Immigration and national security
By Yeh Ling-Ling
Published in the Arkansas Democrat Gazette, February 19, 2002
[Similar versions also in several other publications, including the Atlanta Journal-Constitution]
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In his State of Union speech, President Bush vowed to do necessary to protect our homeland security, But do our leaders realize that our national security is seriously compromised as long as we maintain current levels of immigration?
Since September 11, this nation has spent over $60 billion to combat terrorism at home and abroad and to rebuild from the attacks. But trying to orevent terroists from entering this country and tracking down and deporting criminal aliens are very costly measures. The Immigration And Naturalization Service is already overwhelmed with its current back log.
How can the understaffed INS and consular offices be effective in fighting terrorism if they are continually burdened with more than 800,000 applications for permanent residency annually, in addition to hundreds of applications for "temporary" working student visas and millions of tourist visas?
As President Bush and the Mexican President will meet in March to resume the immigration talks interrupted by the September 11 tragedy, Americans should not overlook the serious social and political repercussions should millions of Mexican illegal immigrants should br granted amnesty.
Prize-winning Mexican novelist Elena Poniatowska's recent statement is revealing. "Mexico is recovering the territories yielded to the United States by means of migratory tactics." Poniatowska, who has taught at Ivy League universities such as Harvard, Yale and Princeton, also indicated that Hispanics "are imposing their culture" on the United States, which needs to speak Spanish.
Last December, The Associated Press reported that up to a total of 500,000 Mexicans are expected to migrate to the United States each year for the next 30 years. The potential impact is clear because seven states in this country have populations of less than one million each.
Many illegal Mexicans are good workers and have no political agenda. However, should the United States yield to Mexico's pressure and legalize millions of Mexicans immigrants, once naturalized, many of them could be mobilized by, or unknowingly vote for, candidates who have supported separatism. In fact, last year voted 4 to 1 for Antonio Villaraigosa, the former speaker of the California States Assembly, when he ran for mayor in Los Angeles. As a student at the University of California at Los Angeles, Villaraigosa headed a Latino rights group which advocated the formation of separate republic in the U.S. Southwest.
In addition, President Bush's victory in Florida shows what only a few hundred votes can do. Is Mexico using immigration, which could generate large numbers of voters, to impose its agenda? Last September 5, Mexican President Vicente Fox surprised his American host by stating: "We must, and we can, reach an agreement on migration before the end of this year." More importantly, the United States took over Texas by essentially overwhelming the indigenous population with Americans. Is Mexico retaking the U.S. Southwest using "migratory tactics," As suggested by Poniatowska?
History tells us that no nation's borders have been permanent. Immigration-fueled population growth will also increase our demand on energy, another unresolved national problem. According to the U.S. Census projections, the United States could possibly have more than half of China's current populations within the lifetimes of today's children.
In 1998, President Clinton warned: "Unless we handle this well, immigration of this sweep and scope could threaten the bonds of our Union"S.
President Bush should advocate a three-year moratorium on most categories of visas from all countries. This time-out is necessary if he is serious about protecting homeland security for all Ammericans.
Yeh Ling-Ling, who has worked for immigration law firms, is the executive director of the Diversity Alliance for a Sustainable America, a national non-profit organization in Oakland, CAL.
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