Immigration

With the Minnesota Senate passing a bill that gives financial aid to illegal immigrants for college educations, I sit back and wonder where their minds are. Don’t get me wrong. I understand the logic of helping these kids who have grown up here grow and learn. And since many have been here most of their lives, in many ways they are U.S. citizens.

But, become citizens before we pay for their education. In order to get a job they are supposed to prove they have the ability to work here. Evidently, the parents have worked here for a long time, whether legally or illegally, in order to support the family. Are illegal immigrants paying taxes toward the financial aid? Do they file income taxes? If they want to live here, why not go through the process of becoming a citizen?

I agree with one senator who voiced concerns about paying for the education and then the student not being able to work.

With the current economic climate, and the fact that our country is in such debt, it ticks me off that I may be paying for illegal immigrants to get a college education. In essence I will be paying for people of other countries to gain an education while our country continues to go into debt.

The article in the StarTribune said in Minnesota about 500 people are expected to take advantage of this if it passes the House. What does a four-year-degree cost right now? We’re talking a minimum of $80,000. That’s a lot of money! And that’s just Minnesota. There are many other states that have passed or are working on the same type of legislation.

There has to be a way to get through all this immigration stuff that will help the families that have lived here for a long time. But granting them complete amnesty or paying for college educations when they won’t be able to get a job legally is not the answer. Citizenship is not a right just because of living in a country for a while. There are processes you have to go through no matter what country you move to. How do we need to change the processes here to make it better? If people are citizens, they should pay the taxes that pay for the benefits of living here. And if the government wants to make illegal immigrants citizens to capture those taxes, then find a way to do it that requires more than granting amnesty.

One of my co-workers has lived in the U.S. for a long time, and became a citizen several years back. He is proud to call the U.S. his home, and speaks fondly of his birth country. I applaud the work he and his family went through to become citizens. Sometimes I think people who go through that process know more about the U.S. than I do.

I absolutely love the melting pot of this country and the different races and cultures represented here. It is wonderful for each and every one who lives here. The learning about others and seeking ways to coexist is great. Let’s find a legal way to continue sharing our country with others.