Journalism article opposing my topic

Even when unemployment rates are high, even when America is forced to build twice as many schools, roads and hospitals, even when welfare and social security are breaking down, still some people say illegal immigration is good for the U.S economy. In Robert Sheer’s “Legalize the Illegals” article at http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/20060328_robert_scheer_immigrants/ he argues that illegal immigrants should be given amnesty and that they are good for the U.S economy. Sheer argues that our country has been worried about immigration in mass several different times in our history and it has always worked out to the benefit of our country. Newsflash Mr. Sheer we have never seen the kind of illegal immigration numbers that we our currently seeing. And we have never seen such a large amount of immigrants who are refusing to assimilate into American society.

This illegal immigration problem is nothing like the problems in the past. Sheer says the immigration problem is no different than the immigrant flows of the past from “Irish, Chinese, Jewish, Russian… or even the freed slaves seeking to earn an honest living in Northern cities after the Civil War.” This would be true, except not one of those immigrant situations saw the flow of millions of illegal immigrants across a U.S border connected with the country sending the illegals. This situation cannot even be compared to the immigrant situations in the past.

Sheer says that some 2 million illegal immigrants work in the U.S for below minimum wage and millions more work without basic things that citizen workers have like occupational safety or overtime pay. Sheer’s solution to this would be to make these illegal immigrants legal so that they can make more than minimum wage and receive normal work compensations. Last time I checked, this would be the first time someone would be rewarded for BREAKING THE LAW.

Sheer says that “Americans were quite happy to eat the food harvested by those same harassed and abused workers as well as to entrust the “illegals” with the care of American homes and children.” Sheer is right on this issue. It is ridiculous that some American take advantage of illegal immigrants. Those Americans are guilty of crimes just like the illegal immigrants are. They should face stiff penalties for knowingly hiring illegal immigrants. However, this is not a good argument for legalizing illegal immigrants.

According to Sheer “This is a moment of truth for America. It is time to acknowledge that we need the immigrant workers as much as they need us, and to begin to treat them with the respect they deserve.” The respect they deserve? When did they earn this respect? When they crossed the border illegally? When they forged American documents to get hired as U.S employees? When they broke United States laws? They haven’t earned any respect and I am confused as to what Sheer thinks illegal immigrants deserve. They deserve to be punished for their crimes and deported. That is the only thing they have “earned” in America.