Congress &
Immigration in '07: Reform or Punishment?
By Rich Stolz
Congress
should “have a serious, civil and conclusive
debate -- so that you can pass, and I can sign,
comprehensive immigration reform into law,”
declared President George W. Bush during his State
of the Union address.
But what kind of “comprehensive” legislation
does the president have in mind? If his touting
of recent ICE immigration raids across the nation
is any sign, the position he’s staking out
could erode due process, civil and worker protections
for immigrants, their families and their communities.
Bush’s “middle ground” calls
for tougher enforcement at the border and in work
places and a temporary worker program while including
a legalization (not amnesty) program based on
a substantial financial penalty, an English requirement,
payment of taxes, background checks and employment
for a number of years before eligibility for legalized
status. It also requires applicants to go to the
“back of the line.” It’s a middle
ground with many troubling hurdles for already
beleaguered immigrants who must live in the shadows.
In a letter to the House and Senate leadership,
the Fair Immigration Reform Movement (FIRM), a
national coalition of grassroots immigrant-led
organizations, called on Congress to take the
high road in crafting legislation, to reject anti-immigrant
rhetoric and answer the real needs of immigrant
and non-immigrant communities alike. Endorsed
by nearly 300 organizations the letter calls on
Congress to enact:
• Workable, inclusive, earned legalization
– including the DREAM Act and AgJOBS Bill
– that doesn’t discriminate based
on the length of time in the US or other arbitrary
factors. The more complex a legalization program
becomes, the harder it will be to implement, and
the greater the chances for making some categories
of immigrants more vulnerable to exploitation
and abuse.
• An end to the unconscionable backlogs
in the family immigration system; a new system
must reunite families separated by often arbitrary
and discriminatory immigration laws.
• Increased job and training resources for
all low-wage workers so the entire workforce may
benefit from immigration reform.
• Clear separation of authority between
federal and local law enforcement in immigration
matters.
• Improved enforcement of existing labor
laws regardless of immigration status, including
additional funds to the Department of Labor to
enforce wage and hour laws. Rushing into a system
of employment verification without appropriate
tools could increase exploitation and abuse of
vulnerable immigrant workers.
• Increased resources for English as a Second
Language classes, naturalization and legal services
without massive increases in application fees
and unnecessary complexity in the application
process for naturalization.
• Stronger protections for the due process
of all immigrants, including the restoration of
judicial discretion, redefining “aggravated
felonies” to only include felony offenses,
and to restore access to federal courts and judicial
review.
• Reforms and improvements in the management
of the immigration system that would decrease
the need for mass detention, detention centers
and detention beds.
• Mechanisms for accountability that halt
the escalation of militarization on the border,
end the senseless death of people trying to cross
the border, incorporate effective training for
enforcement officials, reduce violence from smugglers
against migrants and border residents, and protect
fragile ecosystems along the border.
• Restoration of the number of refugees
that enter the United States to pre 9-11 levels.
• Real worker protections should any new
worker visa program be created that include the
right to change jobs and the opportunity to gain
US citizenship.
Hundreds of immigrant leaders from more than 30
states on January 30 gathered in Washington, DC
to take these messages directly to Congress, fully
aware of the difficult road ahead for a truly
humane and just immigration bill.
The term “comprehensive reform” has
been defined as a three-way marriage between legalization,
a new temporary worker program and immigration
enforcement. Yet, past legalizations did nothing
to change the underlying economic and familial
issues that drive immigration; previous and current
guest-worker programs show how vulnerable temporary
workers are to abuse by employers; and the current
enforcement regime places little value on the
rights of immigrants.
So today’s immigrant rights movement faces
tough challenges, including that of reframing
the immigration debate itself as a human rights
issue. So much is at stake for millions of immigrants,
their families and their communities in winning
a fair and just immigration reform bill this year.
– New America Media
