“We have always held to the hope, the belief, the conviction that there is a better life, a better world, beyond the horizon,” said by Franklin D. Roosevelt. Are we not all immigrants ourselves, originating from different places of birth; and then making our way into the U.S? What is the true definition of a criminal? We as a society now have created ourselves a warped mindset on what the true definition of a criminal is. Dictionary.com defines a criminal as, “someone that has committed a crime.” In some aspects, that really isn’t a great definition of a criminal. So if a child were to steal food because they were hungry, are we to jump up at them and condemn them to be a criminal for the rest of their life. My purpose is to remove those shields that give society an opportunity to turn a blind eye to the mistreatment and abuse that illegal immigrants suffer from. While efforts to appease both sides of the argument continues to pit our nation against one another in this effort to legalize illegal immigrants and add stricter policies.

Despite this issue, the question of morals comes into play when discussing the lives of illegal immigrants and their struggle of obtaining the right to live in the U.S without fear of deportation and the fear of being separated from their family. There are few policies that are helping illegal immigrants obtain temporary visas and jobs, but that isn’t always guaranteed. “Unauthorized Latino immigrants face numerous challenges, including poverty, limited English language skills, and efforts in some suburbs to discourage their residency” (Quote from Carol Cleaveland). Many people are unaware of the daily obstacles illegal immigrants deal with in the effort to stay in the U.S. The struggles of learning a new language provided a barrier among those illegal immigrants that were trying to find some way to communicate with U.S. employers and interact with others in their day to day lives. In addition to that imagine having to feed a family of 8 or more people and not receive minimum wage because you’re unlikely to speak out against an employer because they might turn you into the authorizes. “Deportation dehumanizes people who come to this country to work hard” (Quote from Cesar Garica Hernandez). The chance for the American Dream is slowly dwindling away as they force themselves to stay invisible and succumb to abuse and poverty.

Many individuals are unaware of the reasons why many illegal immigrants leave their home and are quick to assume their purpose is to cause havoc and steal jobs in the U.S. They automatically put them into that category of criminal and uneducated without any knowledge of who they are and the reason for coming to the U.S. “Many of the early immigrants to America’s shores came to escape religious persecution or criminal persecution, others to leave conditions of poverty in the hope of finding greater economic opportunities in the New World” (Quote from Jack Kenny). The idea of living a better life without fear of persecution and the possibilities of gaining financial stability inspired many immigrants to travel to the New World. Is it too much to ask for a life without persecution or the fear of starvation? Soon enough, numerous of Americans saw the large amount of immigrant workers a huge threat to the workforce and their way of life. Their eyes were clouded by vindication and pure hatred toward the illegal immigrants because they were changing the things around them. “By the middle of the century, the New American Party, also called the Know Nothing Party, was demanding new laws making it harder for the foreign-born to become citizens” (Quote from Jack Kenny). Even though groups such as the New American Party dwindled down, eventually those in power found ways to pass laws that wouldn’t allow immigrants the chance for work. “Employers can hire immigrants, especially illegal immigrants, for less than they would have to pay native-born Americans, and then claim that the fact that the jobs are filled by foreign workers is evidence that they are “jobs Americans won’t do.” (Quote from Jack Kenny) The hiring of illegal immigrants prove to benefit employers in many ways ranging from lowering their salaries to bullying them and threatening to expose them. Illegal immigrants are forced to accept low paying jobs and working in hard conditions such as in the low ventilated areas or little space. Many of these illegal immigrants take jobs in the fields, warehouses, and several of other manual labor jobs available. U.S. employers noticed a great need for workers in those areas and were surprised illegal immigrants accepted these types of wages and working conditions when other U.S. workers would’ve refused.

Also, while discussing the terms illegal aliens and illegal immigrants, many people are unaware of the differences between the two and often mistake one of them as another term for criminal. “The terms “illegal immigrant” and “illegal alien” clearly connote criminal status and thus, without scrutiny, could dissuade social workers from understanding the circumstances faced by individuals who enter the United States without authorization.” The essay “We Are Not Criminals” written by Carol Cleaveland discusses a series of interviews with illegal immigrants and their efforts to attain a job. “An estimated 9.3 million unauthorized migrants now work in the United States, taking unskilled jobs at low wages and prompting some law makers to call for tougher law enforcement or for measures to restrict access to health care and humanitarian assistance.” (Quote from Carol Cleaveland) Illegal immigrants battle with non-legal immigrants on whether they should have the right to work and receive certain types of benefits. “Migrants described making the decision to migrate following months- and, in some cases, years of frustration over continued poverty.” (Quote from Carol Cleaveland) Many illegal immigrants were frustrated with the gut wrenching truth of living in poverty for long periods of times despite coming to the U.S for a better life. “Mexican day laborers considerable efforts to explain that they are not criminals and to note the differences between true criminality (behavior that harms others) and the status of “illegal immigrant” as defined by U.S. laws.” The U.S. continues to make their own definition of illegal immigrants and what qualifies as a criminal.

In addition to those that advocate for the legalization of immigrants, it unclear why the government deems it fit to deport illegal immigrants who have lived in the U.S. for a long period of time without causing any trouble are deported back immediately even though they’ve caused no trouble. They are forcing those illegal immigrants who have settled down and created a better life for themselves, to just gather very belongings if they can and just go back to their place of origin without any disputes or arguments. “Immigration: The Argument for Legalization” written by Adam Omar Hosein. Hosein discusses the concept of how legalizing illegal immigrants will prove to benefit everyone in the long run and to allow illegal immigrants who have taken up residence for a long period of time the opportunity to transfer their status to legal residents. He also discusses the governments need to govern people and restrain them despite their ongoing idea that an individual has the power to decide their future and make their own choices. There is an ever present need to allow an individual the freedom of governing their life as well as giving illegal immigrants the same freedom as well. One can come to believe that illegal immigrants would be given the same rights as a citizen is given because of the role that autonomy plays in society but is overlooked because every state has their own definition of immigrant and laws along with it. The possibility of a criminal background plays a key role on the legalization of illegal immigrants and the chance of deportation. The mere action of stealing or drug use can cause the immediate deportation of an illegal immigrant. Adam Hosein talks of how an individual can live a life of worry, unaware that the government can take everything they hold so dear in a blink of an eye. “The state again does not determine the content of your plans, but it maintains a great power over your ability to keep pursuing the ones you may make.” (Quote from Adam Hosein) Even if an individual thinks that the government doesn’t have a hold on their life and the belief that they are in control of their life. It is time that they government should be relinquished of that power and allow illegal immigrants the freedom to live in the U.S.

While the heated argument of what defines a true criminal, the government altered their qualifications of a criminal among illegal immigrants. “Individuals can be deported for petty crimes such as shoplifting or possession of small amounts of marijuana” (Martinez). Illegal immigrants were deported back to their home because of these small infractions and often resulted in permanent banishment. “The Supreme Court played an important role in constructing distinct border policies for the Mexican and Canadian borders in its 1976 decision United States v. Martinez-Fuerte.” In 1976, there was a case where the Supreme Court had the power to do what it pleased. “The Court granted Border Patrol agents the right to stop and question people “of apparent Mexican ancestry” located anywhere within approximately a hundred miles of the border.” The Supreme Court had given the Border Patrol agents a huge amount of power in South Texas. “Unlike the other law enforcement agencies that are prohibited from engaging in racial profiling, the Border Patrol is constitutionally entitled to do so” (Martinez). The Border Patrol was able to stop whomever they saw suspicious and had traits of Mexican ancestry, and being so close to the border almost 90% of the population was subject to be stopped and questioned. Why are illegal immigrants accused of seemingly small crimes such as shoplifting, considered dangerous and a threat to our society?

In the U.S. it is believed that the individuals that specialize in security of our great nation and the people in it will have a reasonable purpose and idea of what they believe is and if they truly are a threat. “Federal authorities have repeatedly said that their priority is to find and remove illegal immigrants with violent criminal histories, but the U.S. government’s stepped-up enforcement in recent years has led to the deportation of hundreds of thousands of immigrants convicted of non-violent crimes, according to a recent study” (Quote from Andrew Becker). Despite the U.S governments ideal policies of cracking down on the deportation of hard criminals, they seem to be struggling in defining the true meaning of violent criminal by deporting thousands of illegal immigrants with lesser criminal histories. “1996 Law mandated the detention and deportation of all immigrants, even those who are longtime lawful residents, if they committed a crime punishable by at least one year behind bars.” Residents who have lived in the U.S for periods of long times are susceptible to be deported despite holding a long term residency because if they committed a crime that led to a year behind bars. “Removing these individuals from our communities and from our country reduces a significant safety vulnerability” (Quote from Andrew Becker). In what way is an illegal immigrant who shoplifts or commits a lesser hard crime deemed unsafe for a community? There are cases where old convictions cause for that individual to be deported back such as Yakara Hernandez when her husband was deported because of a drunk driving conviction and had been deported once before. “Her husband understood that he came to the U.S. illegally and were willingly to pay the penalty” (Quote from Andrew Becker). Some of the illegal immigrants who have criminal record even if it ruled them as a threat were often remorseful of their actions or completed the necessary time to be allowed back in society. These “hard criminals” often commit crimes of lesser importance but yet are seen as die hard criminals that cannot ever revert out of their old ways.

By wanting to attain a better life, have we condemned the meaning of a true criminal? The term criminal should not be a weight upon the immigrants that wish to have a better life. Illegal immigrants face many obstacles ranging from language barriers to working in horrible conditions just to live in the U.S. It is vital that we as a society see the grueling process and pains of being an illegal immigrant. We as a society need to take a stand and come to the realization that wanting a better life for the ones you love should not dictate an individual as a criminal. Why should they be denied the chance to have a better life? Why should past mistakes cause them to be punished once again by being deported? There are those capable of becoming better people.