The Real Immigration Issue

Here is a copy of a letter I sent to the Paisano, the Student Newspaper at UTSA.
It was written in response to a previous letter http://www.paisano-online.com/2.840/statue-is-a-symbol-of-strength-1.28218
arguing for not removing a statue that depicts a border crossing into the U.S. by Mexican Nationals.

Here is the link to my original: http://www.paisano-online.com/2.840/economics-of-immigration-1.28179

The original issue was that the statue should be removed, but the person I wrote a rebuttal against said no. My letter was the response.

The Real Immigration Issue
By John T. Sharp
April 4, 2006


While reading the 4 April edition of The Paisano I was shocked and appalled by the opinion letter submitted by Ms. Bowman.
First, I am concerned by how she cloaks her argument in the veil of racism and has the audacity to call anyone who is arguing for the removal of this statue a racist. Granted, using a racist cloak makes for an effective argument and generates popular support and sympathy, I expected more from a person as erudite as her title implies.
Also, the claim of covert reverse discrimination can made against her argument by her omission to any “adversity” faced by Irish-Americans in New York after the Irish Potato famine beginning in 1845 or any other American that has to mark “Caucasian” on government documents because there is no special block for them.
Second, her statement regarding the rightful ownership of Texas land confuses me. These illegal immigrants have no title to any property in Texas. The Mexican government once possessed title to this great state but after the Texas Revolution of 1836 this title was lost due to the ineptitude of the Mexican military and political leadership. It could be argued that the historical corruption and ineptitude of Mexican political leadership has exacerbated the current issue of illegal immigration. The Mexican-American War of 1848 further reinforced the claim to U.S. possession of Texas. To claim that this land is rightfully “theirs” is to flout international law of treaties.
Third, she makes the claim that these undocumented workers pay into the Social Security system, “a system they will not be able to partake in”. I fail to understand how an employer can pay into the Social Security system for a worker with no Social Security number.
Fourth, she says she has never seen an unemployed illegal immigrant. If you want to see some unemployed illegal immigrants, I ask only that you go downtown around the jail and you will find plenty of illegal immigrants that are unemployed.
The real issue at stake here is economics. If there were no incentives to come to the U.S. (e.g. jobs, health care, education) there would be no cause for the “Border Crossing” statue nor would there be cause for massive illegal immigration.
I am in agreement that the current house bill on immigration is misguided. Why would the house pass a bill criminalizing being here illegally? By the nature of the definition isn’t being here illegally already against the law? However, I do support the provision of the bill that authorizes state and local police to enforce immigration laws and to transfer aliens to federal custody.
The most effective way to prevent illegal immigration is to remove the incentives. By this I suggest that the government crack down on businesses that employ illegal immigrants. Fines should be imposed that represent the real lost revenue to the government plus associated interest. If there are no jobs available to illegals they will seek work somewhere else.
Additionally, health care and education should be denied to all persons who are not citizens and do not posses a social security number, unless here as an official guest of the U.S. government. Illegals “de facto” steal money from tax paying citizens when their children are educated in the public school system. This is a particularly acute problem in Texas because schools are financed by property taxes, increasing the tax burden on the average tax-paying citizen. Not only is this unjust to the citizens of this state but these illegals even think it prudent to demand bilingual education which further increases this burden.
The same issue of the “de facto” stealing of taxpayer dollars by illegal immigrants is evidenced by a visit to your local hospital emergency room. Illegals go to the emergency room for care because U. S. law says that no one can be denied emergency services in the health care industry. These services and fees have to be paid for by someone and it is not the illegals in most cases.
If these Mexican nationals, who are here illegally, and their supporters, who wave the Mexican flag on U.S. soil in their protests, want to effect real change their current strategy should be revamped. A positive strategy to pursue is for these foreign nationals to withhold remittances to their home country. Remittances are the 2nd largest source of income and make up 70% or Mexican GDP. Without this money the Mexican government and business interests will be more willing to support real economic and social change to further the betterment of these proud Mexican people.

John T. Sharp
Undergraduate Student and Citizen