Obligatory links:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/26/magazine/my-life-as-an-undocumented-immigrant.html
http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2011/06/22/pulitzer-prize-winner-im-an-illegal-immigrant/
He apparently has broken several state and federal laws over the course of his life. So should he be prosecuted or deported?
I think people who break several state and federal laws should be, as a general rule, prosecuted. I think anyone who is in this country illegally should be deported, also as a general rule. Are there any circumstances in his case that would mitigate his illegal behavior?
He was a child doing as he was told by adults, including his parents, when he became an illegal immigrant. That seems to be some mitigation.
Agreed.
Now, Giles makes a good point. But if you use a child’s innocence and ignorance of the crime as a defense, then you encourage more people to send/bring more illegal children here. So, sorry, but deported he should be.
I suppose. But he knew he was illegal when he broke the law as an adult. Shouldn’t that alone be just cause for deportation? What would you do with someone who lied to the Secret Service about his ID in order to gain access to the White House?
I’m all for immigration reform, and think that there should be a path for certain illegals to become legal, such as the Dream Act, but until that happens it is bad policy to look the other way.
Quite frankly, the entire point of him writing the story was to get deported. It was to highlight what a waste our current system is, and that aggressive deportation schemes will come at a cost. Does anyone doubt that there are undocumented immigrants performing at high levels in other industries?
Yes, he should be deported. His entire recitation involve his constant awareness (since age 16) of his illegal status. He knew it was illegal, and he continued to do it… because he really really wanted to be an American. But so do many others, who choose to wait their turn and follow the law. There is no reason his decision to break the law should be rewarded.
Presumably he went to public schools. Other Americans paid for his education. An argument could be made that he should return the “privilege” by being a good tax-payer until he’s all paid up. Perhaps he already has.
I don’t see how deporting him benefits anyone except to make an example of him and scare the bejesus out of other people in his situation. But I suppose if he were a janitor instead of a journalist he wouldn’t catch a break, so we have to be consistent.
Prosecuted for lying to the Secret Service. Deported for being here illegally. Hopefully with merciful penalties due to mitigating circumstances.
The whole time he was in school he was living with his maternal grandparents who were naturalized U.S. citizens and thus were paying into the system just like most other people’s guardians when they attend public school.
Since he has held jobs up until the age of 30 years, all with major companies he has most assuredly paid the same State/Federal income and FICA taxes as any other workers.
Unfortunately I think the law demands this guy be deported, but I don’t really muster up a lot of anger at him. His mom put him on a plane as a little kid and he landed on the other side of the world and found out it was his new home. He had no idea about immigration laws or being an illegal until he was 16, by that time he was firmly Americanized. Would anyone here at that point decide, “Shit, I’ll just give up all my friends and any dreams of a good job and go down to the authorities and volunteer to get deported to the Philippines.” So while he obviously broke the law I can honestly say he did so in a way I think 99.9999% of everyone in America would break the law in the same circumstances.
What is unfortunate in his case is that his grandfather almost certainly could have gotten him here legally since his daughter would have been eligible for permanent residency based on her father being a citizen and her minor child would of course be afforded the same privileges. The only hitch of course was the fact that she was married and that made her ineligible. But it sounds like by the time they actually paid a coyote $4500 to sneak him in she had actually divorced, so at that point they could have done it legally.
While all of that may be true, the wheels can turn very very slowly. It is possible he would still be waiting if they had pursued all legal avenues.
They also could have adopted him in the Philippines.
Another complicating factor: Vargas is an out gay man. Anyone know how bad the situation in the Philippines is for gay people?
Deportation is immoral and is based on inherent ethnocentrism. Americans (US) are better than non-Americans(THEM). Nothing I read seems to detail the felonies, so, being the case, they are most likely technical and not really immoral actions.
Who the fuck cares if more people come over? We have institutionalized bigotry in our policies. Any time you treat someone differently due to their national origin, you are committing bigotry. And in no way should the law be followed when it is immoral.
What will happen is that he will be deported unless the felonies are big enough that prison makes more sense. But in no way am I okay with that, and I never will be. In no way do I recognize a country’s right to say “You aren’t from here, so you can’t come here.”
The only reason I have any problem with illegal immigration is that illegal immigrants can be paid less than Americans. But that only exists because of the immoral laws.
People are people. All men are created equal. All.
And, no, practicality has no relevance to morality, and never has.
No. He seems to be exactly the kind of productive person that this country should encourage in its immigrants.
Free migration is as vital as free trade. Anyone who opposes this is as misinformed as Le Jacquelope. And deportation is a million times more immoral than tariffs.
People are people, regardless of which patch of dirt you happen to be born on. People should be treated equally under the law, and any country that does otherwise is morally wrong. This includes, as far as I can tell, every last country on earth.
Exactly this. We should not deport him; we should abolish the immigration system. If I had my way, this is two-step analysis you would need to become an American citizen if you were not born to one or born in the United States: (1) Are you in the United States right now? (2) Do you want to be an American citizen? Congratulations, you’re a citizen!
A second question I have is, why didn’t the Secret Service background check of his name and the social security # he provided not raise any red flags? Something’s broken down on the White House security screenings if he got by. Seems like this needs to be investigated.
Really?
I don’t agree with this. I think many people would have fessed up, as he admits he was close to doing several times.
I try to imagine being in that situation. It would suck, yes, but not nearly as much as looking over my shoulder every day, day after day, not forming long-term relationships, not being able to travel out of the country, being cautious about drivers’ licensing and employment… even if the moral quandry did not move me to get it over with, the practical one would.
Dear Santa,
I know it’s early to ask for anything, but please please please for my gift this year make many prominent Democrats publicly proclaim the sentiments above.
Your Friend,
Bricker
I don’t think many would have fessed up and resign to be deported away from friends/family/loved ones (definitely not a 16 year old homosexual kid). The most rational option would be to wait and hope the law will open a door in the future.