Dear Mr. or Mrs. President,

You have just won the election (congratulations!), but now it is time to get to work. I, and the American people, need you to think critically about your actions and the effects they have on not just us as a country, but also on the individual and those who are not American citizens.

We are a nation of immigrants, and we could not be the great country we are today without acknowledging that fact. As we have in our past, we will continue to be a country of immigrants, which is why we need to continue to let them in. They are not dangerous people, simply people who want a better life for themselves and/or their families. They are people like you and me. I remember my grandfather and his family (mother, father, aunts, uncles, etc), the majority of whom came over from Italy into New York. When they arrived, they would have had nothing- much like immigrants now- and they worked until they had a place to live, food to eat, and eventually made a small shoe shining business.

“No one puts their children in a boat unless the water is safer than the land.” Mexican immigrants and refugees alike (just like past immigrants) come to the United States in search of a better life and not to cause trouble as many would like to think; neither do they “steal” jobs from Americans, in fact they often work the jobs that Americans will not.

However, while we should be letting these immigrants in and documenting them, we need to have some kind of system in place to prevent overpopulation and lack of housing as that would only contribute to the United State’s homeless population. So while we should have regulations, we should not be closing our borders. The people of other nations look here as a place to go, visit, and in some cases have a better life. By closing our borders and having enormous amounts of security, we are telling those who view the U.S as a model nation that we are not; we are unfriendly, and perhaps our nation is not as free and filled with opportunities as we say it is.

So, future President, please keep our border open, allow immigrants to stay, and let our country continue to be as great as it has and will be. We need the immigrants as much as they need us; we need their thoughts, viewpoints, and opinions to create a more diverse and cohesive country.

Sincerely,

Julia Tenebruso

Grade 10