Still a HOT Topic...Immigration

On May 1st I did a story about International Worker's Day & Minority Rights. There was a small march at a local town in Owatonna, Minnesota. There, I interviewed the marchers, mostly of Mexican descent and they basically were saying that they want big employers to stop exploiting them and have some type of immigration reform. And that they were tired of living a life with fear and having their children grow a resentment towards Americans because of what they put their parents through. 

With that said, I sought the opposing view. I approached a senior citizen that was sitting in his pick-up truck long before the march even started and during it I asked him if he could comment on his thoughts about immigration. He told me that what he had to say was not "appropriate" for television and was really angry about the fact that US government is "wasting" time on the immigration problem and should concentrate on other things. But I was able to get a few comments from people who were strongly against immigrants seeking rights because they came into this country illegally. I also spoke with ICES (Immigration & Customs Enforcements) and they said they are cracking down on illegal immigration by seeking those with felonies or warrants and they're usually working amongst other illegal immigrants and so that's how they deport a lot of them at the same time. After writing both sides of the issue I had quite a response to my story from people all over the country especially when I did another story a few weeks later on how immigrants are living in fear...

This report was done after one of the biggest immigration raids in Iowa's history. They deported almost 400 illegal immigrants and a lot of their family and friends were in hiding. Residents said after the deportation it became a ghost town. I interviewed a Mexican family from Iowa, who requested to remain anonymous and I asked them why they didn't decide to come to this country the right and legal way 10 years ago when they first arrived to America? They told me they would have loved too if they had the money and if the Mexican government would cooperate more. Living in poverty and struggling to support your family many can't wait for the legal process so they take that risk coming to America...seeking that better life not only for them but for their family. Isn't that what America is all about? Dreams to come true and living in prosperity? I know those that come here are breaking the law but there has to be some type of reform and solution for those immigrants not only from Mexico but from other countries to have a chance to prosper and strengthen our country. 

When I interviewed the eldest son of the immigrant family, however, he told me a lot of Mexicans get consumed with the great money their making here and they don't think about investing that money to obtain citizenship. Even though he did not sound very educated he had a good point. But then again, many won't do that because they would be deported back to their home country and start the legal process there...taking about 10 years or so to complete. One thing that did bother me when I spoke to him is that after living through what his parents had to go through coming to America he wasn't taking advantage of the opportunities here, such as our great education system. He was a high school drop out, 16 years old and a father himself. This is what gives hard-working Mexicans a bad name and fall into a negative stereotype as being ignorant people. If you're parents sacrificed everything for you by coming into this country, don't fail them by becoming a teen parent or breaking the law. Do what they couldn't achieve by obtaining a higher education because only through that avenue can we truly evolve as human beings and break the cycle of ignorance.

As for the immigration issue...neither side will be satisfied until the US government does something about it.