Greece's new plan

Greece is a country that is facing the most similar issues regarding illegal immigration and looking at how they handle their immigration problems could show the United States how to, or how not to hand our problems. About 130,000 immigrants cross the country's porous sea and land borders every year, the vast majority via Turkey, and the authorities are forced to release those who are arrested because of a lack of permanent housing. The numbers aren’t as big as the numbers in the U.S. but when considered the smaller civilian population, 130,000 is a lot of immigrants. To deal with this immigration problem, Greece opened its first purpose-built detention center for illegal migrants on Sunday in Athens, a week before a national election where illegal immigration has emerged as a key issue.

On Sunday, the first 56 immigrants were brought to the Amygdaleza detention camp in western Athens, a police official said. Dozens more are expected at the camp in the next few days, which can house up to 1,000 people, the official said. Amygdaleza is the first of about 50 camps that Greek officials say will be built by mid-2013. It consists of dozens of containers that were originally set up to house people hit by natural disasters such as earthquakes. "We are sending a message in every direction that the country is not unfenced anymore," Civil Protection Minister Mihalis Chrysohoidis said at a rally in Athens.

With Greece in its fifth year of recession and worries over rising crime levels, illegal immigration has become a major issue in the run up of the May 6 election. The once-obscure far-right Golden Dawn, which wants to deport all immigrants, is among the parties that has benefitted most from the mood among voters, and is expected to win its first seats in parliament. Greece's ruling Socialist PASOK and conservative rival New Democracy parties have also pledged to crack down on immigration to try to win over voters. Seeing all of the issues that another country on the other side of the world has in common with your own is interesting because its repercussions in the political elections are almost too similar to the ones going on in the United States. Looking at how Greece handles its own immigration can give the United States its own ideas on how to handle our illegal immigration issues. It will be interesting to see if this program works out for Greece, and if it does, it will be even more interesting to see if the United States adopts that same program.

Caring for Illegal Immigrant Children

Crossing the border is dangerous for full grown adults, let alone small children and teenagers. The Department of Homeland security has found that many teenagers, mostly boys, flee their home country because they are separated from their family, or their family is neglecting them, or worse. Many of these teens underestimate how difficult crossing the border is and are caught by border patrol and then kept in a cell waiting to be deported. The cycle will then often be repeated until the teenager makes it into the United States or is killed. This is clearly something that needs to be stopped and a federal child-welfare agency is paying the Department of Defense for using the dormitory, including electricity and maintenance costs, though officials said they did not have an exact dollar amount, to do something completely radical.

               Federal officials began housing more than 200 children that have attempted to cross the border and failed at Lackland Air Force Base, turning a vacant dormitory that was once the living quarters of basic training recruits into an emergency shelter for young illegal immigrants. Lackland Air Force Base is located in southern Texas close to San Antonio and offers food, housing, clothes, and proper hygiene to these displaced illegal immigrant children. This is a heartfelt and caring action but several lawyers who represent unaccompanied children questioned whether using Lackland as an emergency shelter violated a settlement agreement from a class-action lawsuit that establishes how the federal government can treat these children while they are in custody. In that agreement, reached in 1997 and known as the Flores settlement, federal authorities agreed to seek state licensing of the facilities to house these children, in response to accusations of substandard conditions. The Lackland dormitory has not been licensed by Texas as a child care facility, and state child welfare officials said the building was not subject to state regulation because it is on federal property. The Flores settlement makes an exception to the licensed facility requirement when there is an emergency or an influx of minors, but requires that those minors be placed in licensed programs “as expeditiously as possible.”

               Caring for the homeless children and teenagers that cross the border is something that the United States of America should consider however, after the children grow up, should we give then citizenship? Questions like this are sure to arise if this course of action becomes acceptable.

Not Exactly Our Idea of Progress

For as long as anyone in my generation can remember, illegal immigration has been on the rise. However, new evidence has surfaced that indicates that illegal immigration is now on the decline. During the 1970s, foreign-born residents from Mexico stood at 760,000. The 2007 peak was 12.6 million. Christian Ballesteros, who has been at a shelter for immigrants in Matamoros, Mexico, across the border from Brownsville, Texas, pointed to stiffer U.S. penalties for repeat offenders as well as brutal criminal groups that control the Mexican side of the border as reasons for the immigration decline. Ballesteros, who has been deported four times, was recently caught after hopping the border fence near Nogales, Arizona.

Ballesteros claims that there is a factor creating the decline that nobody could have predicted. "The Mexican cartels are taking over, are actually being like the border patrols on this side," Ballesteros said. "They threaten them, 'if you don't pay, what we're going to do is we're going to cut your head off.' That's the worst, the worst, the worst part." Obviously this isn’t a solution that anyone wants, unfortunately there is nothing the U.S. can do to stop it. If the cartels come on our side we can prosecute them and put them away for a long time, but that’s not the case. The Mexican government has to step in and stop this before the violence spills over into the United States.

Roughly 6.1 million unauthorized Mexican immigrants were living in the U.S. last year, down from a peak of nearly 7 million in 2007, according to the Pew Hispanic Center study released Monday. It was the biggest sustained drop in modern history, believed to be surpassed in scale only by losses in the Mexican-born U.S. population during the Great Depression. About 1.4 million Mexicans left the U.S. between 2005 and 2010, double the number who did so a decade earlier. In the meantime, the number of Mexicans who entered the U.S. sharply fell to about 1.4 million, putting net migration from Mexico at a standstill. More recent data suggest that most of the movement is now heading back to Mexico, accounting for the drop in the illegal immigrant population. The Government is taking steps in the right direction to stop illegal immigration, but watching them die as they try to cross is not what anyone wants. Unfortunately for the U.S., this problem is in the hands of the, less than capable, Mexican government.

Handling Immigrants with Criminal Records

A program meant to help illegal immigrants with criminal recordshas been giving off mixed signs. The mixed messages about the expansion of the program, known as Secure Communities, from officials at Immigration and Customs Enforcement led directly to “opposition, criticism and resistance in some locations,” the inspector general, Charles K. Edwards, found. But in a second report released on Friday, the inspector general’s office found that despite the rocky start and continuing political disputes, Secure Communities has been effective at rapidly identifying more immigrants who committed serious crime at a very low cost to states.

The program is a centerpiece of the Obama administration’s immigration enforcement policy, intended to increase the number of convicted criminals among about 400,000 immigrants deported each year. The second report for this found that enforcement officers had a good understanding of priorities set by Immigration and Customs Enforcement for detaining and deporting immigrants identified under the program, making decisions in line with its priorities in 97 percent of 723 cases that auditors reviewed. The back-to-back reports brought both an embarrassing critique of the performance of officials at the immigration agency, known as ICE, as they extended the program across the country, but also an endorsement by the inspector general’s office of its effectiveness in some aspects. Officials have said they plan to spread Secure Communities nationwide by next year.

Under Secure Communities, fingerprints of anyone arrested by the police are checked against both F.B.I. criminal databases, a routine procedure, and also against databases of the Department of Homeland Security, which hold records of all foreign-born people in the immigration system. As of last December, the program was operating in 44 states, covering 64 percent of local law enforcement jurisdictions. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano has acknowledged that her department fumbled communications about Secure Communities. Homeland Security officials said Friday that they were in the final stages of preparing new guidelines to govern the program, as the inspector general urged. Representative Zoe Lofgren of California, the ranking Democrat on the House immigration subcommittee, wrote a letter last year that prompted the inspector general’s review. She said Friday that she was “frankly disappointed” with the reports, saying they failed to answer several of her questions: “Does the program also ensnare victims and others with no criminal history? Is it susceptible to racial profiling?” Immigrant advocates said the inspector general reports showed that the Secure Communities program should be canceled. The gives off such mixed signals because this is a very problematic discussion. When the is completed its hard to say which of the reports will be true.

Of Course the Church Has its Opinion

The bay area’s largest religion, Catholicism, is taking a stand on illegal immigration. Considering that this area could very well be the place that is most affected by illegal immigration it has caused everyone to form their own opinions and the Catholic hierarchy of the bay area has gone public. “It is heartbreaking to hear the painful stories of unjust deportations pouring in from our congregations. California can do better," says San Francisco Archbishop George Niederauer. This position isn’t shocking because the Catholic Church would obviously never turn anyone away or tell people where they can or cannot go. They believe that everyone has a right to go where they please and do whatever they want as long as they follows God’s rules. This is why the church is kept far away from the government and it should always be that way.

According to a recent survey done by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, fifty-five percent of Catholics believe today's immigrants strengthen the country more than they create a burden, compared with 45 percent of all Americans and 37 percent of Protestant Christians. Illegal immigration is a topic that digs at our emotions because it involves families being separated and people being deported like produce. However, it’s common knowledge that when it comes to what is best and what isn’t, it’s clear that emotions should be left out of the decision. We've been hearing more and more stories in our parishes, especially within the Hispanic population," said Bishop William Justice, Niederauer's assistant. "The children all of a sudden don't have a parent around. It's really not supporting the unity of the family, the sacredness of the family." The Hispanic population, especially those from Mexico, is a largely Catholic and often very religious so if their family is going through a hard time, the local priest would be a very good outlet for people to vent and share their problems with.

Illegal immigration is a problem that often times aren’t fair or just but the law is the law and at the end of the day people have to enforce the law or our nation would crumble. Religion is based on very few facts and large amounts of emotion which is why very few people are better at identifying what morally right or wrong than priests or rabbi’s or other religious figures. While we can’t involve the Church in political affairs we can however listen to their opinions.

The Situation in Iowa

               A Midwest state that saw hundreds of illegal immigrants arrested in the nation’s largest workplace raids wants to offer undocumented aliens a precious taxpayer-financed benefit by passing a controversial law previously defeated in its legislature. A bill in the Iowa House (Iowa Opportunities and Workforce Act) aims to give illegal immigrants discounted in-state tuition not even granted to U.S. citizens of other states at public colleges and universities. Ten states including California, Texas, New York and Illinois currently offer illegal immigrants the costly perk which has been legally challenged in at least two states. At the request of immigration advocates, sympathetic Iowa legislators have twice attempted to pass a measure to grant illegal aliens tuition at the cheaper resident rates. In 2004 a bill was approved by the state House but defeated in the Senate and three years later the measure was re-introduced but stalled before reaching the House floor. Proponents of illegal immigrants are confident that the third time is the charm. The Democrat from Des Moines (Ako Abdul-Samad) who recently introduced the bill for the third time assures “it’s a win-win for Iowa” that will increase citizenship in the state. The congressman guarantees that he will continue introducing the measure until it becomes law.  Iowa lawmakers seem to think that offering illegal immigrants benefits will solve many of the serious issues that surfaced after headline-breaking raids at meatpacking plants in Marshalltown and Postville in 2006 and 2008.

Hundreds of illegal aliens were caught using fake Social Security numbers to work at the factories and many ended up getting criminally charged or deported. This is something Iowa is doing well and that is punishing illegal immigrants when they are found. However this may be a step in the wrong direction because Iowa is now were offering them benefits, tax-payer funded benefits that have already been struck down. To make matters worse Iowa City, one of states largest towns, is attempting to become a sanctuary city for illegal immigrants. Iowa City would be joining Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Madison, Wisconsin and Phoenix as cities that will protect illegal immigrants. The biggest problem I have with this act is that it is treating undocumented immigrants, who are here illegally, better than our own, hardworking citizens. Democrats in Iowa have to clarify which group they are going to support more, the Iowans who have been in the state their whole lives, or the immigrants who are taking advantage of our financial system.

E-Verify

               The art of making money is simple; bring in more money than is being spent. The companies that can do this the most efficiently are the ones that will succeed and the ones that fail will go bankrupt and out of business. How companies make money is their secret, whether it is a great new product, or amazing service, or unprecedented convenience all successful business know how make money. Some companies however, don’t play by the rules and do illegal things to increase their profits. Hiring illegal immigrants is one of those illegal things. Companies will hire illegal immigrants because they will work for dirt cheap and they will work hard to keep their horrible job. By doing this, businesses can undercut their prices and run their competition out of town. Up until recently this has been a problem that has plagued the business world for a long time. Finally, a new weapon has come around that can finally stop business from hiring illegal immigrants, or at least catch them when they do it and that weapon is E-Verify.

               E-Verify is an Internet-based system that allows businesses to determine the eligibility of their employees to work in the United States. E-Verify is fast, free and easy to use and it’s the best way employers can ensure a legal workforce. According to E-Verify, more than 288,000 employers, large and small, across the United States have used E-Verify to check the employment eligibility of their employees, with about 1,200 new businesses signing up each week. While participation in E-Verify is voluntary for most businesses, some companies may be required by state law or federal regulation to use E-Verify.  For example, most employers in Arizona and Mississippi are required to use E-Verify. E-Verify is also mandatory for employers with federal contracts or subcontracts that contain the Federal Acquisition Regulation E-Verify clause.

               E-Verify is a valuable tool that should be required throughout the nation to ensure that business play by the rules and don’t hire illegal immigrants because not only does it keep the playing field level for other business, it also keeps the illegal immigrants from being taken advantage of. These immigrants usually don’t know how valuable they are to a business and the hard work they put in for $5 an hour would be valued at much more if they just tried to gain citizenship. By making brininess’s switch to E-Verify we can ensure that business play by the rules and nobody gets taken advantage of.

Crossing the Border, More Dangerous Than We Though

Acccording to the United States Border Patrol, 1,954 people died attempting to illegally cross into the United States-Mexican border in 1998-2004 with hundreds more reported missing. When crossing the border these immigrants are completely disregarding all of the dangers that are in the Sonoran Desert. The biggest of these dangers is the heat. Heat exhaustion claims the lives of dozens that live in Arizona and none of the people were trying to cross 100 miles of some of the most unforgiving terrain on the planet. Many immigrants travel light so if they are caught by the border patrol they have a better chance of running away. This causes many to bring insufficient amounts of water and if you run out of water in the desert then there are few ways to get more.

Another large cause of death, believe it or not, is small injuries to the leg (mainly ankle.) When your 50 miles from the nearest hospital and you sprain, twist, or break you ankle your options become very limited. The Sonoran desert is covered with lose gravel and rocks that can make traveling on foot difficult. It isn’t unheard of for a group of immigrants to leave an injured family member behind because they will drastically hold back the group, not to mention if seen by the border patrol they will have no chance of escaping. Traveling on foot in the Sonoran desert isn’t just hard because of the ground but also because of the numerous species of cacti concentrated along the border. Not only do they provide little shad from the sun but some are poisonous which leads us to the last danger in the desert.

The wildlife along the border is some of the most dangerous in the continental United States. A Rattlesnake bite can kill within 6 hours if the victim is not rushed to a hospital which rarely happens. Scorpions and snakes claim the most lives but the larger mammals are also a force to be reckoned with. Mountain lions, bobcats, and other large cats roam the border and if startled can kill a man with one well-placed bite. It is rare that the United States Border Patrol can identify a victim in the desert because if a body is left in the desert, it will be picked clean by the many coyotes that scavenge for food under the cover of night. Over 3,000 people have attempted to cross the border and have paid the ultimate price since 1998. This shows how bad conditions have to be in Mexico if people are willing to risk their lives and the lives of their family members for a dream that most likely is far out of their reach.