From: wlarkin@panix.com (Ward Larkin)
Newsgroups: alt.activism
Subject: NYT Op-Ed on stronger U.S. Immigration Policy
Date: 26 Jul 92 21:49:58 GMT
Organization: PANIX Public Access Unix & Internet, NYC

The following appeared as an Op-Ed piece in the July 25th 
edition of the New York Times.  Letters to the Editor of the 
Times should be addressed to

Letters to the Editor
The New York Times
229 West 43rd Street
New York, NY  10036

* * * * * * * * *

"Bar the Door", by Daniel James.

By September 30, well over one million people will have 
crossed the Mexican border into the U.S. illegally in the past 12 
months.  Illegal aliens, mainly from Mexico and Central 
America, have arrived at the same rate annually since 1989, the 
Immigration and Naturalization Service says -- and the trend is 
upward.

Up to five million people are living in the U.S. without legal 
immigration papers.  About 700,000 immigrants enter each year 
illegally.

A Tulane University demographer, Leon Bouvier, projects that 
at least 15 million immigrants, including illegals, will arrive 
during the 1990's.  The influx, he projects, will continue 
unabated until at least the year 2020.  Thus we can expect 
perhaps 30 million or more newcomers in the first two decades 
of the 21st century.  That will make the immigration wave, 
which began in 1965, the longest and biggest ever, adding 61 
million people to the population.

This influx provided the tinder for the rioting in Los Angeles 
and the Washington Heights section of New York City.  About 
45 percent of South-Central Los Angeles is Hispanic, the 
Census Bureau says, and many of the newcomers participated 
in the riots.

Incredibly, the immigration question has received no attention 
from Governor Bill Clinton, President Bush and their parties, 
although the statistics expose a formidable problem that 
increasingly impinges on every aspect of our lives.

California, November's biggest prize, is a basket case, largely 
because of a flood of immigrants in the 1980's that increased it's 
population by 30.5 percent, to 31 million.  The demands on 
social, health and educational services are soaring and threaten 
to cause them to break down.  No wonder California is broke.  
Its budget deficit is a record $14.5 billion.  Even before the Los 
Angeles riots, it sought $1.1 billion in U.S. aid to cover not only 
welfare and education needs but also health care for 1.3 million 
newly legalized immigrants.

And no wonder 7 our of 10 Californians think that the state 
should limit immigration.  That seems to be the national 
consensus, too.  A Roper poll taken between March 27 and 
April 14, found that 69 percent of the respondents would like to 
"reduce" immigration.  Eight out of 10 think our immigration 
policies "need revisions."

What revisions would prove effective and reasonable?

First, a freeze on immigration for up to five years (expect for 
spouses and minor children if U.S. citizens and legal residents) 
could prove beneficial.  This moratorium would reduce unfair 
competition for scarce jobs;  give our economy a chance to 
recover;  cut social, health and education costs and relieve 
pressure on our environment.  Above all, it would give millions 
of immigrants here an opportunity to assimilate.

Second, we must launch an all-out drive to halt illegal entries.  
This would involve erecting unsurmountable barriers along the 
50 miles of southern border where 90 percent of illegal aliens 
cross.  The cost, about $300 million, hardly compares with the 
$5 billion spent yearly on benefits for illegal families.  The 
Border Patrol should be increased to 6,000 agents (4,324 are 
now assigned the 2,000 miles of border), and the National 
Guard and Army should be used when necessary.

Third, we should offer Mexico, the biggest source of 
immigrants, an incentive:  The U.S. would underwrite a joint 
effort to "green" its northern border, enabling Mexico to 
increase food production and farm employment in order to deter 
Mexicans from heading north for food and work.

Fourth, President Bush should air the issue with President 
Carlos Salinas of Mexico and try to persuade him to discard its 
policy of considering the U.S. a safety valve for its vast army of 
unemployed.  He should obtain Mr. Salinas's approval to deport 
aliens into the Mexican interior, where they usually originate -- 
a key point, since it would drastically cut the number of illegals 
who easily re-enter the U.S. because Mexican law permits them 
to be deported only to the Mexican side of the border.

Our immigration policy is conducive to the proliferation of a 
foreign underclass that may become permanently unassimilable, 
thus fostering inner-city ghettos and ethnic tensions.  What's 
more, the economic effects of the growth of such an underclass 
will weaken our power to compete in the global marketplace.
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