We need honest debate, not playing to fears

I have read with interest the many letters to the editor which support our president's current rhetoric and policy on immigration. I do not agree with his views or the way he expresses them.

It does not become us as a nation when our president says that immigrants are "infesting" and "invading" our country and should be deported without due process. The use of immigration for political reasons - by either party - is simply shameful.

I lived in El Salvador for two years and still go back there often to visit. I bear witness to how gangs recruit children on their way to grammar school and target the family members of the police and soldiers charged with apprehending them. I have little wonder why so many El Salvadorans arrive at our border seeking safety and asylum.

I do not have the answers to the immigration issue. I do know that we need immigrants and a sensible immigration policy. Getting to that point will require an honest debate and facts, not demagoguery and playing to our fears. In the meantime, we should treat every human life with the dignity and respect that it deserves.

John Kukankos

Arlington Heights