I have an idea for a modern fairy tale.
I have all the key elements. A downtrodden people, hoping to escape destitution, violence and oppression. A shining kingdom with a promise of a better life where hard work and a pure heart will assure you safety and acceptance.
An ogre with evil henchmen and women. A good fairy with a warm, shining light to illuminate the entrance to that promised land. A sinister spell cast upon the people that can be broken, if only men and women of good will come together in a spirit of humankindness and selflessness, caring solely for the welfare of those caught under that spell.
Finally, an incantation writ upon the foundation upon which the good fairy stands, that if believed and uttered collectively by the citizens of the kingdom, will set free the people being held under the spell.
The incantation:
“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!”
My tale, of course, is based on the plight of the DACA dreamers. Their parents brought them to this shining kingdom of America to escape oppressive poverty, cartel violence and government corruption in their home nations. When they could not enter our shining kingdom through legitimate means, they brought their families by alternate means, sometimes perilous, but not recognized as legitimate by the American government. They lived quiet lives, raising their children to love America, to play by its rules in humble anonymity, to become educated and fluent in its language in humble anonymity, and to work responsible jobs and contribute financially to America’s system through income and other taxes, in humble anonymity.
In other words, these children became citizens of their new land in every way but on paper, and in humble anonymity.
Then, along came the ogre, a creature without empathy, awareness or the necessary education for compassion who begrudged these youngsters the good lives they had created through their own efforts and the sacrifices and bravery of their parents. This ogre scoffed at the incantation written on the base of the Statue of Liberty standing at the mouth of the harbor through which came so many of America’s ancestors. And the ogre solicited the help of others in our government of like mind to threaten to send these young people back to countries of which they had no memory, to which they had no connection, no common language or sense of custom and heritage.
The evil spell placed on the dreamers is the threat of deportation. And there is a way, a simple way, to break this spell. It is for good people of kind hearts in the House and Senate to separate this single issue from all others, and to treat it with the compassion that is imperative if they believe the pure tenets of Christianity they are so quick to invoke in all other so-called moral matters.
In writing my modern fairy tale, there will be a happy ending. The dreamers will live happily ever after, as full citizens of the United States of America.
Because solving the conundrum of our dreamers isn’t hard. It’s as easy as saying “my country ’tis of thee” and waving the pen that signs the bill that opens the golden door.
The ogre is mean and powerful. He has minions that stand with him, and many people too afraid to stand against him. Some are able to see what is going on, are too unprincipled to speak out. Your fairy tale has a happy ending. We can hope.
So according to your “fairy tale”, if you don’t like the rules to enter the country, you can circumvent the procedures, cross the border illegally and suffer no consequences? Let’s reverse the migration and US citizens being oppressed and no opportunity and Mexico is the “shining light”. Do you think Mexicans should welcome you with open arms and encourage more to do the same? Or should we face reality here and know we would be apprehended, jailed, and at the very least sent back once. A second time would be jail or prison. I won’t speculate about a third time – I’m sure the deserts are full of graves of those disobeying the Mexican government.
I understand their plight, their yearning to be free and land of opportunity.
Before any misnamed “Dreamers” are dealt with,when in reality they are felons, the WALL must be built all along the southern border. Why not build a wall along the northern border you ask? – because Canadians are happy with their country – a socialist icon if there ever was one. If you think Canada is for you, please, by all means, leave and find out government extremism at it’s worst – confiscating most of your check for everyone’s benefit. What a country!
Your example is a poor one, in that all immigration from Europe/Russia came through strict and extreme conditions, landing on an island in New York harbor, checked for suitability to enter the country (healthy, had a job waiting, had family in America, had to prove they wouldn’t be a burden on society, and only allowed to enter after all requirements were met.
Most of the illegals are coming here for good reasons, Some aren’t; some are coyotes (human traffickers), some are dealing in drugs and/or weapons, some could be subversives wishing to do harm to America through Mexico. We have no idea who is who.
Once the WALL is erected with a nice large beautiful door for legal entry, I’m all for going back and looking at granting amnesty for those deserving it. Until then, you come in illegal, you are subject to deportation. The Justice Dept. must enforce the immigration laws, otherwise we are a nation of men and not of laws. When men rule, jungle rules apply, and there is no law, just misery and mayhem. The same “jungle” along the border now.
The dreamers are the innocent children of parents who circumvented legal avenues. They are the ones for whom I advocate. They are not, and should not be treated as, felons, but as unfortunate recipients of a new kind of legacy. As such, they should be treated with a new kind of compassion. Everything else you talk about is what muddies the waters in the case of DACA. They are red herrings, which I believe get in the way of offering a reasonable solution to 700,000 productive would-be Americans.
Tough talkers like Free Market Man like to ignore the fact that all but Native Americans are immigrants. He also wants to ignore the pick and choose which immigants are to be investigated.
GOP Congressman in Nebraska and Iowa successfully lobbied to get ICE to back off the meat processors and reduce the number of checks for green cards and documented workers.
Why isn’t the administration enforcing document checks in Florida? Because if they did the GOP donors who own construction companies wouldn’t get any workers for concrete flat work or sheet rock installers.
You think you’ll see a “beautiful door” you’ve been listening to too much Trump BS because The Wall won’t be across the whole border and the narcotics/weapons are rolling through on trucks and tunnel systems that get built as quickly as others are found.
Biggest question on The Wall if parts of it are built will be land acquisition. Will there be winners where the locations are strategically selected to reward political donors who have purchaed or optioned the land or will private land owners see the heavy hand of Eminent Domain and get a fraction of what the land may be worth? Then who designs and builds the wall? Does it get awarded to a private company? Isn’t that just corporate welfare that all the “small government conservatives” rail about all the time?
And so it goes…