Blue Collar Muse

The presence of illegal aliens in the US is nothing new. They have been here for over 50 years. In many ways, the old saying, “The more things change, the more they stay the same!” is an apt description of their situation.

There are some differences between today and yesterday. Chief among them is today’s illegal aliens are no longer simply doing jobs Americans won’t do. That used to be true and still is in many instances. However, today’s illegal aliens are increasingly taking lucrative jobs Americans would love to have. This is particularly true in the area of construction trades. Many of today’s plumbers, painters, brick layers and electricians are here illegally. Because they are not unionized and work for cash, they are less expensive to employ. This drives down the wages of US construction workers who must bid less to compete. Other industries are likewise impacted.

One thing unchanged over the years, however, is the nature of the illegal alien. That nature can be summed up in a brief sentence. They are aliens not immigrants.

Immigrants helped build this country. To do so, however, they left their former countries - permanently. They surrendered citizenship there and repudiated any rights or claims they had there. They stopped being Germans, Englishmen, Frenchmen or Mexicans and became Americans. They learned our customs and our language. This was not simply an interesting but unintended consequence of their geographic change. It was the entire point of the change. They no longer wanted to be from where they were or what they were. Instead, they wanted to come to America and to become Americans.

The word ‘immigration’ defines the legal process immigrants took to accomplish the goal of becoming an American. By definition, immigration implies compliance with our laws. Thus there can only be legal immigrants. There is no such thing as an ‘illegal immigrant’. ‘Illegal immigrant’ is simply a label we use to identify a group of people. But it confuses the issue by blurring the lines between those who belong here and those who don’t.

Not every person who comes here from a foreign country wants to become an American. Some come for just for an education or maybe for work or training. These people have every intention of returning to their home country when the goal is accomplished. While their stay here can often last for years, they get visas instead of citizenship papers. Since they intend to return home, they are not immigrants, they are not citizens, these people are ‘aliens’.

As long as the alien in the US complies with the terms of the visa he has received, he is a legal alien. Once he violates the terms of his visa, he does not become an immigrant. He remains an alien but his legal status has now changed. He is now an illegal alien because he is in violation of the law. Just so, those who come to this country without legally emigrating, even if they intend to stay here for life, are not just aliens, they are and always will be illegal aliens.

Please note, I’m not an immigration attorney or a legal expert of any kind. I cannot tell you what is or is not ‘legal’ in a court of law. But I can point out what we all understand due to common sense. As a comedian quoted President Bush, “You don’t have to be a Rocket Surgeon to figure this out!”

The difference is in one’s intent in coming to our great country and one’s actions upon and after arriving. Immigrants intend to adopt this country as their own. While their past is, without doubt, important to them, they are looking to the future. They do not seek to bring much of their past along with them preferring to conform to what they find here regardless of how difficult or lengthy the process might be. Their efforts are focused on contributing to their new country - strengthening, supporting and expanding it. This process is called assimilation.

Legal aliens behave similarly. They come here because of what exists here - better education, recreation or vocation. Since they perceive some situations here to be superior to corresponding situations at home, they come to improve themselves with a view to improving the situations at home when they return. Thus, they, too, honor what they find here as opposed to attempting to change it. For the time they are here, they also assimilate.

However, those who choose the status of illegal alien, and it is a choice, have no such outlook concerning the US. They intend to acquire something for themselves more than to contribute something to the country. Their intent is not to protect the goose laying the golden egg. They see only the egg and the omelette they can make with it. They do not care to learn any more about our country than they have to in order to accomplish their personal goals. Thus, they do not learn our language, customs or values nor do they renounce their country of origin. Their sole purpose in coming here is to make as much money as possible over a few years so as to return home and live well on the wealth they sent out of the country. In the meantime, they want as little cultural disruption as possible. They do not assimilate.

Due in large part to this process, over the years we have changed our view of ourselves. We are no longer Americans, we are German Americans, African Americans or Mexican Americans. We no longer work hard ourselves but we love the luxury that the hard work of others supplies. We’ve become so dependent on that work that we’ve allowed it to expand and ignored the cost to our economy, our citizenry and our future. We’ve become accustomed - desensitized - to the illegal part of the illegal alien’s identity.

We’re told it’s too expensive to deport them so we’re asked to let them stay regardless of the money they send away or use up. We may actually agree to that. We don’t know where they are or even how many they are but we won’t consider how many more may be on the way or where they’ll go once they get here. We’re being replaced and we don’t know by whom or how close it is to being done. We know they are a serious financial burden but continue to let the rest of America pay the bill if it means our lawns get cut, our homes get improved and we gain a few minutes of service at our favorite restaurant. We have allowed their number to grow by refusing to deal with those that are here and encouraging new ones to come.

At the same time, we refuse to recognize their non-assimilation for the danger it is. At some point, if we do not value our distinct heritage and values enough to insist that those who live here abide by them, then they will not value them either. If we don’t value them, and they don’t value them, then of what value are they? The answer is - they are of no value whatsoever and will be replaced. With what? Who knows? That will be for others to decide at that point in time. But if we do not insist on the assimilation that comes from immigration then the US as we know it will have been annihilated at the hand of the illegal alien and with our own permission.

I do not believe it is too late. We see the choices before us. I wonder which we will choose?

Thinking that the answer will only be clearly seen by our children’s children …

Blue Collar Muse

**This was a production of The Coalition Against Illegal Immigration (CAII). If you would like to participate, please go to the above link to learn more. Afterwards, Email the Coalition and let us know at what level you would like to participate.

Other recent Coalition contributions:

Command and Conquer, Part 2

Popularity: 4% [?]

This entry was posted on Monday, June 4th, 2007 at 5:28 am and is filed under Immigration. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.