The outpouring and daylighting of our nation's undocumented immigrant population has been nothing short of inspiring.
I came here in 1980 with my parents as a Soviet Jewish refugee and subsequently became a citizen. We didn't get into this country because we waited in a line, but because the US Government prioritized our entry due to the political environment we were fleeing. Many, if not most, of my family members did as well.
Those who come here illegally do so for the same reason as my family. They simply didn't have the 'fortune' of being born in a country on the US's shit list.
Despite its many flaws, the US remains a beacon for those who seek a better life for themselves and their families. While there is certainly a case to be made for enhanced border security, the lack of enough viable ways into this country will always overwhelm any border control scheme.
In addition to dramatically increasing legal immigation, the answers are right there in front of us:
1. Give people a reason to stay at home: People come here for economic opportunities that they cannot get in their homeland. We must figure out ways to provide local economic development options whose benefits outweigh the opportunities in the shadows. David Sirota had a great piece in this past Sunday's SF Chronicle Insight section talking about how our trade policies immiserate other countries and leave people with little choice but to come here in order to feed their families.
2. Remove incentives for cheating: Employers love undocumented workers since those considered 'illegal' can be intimidated. Cheating employers don't have to pay them fair wages, don't have to respect labor laws, and can get away with not paying taxes - all to the competitive advantage against those who do follow the law. Undocumented workers have reason to stay in the shadows; even with this exploitatation, many undocumented workers consider this situation better than the alternatives in their home countries.
3. Strengthen and enforce labor rights: Unions provide a non-regulatory and extra-legal way to eliminate cheating since they help to eliminate the unfair competitive advantage of an exploited workforce. Although unions have been in decline for far too long, enforcing workers' rights to form and join unions offers one of the best opportunity to not only crack down on bad actor employers.
In all of the hyperventilation about the effects of immigation on American workers by Lou Dobbs and anti-immigrant righties, we have yet to hear anything acknowledging the fact that fair trade policies, effective enforcement of cheating employers, and a robust labor movement, that can have in removing the demand for undocumented labor. Until we do, these fomenters of fear and hate need to be called the demagogues that they are.
