As the March 5 deadline approaches for “Dreamers” — illegal immigrants brought to the U.S. as children through no fault of their own — citizens of all political persuasions must raise their voices to demand that Congress not give up on ethical immigration reform.
Despite the fact that a large majority of American voters supports granting permanent legal status to the Dreamers, it appears that negotiations on a final bill have stalled and may remain so even until after the midterm elections. That is unacceptable.
There is no question that immigration is an extraordinarily complex matter, and any hope for successful reform will require civility, good faith, and compromise. But in this case, politics are complicating an otherwise solvable problem. Currently, Congress is deadlocked because both sides are less concerned about finding a solution than they are about whether voters going into the November midterm elections will perceive that solution as a Democratic win or a Republican one. The White House has only complicated matters further by putting forth an immigration framework riddled with lose-lose situations that unnecessarily pit one group of immigrants against another. It also continues to implement harsh immigration enforcement policies that undermine this country’s commitment to basic civil rights and stir up anti-immigrant sentiments.
As voters, we must refuse to be swayed by these tactics. Instead, we must band together to offer political cover to any member of Congress who takes the risk of embracing a nonpartisan, ethical approach. We must all do our part to make sure that the loudest voices in this debate are the reasonable ones. None of us can be content to wring our hands at news reports of unfair treatment of immigrants and refugees and then do nothing to combat it.
Even small efforts can make a big difference. Support credible news organizations and flood their comment sections with civil, thoughtful, and compassionate commentary. Engage in sincere discussions with friends and colleagues about possible solutions. Become educated on some of the complexities of the law and share what you learn with others. Most importantly, be persistent in contacting your members of Congress and encouraging them to put politics aside and to work together to find creative and ethical solutions.
Encourage them to think outside the box and consider border security measures that prioritize investing in innovative technological solutions rather than outdated, primarily symbolic ones. Why not discuss fairer, proportional penalties for minor immigration violations and the opportunity for people of good moral character to rectify past mistakes and move toward eventual citizenship? Surely, there must be a way to favor qualified U.S. citizen candidates for employment and also provide creative, nonpunitive enforcement measures that trust and reward U.S. employers who honor those priorities.
These are the kinds of options that could expand the pie the government is currently so obsessed with dividing, but it is up to all of us to make that happen. If you feel compelled to speak up, consider drawing upon these Fifteen Declarations that outline the core components of an ethical immigration policy and which we believe will appeal to a broad cross-section of American voters.
We simply cannot be content to leave this important responsibility solely in the hands of politicians and powerful, paid lobbyists. If ever there were a time for patriotic citizens to speak up in support of a better vision for America, it is now.
Diana Bate Hardy is an Immigration Committee lead for Mormon Women for Ethical Government, a nonpartisan grassroots organization of more than 5,000 women dedicated to the ideals of decency, honor, accountability, transparency, and justice in governing.
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