Illegal immigration. A polarizing phrase that has played a large part in the division of this country over the last ten years, has again come to the forefront of the news. This time the news is not about gang members or cheap labor, but the children that these "immigrants" bring with them.
The Trump administration has recently got to work enforcing immigration laws that have been on the books for decades but have until now remained relatively dormant.
Not only have they been proactive in getting illegal aliens already in the country back out again via ICE (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement), the administration has begun enforcing a much more controversial law that goes into effect immediately after individuals cross the border.
So, by federal law, once illegal immigrants enter the country and are caught they can pick one of two options; return to their country of origin, or stay in America and be prosecuted. The ones that choose to stay are taken away by ICE agents and if they happen to have brought their children with them they will be sent into protective custody.
Believe it or not, this is normal procedure for any American citizen who commits a comparable high-level crime. They are sent to jail, their children taken away to live with relatives or in protective custody.
It is as simple as that, but there has been a mass outcry in this country to see this practice stopped. Reporters and news anchors have been throwing around words like "empathy" and "compassion" when discussing the issue.
The truth is these people broke the laws of the nation and must face the consequences. Is it unfortunate that they brought their children with them? Yes of course it is, and everyone involved must feel some sort of empathy.
There have been some rumblings that Trump will issue an executive order that will allow children to remain with their parents in the detention centers. The reason they have been unable to lies with a 1997 order passed by Bill Clinton, mandating that children could only stay with their parents for up to 20 days while in detention.
The whole debacle highlights a much larger issue that has been with us for decades now. Illegal immigration, no matter what form it takes and no matter the reason, is still very much illegal.
Nation-states, of which every country on Earth belongs to, are defined by their borders among other things. A strong border correlates directly with a strong nation-state. As controversial as a border wall would be, it would actually eliminate just about every problem with immigration that we deal with on a daily basis.
We would no longer be flooded year after year with new people for which American citizens must provide financial support for, the entrance of MS-13 gang members and other unsavory characters would be severely reduced, and the entrance of LEGAL immigrants would greatly increase, eliminating the need for detention centers of any kind.
