Immigration bill is the best option

5/21/07
After yet another bruising battle on one of the most contentious issues in the country, a bipartisan coalition in the U.S. Congress has come together behind a compromise immigration bill. With all the questions it raises and all the interest groups it angers, the bill appears to be the best solution available to this long-festering issue.
The bill would provide a pathway to citizenship for about 12 million immigrants now in the United States illegally. It also would mandate tougher border security and workplace enforcement and provide for a guest worker program.
It would provide a circuitous path toward citizenship for the millions in our midst who work hard and want the best for their children but who live in constant fear that their immigration status will be discovered. Fear of deportation or imprisonment keeps the sick away from hospitals and the needy away from government services. It’s time to take the fear out of people’s lives.
Critics call this "amnesty," and the bill faces opposition from all sides. But one thing is clear — there will be no mass deportations of millions of people living in this country without proper documentation. It is impractical, to say the least, and the United States ought not be in the business of breaking up families. Many illegal immigrants have children who are natural-born citizens, and separating an otherwise law-abiding family in the interest of avoiding "amnesty" serves no one.
But there is much that is troubling about this proposal. The so-called "guest-worker" aspect of the deal could create separate classes of laborers in this country, with only one allowed to exercise rights as Americans. This country has nothing to gain by officially designating an entire swath of people as second class.
Further, the bill would stipulate that illegal immigrants could not get visas or begin a path to citizenship until the proposed border security improvements and a high-tech worker identification program were put in place. This is a large burden — border security improvements are not as easy as immigration opponents make them out to be, and no one knows how long the ID system could take. It would be unfair to pass a law like this and then leave people waiting.
But it may be the best we can do. Despite its flaws, the legislation would allow a legal future in this country for millions of workers and their families, and provide hope for people living in fear. It’s a goal to which we should all aspire.