Immigration Policy Recommendation

The US has successfully managed a high level of immigration throughout our history, with enormous benefits to our economy, culture, and diversity. Economic and political crises around the world have occasionally stressed the system as large numbers of people have sought to escape unlivable conditions by coming to America. We should assume that these pressures will continue and be prepared for them. In this context, the current pressure on our southern border is not out of the ordinary and has been inflamed by the current administration.

We believe that we should do the following:

Provide a path to permanent residency for those of the 10.7 million unauthorized immigrants who have resided in the US peacefully, productively, and free of criminal behavior. Reinstating DACA would be part of this program.

Establish a program for economic refugees: As we discussed above, there are several programs that enable the immigration of those with means, family connections, legal assistance, and the time required for completing the process. There is no program, however, to enable the legal immigration of people who are simply seeking to escape conditions of abject poverty and therefore lack the means to apply for legal admission. We believe that we should create a class for the acceptance of a reasonable number of people in these conditions and create programs to enable their successful integration into the US. Such an approach is no different than the approach taken for decades through ports of entry like Ellis Island. The difference today is the recognition that in modern society greater assistance is necessary to provide for the successful integration of such immigrants. We believe that we should establish quotas and support systems to enable this class of immigrants at a level more competitive with countries of equal wealth. By increasing our admissions from the current level of .35% of the population to the level of Canada, Australia, and the Netherlands of .8%, we would enable the welcoming of over 2 million people per year who seek nothing more than to earn the opportunity that we were born into.