Posted by Very conservative Ukrainian. on October 07, 2003 at 00:17:30:
In Reply to: Re: Immigrant Workers Freedom Ride posted by Not soconservative on October 06, 2003 at 22:25:54:
I agree with most everything what you said except of one: That U.S. and western policy must be changed to make people decent living in their home country. I think, that policy of people’s home country must be changed to enable people to make decent living in their home country. In our case, I’m talking about Ukraine. It took me 10 long years to get a permanent visa to the U.S. I applied only when I was sure in success. Why I should support people who came here illegally? My policy is: no any adjustment of status for illegal migrants inside the U.S. His former boss must eat Lazarenko.:)
: You are clearly a recent immigrant. It's interesting that you think that it was OK for you to comee, and not for others. Immigration laws always change. What is perfectly legal one day becomes illegal the next.
: Current immigration law discriminates against people without money and with little education. Yet, it is such people who have built this country, because without them, all of the well-educated people and those with money would have a hard time living as comnfortably as they do.
: I wonder how you were able to enter. I also wonder what you think makes you better than others who are not as fortunate as you. Your attitude reminds me of a very old proverb (ïîñëîâèöÿ) -- Ñàì ãàì, à äðóãîìó íå äàì.
: Actually, you're wrong in you conclusions about legalization encouraging mass migration. Studies have shown that mass migration to the US would be reduced much more effectively if the US and western economic and political policies changed, so that people could make a decent living in their own countries. One of the main reasons that people migrate to this country is to support their families at h ome. Few people intend to stay when they first come.
: If there were visas to permit people to come, work here for a while, and then to go home, many of those who come here would return home regularly. This would also permit people to work legally, rather than under the table.
: If there were no 3 and 10 year bars, people who have worked here for a few years would return home, because they would not have to worry about never being able to come back in.
: : Any changes, which permit people who came illegally to the U.S. easily adjust status and legalize themselves, will lead to new overwhelming serge in illegal migration. It will not be good for anyone, living here. People, who crossed border illegally, without proper documents, should be deported back. There is no question about it. Another side of the problem that current situation is forcing legal business owners to do illegal things as hiring illegal migrants. If your competitor hired illegally to make his product cheaper than yours, you have to do the same to survive. This question we should address to law enforcement.
: : : You probably meant to say that any changes would not be good for the "vast" majority.
: : : Anyway, I'm curious -- which changes would be bad?
: : : What is good about the current policy that willingly accepts the services that undocumented people provide (many smaller restaurants, most diners, many small businesses would not be able to survive without the work of the undocumented people who take the jobs that Americans will not take), pays them below standard wages, and will not let them become documented?
: : : Also, how is it good for the security of the US not to have a system which will permit people to register and be present legally?
: : : : I don’t believe that sudden change in US immigration policy will be good for waist majority of Ukrainians who’s already here and who’s yet to come.
: : : : : The rally at Flushing Meadows was truly worth attending. It is part of a nationwide effort to change US immigration policy and reform US immigration law. Although such changes would help many Ukrainians in this country, there were few Ukrainian faces to be seen. Among the many different flags, there were no Ukrainian ones. It is too bad that the Ukrainian community did not participate in this rally in a noticeable way.