Immigration laws, flaws need discussion

A U.S. citizen can sponsor a spouse or parent for permanent residence who entered without permission only after that family member has stayed outside the U.S. for 10 years. That is the law.

An employer who wants to hire a non-professional who is currently here without permission (whether they entered with permission or not) must wait seven years to sponsor and legally hire that individual, but only after that individual has spent an additional 10 years outside of the U.S.

To hire a professional who has never violated the immigration laws, the wait is five to seven years. This is despite the fact that the employer has gone through the rigid Department of Labor process to find qualified legal U.S. employees. That is the law.

A U.S. citizen who wishes to sponsor a sibling for permanent residence or child 21 years or older must wait up to 15 years. A lawful permanent resident who wishes to sponsor a minor child or spouse must wait up to eight years.

And add a 10-year wait outside the U.S. to all of those lines if that family member has spent more than one year in the U.S. without permission. Those also are the laws.

And if you haven't figured it out yet, Ellis Island is now a museum, not an entry point for those wishing to do it the legal way as in years past.

Those who say their grandparents came here legally, or that those here should do it the right way should take a moment to understand how our legal process actually works or, perhaps better said, how it doesn't.

Perhaps they should stop to think that maybe our current laws and lack of a workable immigration policy are the reasons we have so many people here without permission and maybe they should be changed to comport to reality.

As an immigration attorney, I meet with individuals and businesses everyday wishing to follow the law to sponsor family members and employees for permanent residence, and they all are waiting patiently for their numbers to come up.

I would estimate that at least half of the approximate 12 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S. are in a legal line of some sort.

And what many people don't realize is that most undocumented immigrants are part of families that consist of both legal permanent residents and U.S. citizens.

They do not live apart from the rest of us - they work, pay their taxes, go to church, purchase goods and services and, according to the New York Times, their tax contributions constitute 10 percent of the current payments into our Social Security System.

Years ago, it was the law for blacks and whites to attend different schools, use different bathrooms and follow rules as to where they should sit on the bus.

Years ago, only white men could legally vote. It is only thanks to the hard work of those who realized the fundamental flaws in these laws and policies that we are the greatest nation on earth.

We all must work toward what is right, what is fair, and what approach provides the best solution to a problem that is dividing our towns and communities.

We are strong today because of our immigrant heritage and our policies toward inclusion, not exclusion.

Speak out against prejudice and misinformation and urge your representatives to support comprehensive immigration reform at the federal level.

Shirley Sadjadi

Elgin