Immigration Woes versus Immigration Pride

With the near riot atmosphere at the Trump rally in New Mexico I decided to speak on how immigration has played out in my life. To begin with I am first generation Italian in this country on my fathers side of the family. He and my grandparents came to America in 1957 through New Orleans and settled in New York. In June of 1963, they were all naturalized. They chose legal immigration to this country and were very proud to become citizens. Having been forced out of their home in Northern Italy in an area that is now Slovenia during the Istrian Exodus, they sought out a better life in the U.S.A. So immigration is not an abject subject to me, it is a reality that without, I would would not be an American citizen. That is to say, legal immigration.

I am not without empathy for people who want to escape persecution etc.. to make a better way, but I do have mixed emotions about the ones who come here illegally and skirt the naturalization process for as long as they can before either being forced to do it legally or getting deported. There are legal means and I know it can be arduous to accomplish but it can be done. I work with a gentleman that I call friend from South Africa, who has within recent years been naturalized. He admits it was tough and somewhat costly in the long run but he stuck it out and went the distance. Earning his right to call America home.

Recently I had the honor of attending a naturalization ceremony in Phoenix Arizona. I watched as my Son in Law's grandmother, a native of Peru, took the same oath that our soldiers and Presidents do, to defend the Constitution from "all enemies foreign and domestic" I found it almost thought provoking that naturalized citizens speak these words. If only all of us should have to speak them upon entering adult hood, then maybe the weight of what it means to be a citizen would sink in to more of us. It was a moving ceremony as several of the seventy five individuals from thirty nine countries stepped up to tell their story. One story in particular moved me more than the others. A middle eastern woman came to this country after armed men had stormed her home, took her brother and another male member of her family out by force, and killed them. Imagine living in fear that this could happen at any moment to you. In her country, she had gotten an engineering degree but here she was working as a waitress until she could find a way to use her degree. She was all alone at the ceremony and afterwords, while families took photos of one another, she stood near the crest of Arizona taking a selfie. I offered to take a picture of her standing there, and when I was done, I told her that her story moved me and wished her luck in attaining her dream. This is what legal immigration looks like.

Obviously, I realize there are serious fixes needed in the path to legal immigration, it's a bureaucratic nightmare at this point to fix. However we have to be smart about immigration. We can't have open borders with all the issues we have now to fix in this country, unchecked population expansion can not be sustained. There is no country that I know of that allows open immigration, because it's just not feasible. Reality has to be a part of any immigration system. When I see violence erupt, windows broken, stuff tossed at police, etc etc... When I see a quote of the effect that Trump is targeting my family who is here illegally. When I see things burned, honestly it hardens me to the plight of illegal immigrants because they are, let's face it, illegal. There are legal ways, albeit difficult, to become a citizen in this country and I for one am proud my Father did it the legal way, and my Son In Law and his family have done it the legal way, and my friend has done it the legal way. I respect them for this and am proud to call them fellow Americans.
This photo is of my Son In Law's Grandmother, and this is what legal immigration looks like. Salute.