35 years without immigration reform: If not today, when?
Although becoming an immigrant is a personal decision of each individual, the word “illegal” is nothing more than a label that conservatism, in a racist and unfair way, has placed on people. This classification has been normalized by the government itself and by the corporate media. We must refuse to believe in the so-called “reality” that some are “legal” and others are “illegal.” For the purpose of showing solidarity towards immigrants, the word undocumented would be more appropriate.
Everyone talks about “the 11 million,” yet many of us have always believed that the undocumented community in the United States today is possibly larger than that. As Joe Sifuentez comments on Immigration Reform: “There are now (based on various sources) anywhere from 10.5 to 14.5 million unlawfully present immigrants residing in the United States.”
With access to the citizenship that social activists and all pro-immigrant people have been seeking for dozens of years, undocumented immigrants who have long lived with the stigma of the “illegal,” through their purchasing power and their tireless way of working, would contribute more than they already contribute to society. In addition, they would have access to driver’s licenses, they would be armored against deportation and, in general, could achieve a better quality of life. This, for the benefit of all.
We know that if immigration reform is approved in the current terms, it would not be a solution, neither in substance nor in the long term. But, it could be the beginning of the path to the regularization of the immigration status of many people. Today, the lives and future of millions are in the hands of the Senate.
Although, if for the umpteenth time the immigration reform under discussion does not make it to the desk of the President of the United States to be signed, one lesson that we can draw from here is that our “friends” the Democrats, once again, would in fact be proving that they are not even capable of passing a very limited immigration reform. So we can be sure that the long-awaited path to legalization for millions of undocumented immigrants can never come through a political party such as the Democratic party.
Let no one forget that Democrats are a majority in both Houses and that they also hold the presidency of the United States. Yes, their promises every four years sound very beautiful and everything, but what about the concrete actions? When will it really happen? Another 35 years?
35 years after an immigration reform was approved in the United States, the legislature has not had the capacity to act and advance on this critical issue. And that is why, whatever happens in the Senate, before or after Christmas, social mobilization will continue.
So, let the protests continue. Until it is achieved. Legalization Now!
Marco I. Dávila C. | Email: maidaca85@gmail.com | Facebook: Ixtli Amoxtli | Instagram: @xmiraza | Twitter: @pormiraza1 | #inmigrantes | #immigrants