This political season, many topics fill presidential candidates’ platforms and voters’ minds, but one divisive subject has come to the forefront – immigration. Douglas Massey, sociology and public affairs professor at Princeton University, spoke Friday at the Reilly Theatre about the history of Mexican migration to the United States, the current state of immigration and his suggestions on the measures the United States should take to alleviate what some feel is the problem of immigration. According to Massey, the inflow of Mexican immigrants has not risen significantly, but the outflow has dropped dramatically. Before the launch of Operations Blockade and Gatekeeper, the two main passages of illegal immigrants were El Paso, Texas and San Diego, Calif., Operation Blockade was a clampdown of the 20-mile strip between El Paso, and Juarez, Mexico, with increased security in 1993. In 1994, Operation Gatekeeper was announced and was fully implemented the following year to control the San Diego passage. It increased allocation of funds to the U.S. Border Patrol, doubled the number of its agents and increased construction of fences. The concentration of security in El Paso and San Diego decreased border traffic in the two areas but did not stop attempts to enter the United States through other areas, leading residents of the new passages to believe that immigration has risen dramatically, Massey said. Massey said because there are so many risks and costs for illegal immigrants to return home, many end up staying in the United States. Many more families are migrating and settling here because it is no longer as feasible for men to work for a short period of time in the United States to support their families in their home country. “The strategies we’ve employed to date have not been successful,” Massey said. The United States is integrated with Mexico in all aspects of economy except for the exchange of human labor, Massey said. He said the United States contradicts itself with this method of integration and is extremely costly. “The U.S. is spending $3 billion extra per year to drive apprehensions of illegal immigrants to a 40-year low,” Massey said. Some non-monetary costs Massey listed as results of America’s “contradictions” include transformation of Mexican immigration from a regional to a national phenomenon, the increase of death rates among border crossers and the decrease in the probability of border apprehension. Massey said as fewer illegals return to Mexico and as more settle permanently as whole families, the net rate of undocumented immigration rises.
“If we have a crisis, it is a crisis of our own making,” Massey said. One suggestion Massey made was allowing temporary workers, so the flow of migration would continue to circulate. He said illegal immigrants who were brought to the United States by their parents should be granted amnesty, as they had no choice in coming here and because many already speak English, attend school and have built their lives. For those adults who came here of their own will and have been here a long time working, acquiring homes and raising their families should be required to meet some sort of point system, Massey said. To earn legalization, he said requirements such as paying taxes, learning English and U.S. history, and starting the process of owning a home could be part of the point system. Several students were surprised by the statistics Massey provided during his speech. “I didn’t realize that immigration was not at as high a rate as I thought,” said Crystal Legendre, international studies junior. Colleen Frazier, international studies junior, said she didn’t realize immigration has been an issue for so long. “Immigration goes through phases, and right now it’s in a very political phase,” Frazier said. Ben Herrington, music senior, said he has concerns about overpopulation caused by undocumented immigrants. “Overpopulation affects our environment and our culture,” Herrington said. Herrington said Massey’s lecture challenged some of his views on what U.S. policy ought to be on immigration. He said the policies designed to control immigration only increase the immigrant population that stays in the United States. “My views are just kind of that we don’t need everyone that wants to come to our country,” Herrington said. “We should be choosy, but now I realize how hard it is to choose what countries we want to accept immigrants from because economics is such a factor.”
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