Dear Next President,

Throughout history, America has been plagued by several major issues that have threatened the very foundation of the country. A controversial one happens to be that of immigration. Despite the country being established primarily of immigrants, the issue of immigration in modern times is still prominent. Both the public and government have differing solutions on how it should be tackled. Many believe that the U.S. should keep its borders open and other believe we should block immigrants out completely. The plaque at the base of the statue of Liberty states "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!" While this does not imply that America holds the responsibility of caring for all people within different countries. This encourages the welcoming of those trying to flee from a negative environment, so that they can someday experience a fully free and successful life. A life where they are free of oppression, and are given the opportunity to build a life not only for themselves but for generations to come. The U.S prides itself on the idea of having freedom. However, this ideal is not reflected in many places throughout the world. Denying immigrants the chance to enter America, disregards the very words America is built on.

The American government should invest in producing a better immigration system.

After the liberty bell was built the views of many American citizens views on immigration have changed drastically since then. For example, consider the evolution of the Irish, in the 1800’s they weren’t even considered white when they came here. They were hated primarily because they were Catholic. At the time, Americans were colonists who fled Europe due to the threat of religious persecution. It was now the Irish who were threatened by Americans, because of the religion they chose to practice. This threat still lives on today not with the Irish but instead the muslims. Since 9/11, a great number of American citizens believe that anyone who is Muslim is going to do the same thing as the Muslims who conducted the attacks. Of course, that isn’t true. American people throughout history have always needed somebody to blame whether it was the Irish or the Muslims. That blame has reflected in the debate on the immigration policy.

In the INA (The Immigration and Naturalization Act) it states that immigrants are permitted to come over here if they have a job in line or possess the talent in which America needs. Which is great but when you look at what happened with Mexican Laborers in the 1920’s those jobs weren’t exactly the best. Immigrants come over here expecting these great jobs and a chance to live a better life when that is not the case. They are given the low-in jobs that nobody wants and they are usually temporary. When an immigrant loses their job there is not governmental assistance waiting for them. To even be considered they must meet the requirements of the laws for non-citizens that went into effect on August 22,1996. The jobs that immigrants are permitted to have pay low wages and aren’t enough to support themselves and let alone their families.

You as the next President have the responsibility to improve the immigration policy. What I recommend that you should do is fix the immigration issues from within before letting any other immigrants in. The citizenship process is ridiculously long and I among many others think the process should be significantly shorter. Not only will it bring it more intelligent people but also allow America to be even stronger.

Sincerely,

Nadya