"Illegals"
People who migrate from their origins to countries around the world, and who do so by stealth, illegally, to escape miserable living conditions in an attempt to find for themselves a free and decent lifestyle in other countries, present as a true human relations dilemma.Those who live in war-torn states, in countries known for persecuting their populations can claim refugee status. But economic migrants with no professional skills recognized by the country they seek to enter, have no legal entree. They can apply for the long, complicated process of immigration, and wait out the process, hoping their application will be granted.
But people living in miserable conditions of squalid want most often seek the desperate solution of illegal entry. And it is a problem all over the world.
Wealthy countries have an obligation to assist in settling vast numbers of people hopelessly living in refugee camps, victimized by internecine wars, by tribal marauding. And most technologically advanced countries of the world, in Europe and North America are experiencing the results of low birth rates, finding it necessary to welcome immigrants to increase their workforce and taxation base.
In North America, the continent is shared by two economically advanced countries and one struggling to catch up. Mexico is beset with horrendous problems related to drug wars and resulting lawlessness. The irony is that the drugs produced in Mexico are sought after in North America, particularly in the United States. And the United States has been the beneficiary of millions of Latin Americans attempting to escape endemic poverty, unemployment and violence.
President Barack Obama spoke of eleven million illegals in the country. His predecessor attempted to produce an amnesty for all those illegals, most of whom have been living exemplary albeit underground lives in the United States for decades - raising families, paying taxes, doing work that most Americans are not interested in - but failed. Now the state of Arizona, bordering Mexico, has prepared itself to bring in its own stringent anti-immigrant law.
As a result, the writing is on the wall for illegals living in that state, with likely more states to follow Arizona's initiative. Families who have lived frugally and fearfully for years must now uproot themselves and move elsewhere; to another state with no such anti-immigrant laws - yet. Perhaps the state legislature hasn't quite considered who will do all those unskilled low-paid jobs once the illegals, anxious to have any employment, have always done.
The state has an elected sheriff whose platform of dealing with illegal Latinos got him elected. He has a vigilante, posse, mindset, reminiscent of the Old West, and he chomps at the bit to round up illegal, undocumented workers and incarcerate them into jails, happily upholding his election pledge.
The United States, struggling to recover from a recession, and just barely managing to get itself into recovery mode, with all the prospects of high unemployment continuing, sees resentment among the populace, at the presence of illegal workers. It's a little like the Spanish Inquisition for some of those illegals, living with fear and danger.
The Inquisition was religion-based, this one is economic-based, replaying a script as old as time and humankind combined. Meanwhile, the illegals in Arizona are facing misery, with their children subjects of bullying harassment and taunts of "go home, dirty Mexican", when they've lived there their entire lives.
Workers see wages being withheld, and rent supervisors are playing extortionate power games because as illegals, there is no recourse to justice. "Do something about it", unscrupulous employers urge their undocumented workers. A situation reminiscent of Nazi Germany's early pre-war years of tormenting German-Jewish citizens.
While the White House is attempting to move legislators to effect some kind of lawful and meaningful solution to the huge problem of illegal residents, and has attempted to persuade Arizona's governor to back down, the new law impacting on illegals appears to have the support of 70% of Americans. Among whom many also support an amnesty, leading to legal citizenship.
It's a sad and sorry situation, made all the more urgent by the country's current economic downturn and its continued worrying, huge unemployment figures.
Labels: Economy, Human Relations, United States
posted by Pieface @ Friday, July 02, 2010
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