Tuesday, December 9, 2008

succes bussines to money

Many of my peers have been living in this great land as far back as they can remember. They are hard working, both physically and mentally. They are law abiding leaders in their school, positive contributors in their community, and patriotic supporters of this country. Yet, there is one small detail that distinguishes them from me. I was born here and they were not. They are undocumented people. Under a ruling of the United States Supreme Court, these young people are eligible for education from kindergarten through high school. After this, the United States government slams the door in their faces. I cannot write that the government does nothing to help illegal immigrants, for that would be a lie. I cannot say either that illegal immigration is nothing but a blessing to this country, because that too would be false. What I am describing is the unfair and unethical reality that deprives these students, who are in all but one form like me, of their human rights. Is this not America? Is this not the country where people overcome extreme obstacles to obtain an education and use it to find and live the American dream? Is this not the land of opportunity, the most diverse and tolerant nation on earth? If this is the true America, then why would people who bear no responsibility for the decision to come here, who may not even remember their native birthplace – why should these young people suffer if they have lived their entire lives just as any other American citizen?Plyler v. Doe was a case where the state of Texas argued that they could withhold from local school districts state funds used for educating undocumented children. The case went to the Supreme Court which ruled in 1982 that the undocumented people, though not citizens of the United States, are people "in any ordinary sense of the term" and that therefore they are afforded Fourteenth Amendment protections. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the illegal immigrant children and said that Texas could not prove that regulation was needed to serve a "compelling state interest.” After this ruling, all children nationwide were guaranteed an education through 12th grade. By what happens after high school? It makes no sense that the law provides for all young people to receive their elementary and secondary education, but in the thirteenth year of education all of a sudden they no longer see them as “people in any ordinary sense of the term,” but rather as illegal, undocumented, and unwanted.I am a patriotic citizen of this country and I truly believe that all branches of government should provide for citizens and legal residents. But anyone with a conscience can see that it is unjust to ignore the reality of hundreds of thousands of undocumented children once they have grown up. The Supreme Court argued that children had no control over their status. How is it different once the children have grown up in this country? Even in states or localities where undocumented students are accepted into college, they have no right to financial assistance and their very legitimacy as students is being challenged in the courts. The government must stop rationalizing their actions with the simple justification that illegal means illegal and must be responsible for the power to create or destroy the dreams of many innocent human beings.

No comments: