Guest Column

Latino or not - the laws are for everyone

By Elaine I. Davila

I have lived in the United States since June 1956, I still remember the struggle my parents went through to attain their legal residency and that of their six children - I’m the eldest.

We were taught to be honest, true to ourselves, to respect the elderly, but most important, that everything we want from life, we must earn, from respect, good grades, to good education, and that privileges go hand in hand with responsibilities. My father refused "his" inheritance from his mother, as he did not earn it. We grew up to be honest human beings, proud of our heritage, but also appreciative and loyal to our adoptive country, where our children and grandchildren live.

I am passionate about things, as another thing I was taught, was: The things you work hardest for are the ones you learn to appreciate the most.

I keep reading about illegal immigration and wonder where the confusion lies over this subject.

Immigration is either legal or illegal, meaning we have laws regarding the matter; laws that must be enforced equally for all. Does it sound simple? It really is, as long as it is enforced equally and always.

We have created many problems trying to dissect the law, let’s look at the following:

Now, we have “Minutemen” protecting the borders, which some of them will eventually and without a doubt start feeling they can decide who lives and who dies.

There are also Pro groups and Anti groups, which will end up like the groups on abortion, (and just like the above) killing for the cause.

There are Protest Marches and the ones Opposed.

Let’s not forget, the abuse of the illegal immigrants, and the fear they must live and endure.

Most important, we must accept the responsibility for keeping the hope of the future immigrants alive and growing, by not enforcing the laws, by not eliminating the incentives, but even contemplating, to reward the law breakers with privileges that the Legal Immigrants had to earn, by obeying the laws. 

We could keep going on and on with issues brought about by the illegal immigrant, but, the bottom line is that: the Leaders of this Great Country , as well as the voters who put them there, must bear responsibility for creating these issues, issues that would not exist if the law were just enforced, not questioned.

One last thing, how much would we save by not having “Minutemen”, Protests and Marches that require law enforcement, and all the man power for anything from raids to deportation.

Not even the United States of America can have its cake and eat it too. Why do we put some lawbreakers in jail, and give others privileges?  Obeying the laws, Latino or not, is how we earn the privileges, not by breaking them.

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Elaine I. Davila, is retired living in Montebello, CA. Contact: elainedavila@hotmail.com

 

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