are necessary to make “good citizens.” The result has been a complete lack of
cohesive regulations in place across the country governing handling of illegal
aliens who might be arrested for breaking the law. On the one hand, if the
illegal has the bad luck to be someplace like Arizona, they may be detained
simply for the color of their skin, while, on the other hand, a few hundred
miles west in California, there are entire cities designated as “safe zones,”
where illegals will find law enforcement agencies who are reluctant to
cooperate wholly with federal immigration officials, if at all.
We
would like to make a few recommendations here. We realize that this is only our
opinion, and that it is unlikely that anyone will actually listen, but someone
has to start somewhere, so we will exercise our right to have our say.
1.
Continual
presence in the country is a good idea, as it shows a willingness to stay put
and be a part of the community. How long this continued presence should be
would be decided by the government.
2.
Background checks
are a must, not only in this country but in their native ones as well. We
cannot have criminals coming into our country at will.
3.
A working
knowledge of English is a good thing, especially since it actually entails
safety. Street and traffic signs are not posted in any other language than
English throughout the majority of the country. However, the other requirements
for knowledge of how the government works and US history seems a little over
the top. There are children graduating high school in this country that do not
know who the first president was or when the Declaration of Independence was
signed. Can we really expect naturalized citizens to learn things we are no
longer teaching even to our own kids? As far as how the government works, an
overview of that would be sufficient, and could be added into English classes
that prepare for the test.
4.
There must be
regulations put into place on the federal level, regulations that every police
agency in the country would have to follow, in the handling of illegals that
are arrested. The lack of regulations of this kind is what allowed a known
illegal criminal to recently be let go, only to end up gunning down an innocent
young woman as she was walking with her family on a pier in San Francisco.
5.
The classes that
are required for passing the tests involved in citizenship must be made
available to all who wish them, free of charge. These are people, illegal or
not, who have come to this country looking for a better life, usually with
nothing to their name but the clothes on their backs. They end up working
minimum wage jobs, usually holding down more than one, and are still barely
able to keep food in their families’ mouths. It is unreasonable to expect them
to have to pay the cost of taking English as a Second Language classes at their
local community colleges, which range in the neighborhood of $120 and up per
class, and usually require more than one class to prepare for the citizenship
tests. Also, we should provide a provisional
green card for any aliens who are taking these classes, getting passing grades,
and pass a background check. We should not be deporting honest people who
really show an interest in becoming citizens.
6.
The most important
thing is that each of these cases should be handled on an individual basis.
There are illegals in this country right now who have been here for over a
decade, have held down jobs for years, and have raised their families in a
decent way, but always with the fear hanging over their heads of something
happening that they will be discovered and deported, separating them from the
ones they love. We should not be victimizing these good people because of a few
bad apples in the barrel. Deport the criminals, certainly. But, leave the
decent, honest, hard-working people and allow them to become citizens in a way
that is easy and free. If anything, we should want more of them.
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