"Where laws may be broken under the pretense of common safety, there is no Constitution." -- Nicolas Malebranche, French philosopher
Conservative mass media outlets love to draw attention to crimes committed by undocumented immigrants. All it takes is for some Mexican to get caught in a fictitious marriage with a U.S. citizen and a Republican paper will immediately print some full-blown agitprop, the essence of which amounts to the stereotypical and very short-sighted opinion that "illegals come to America to steal, lie, commit fraud, and destroy the country."
The majority of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) reports on the harm caused by undocumented immigration are based on dry statistical data and do not contain any explanations for the causes of these data. Judging from these statistics, undocumented immigrants commit crimes, join gangs, go to prison, neglect to pay taxes, use false documents, etc. more frequently than members of other social groups.
However, as the great Martin Luther King warned, "A riot is the language of the unheard." Knowing in advance that I will bring down on myself the wrath of those who disagree with me, I will still dare to say that criminality among undocumented immigrants can primarily be explained by plain old discrimination. It is absurd to demand law-abiding behavior from people who are limited in their actions.
In my opinion, a J-1 visa holder convicted of attempting to falsely claim refugee status is just as "dangerous a criminal to society" as Jean Valjean, the hero of Les Miserables, who was sentenced to 19 years in jail for stealing a loaf of bread for hungry children.
Sometimes crime is the only way to get rid of the label of "second-class" that "real Americans" have become accustomed to putting on people who are in the country without papers.
This will outrage many readers, who will say that "illegal immigrants are not any worse off than citizens" and that it is their nature that makes them criminals, not a desire to serve the United States with good faith and fidelity. At this point, allow me to introduce some interesting facts provoked by the high growth in crime among undocumented immigrants.
- It is virtually impossible for undocumented immigrants in the country to attain legal status.
In order to receive a green card today, you have to be either lucky or a highly sought-after genius. In the first instance, you can win a green card (chances are 1:170), and in the second instance, you can receive a visa for talented individuals (work visa). Consequently, a young, energetic foreigner is forced to rely on "alternate methods" like fictitious marriages and falsely claiming political refugee status to attain legal status.
The result is a paradox: a law-abiding person dreams of living and working in the United States, but the American government "hints" that the only way to do this is to commit a crime.
- Undocumented immigrants do not have the right to study.
A Mexican who has crossed the border does not have the right to study at American colleges, institutes, or universities. So there is nothing surprising in the fact that young gangs are mostly made up of Latinos. These adolescents have been left to their own devices because the legal system could care less about them. I remember well how last year an 18-year-old member of the MS-13 gang who had been arrested answered a journalist's question on why he had become a criminal with "What else is there for me to do? I'm here illegally."
- Undocumented immigrants do not have the right to work.
In addition to not having the right to study, undocumented immigrants do not have the right to work. This is the most absurd point. Even people who entered the country legally like tourists and J-1 visa holders who become students in the United States (F-1 visa) cannot legally work to pay for their studies. Working for cash or checks is considered a crime.
- Undocumented immigrants are not allowed to rent housing.
Undocumented immigrants cannot even rent housing on a legal basis. No management company will take on the responsibility of providing an undocumented immigrant with housing. So, undocumented immigrants have to resort to crime just to get a "roof over their heads." They are eagerly helped by legal residents who rent them rooms and places in rooms, as well as their own or subsidized apartments. Naturally, money received from rent is not declared.
- Undocumented immigrants are not allowed to open bank accounts.
An undocumented immigrant does not even have the right to open a bank account. They are forced to use cash, which is not encouraged by the IRS or recommended by the government "in order to ensure the personal safety of residents." Break-ins at apartments where illegal immigrants live are common. Thieves know perfectly well that the chances of finding cash in these apartments are much higher than in apartments where U.S. citizens live. Cash is one of the main reasons for the robberies, frauds, and thefts that illegal immigrants both commit and of which they become victims.
- Undocumented immigrants are not allowed to obtain ID.
This is the most idiotic prohibition of them all. Theoretically, an undocumented immigrant cannot even buy an inter-city bus ticket, drink a beer in a bar, buy an M-rated video game, or go to an R- or NC-17-rated movie. Any police officer can arrest an undocumented immigrant for not having ID.
Buying an unofficial ID (one not issued by the DMV) is subject to criminal penalty (document forgery), and an illegal immigrant simply cannot obtain an official ID.
- Undocumented immigrants cannot have health insurance.
Critics of undocumented immigration love to remind everyone that many undocumented immigrants suffer from infectious diseases like tuberculosis, scabies, psoriasis, etc. This is true, but it is not the undocumented immigrants who are to blame. The problem is the decaying healthcare system. Hospitals only help undocumented immigrants in emergencies like in cases of excessive bleeding, fractures, or stroke. This follows the cynical principle of "We won't let you die today, but tomorrow…"
American history knows many cases of undocumented immigrants resorting to crime out of despair to find money for treating a seriously ill husband, wife, or child.
There is no paid or free health insurance for undocumented immigrants. There are only piteous resemblances to health insurance with barbaric conditions like "for $200 a month, you can see a doctor once a month."
- Undocumented immigrants are not allowed to re-enter the United States.
When undocumented immigrants leave U.S. territory, they will never be allowed to re-enter the country. Rumors that one can return to the United States after spending five to 10 years at home and being granted amnesty are not grounded in fact. Leaving means a lifelong ban on re-entering. It is hard to come to terms with this situation when a relative or close friend is seriously ill or dying at home.
All these bans and deprivations are causes of crime, even though many Russian-speaking immigrants have become accustomed to thinking differently. Comparing say 18-year-old Juan Gonzalez, who is arrested for robbing a store, to their own children, they state: "Mexicans came here to rob, steal, and kill. They are wild animals who hate America. They do not want to work legally and pay taxes. My son is a banker! A big man! And they are Latin American garbage. They should all be isolated from regular society."
People who follow this kind of logic ignore the fact that Juan Gonzalez did not grow up under the same conditions as their children. The United States extends a hand to legal immigrants and gives them everything they need to achieve the American dream, like free English classes, credit cards, mortgages, educational programs, study grants, social security, benefits, etc., etc.
No one knows how things would have worked out for a successful Russian immigrant if he had arrived in America in a situation like Juan Gonzalez and spent the last of his money on renting a place to sleep in the cheapest and most crime-ridden neighborhood in America, ending up a hostage of the criminal ghetto for long years to come.
All that remains is to hope that the immigration reform promised by President Barack Obama will be successful. The actual contribution of undocumented immigrants to the American reality can only be discussed objectively after undocumented residents are granted equal rights.
