North Carolina and Undocumented Students
Arizona is not the only place where immigration is a big deal, North Carolina is another state dealing with this complex issue. Here is an opinion from Richard Stevens, Republican senator from Cary, NC. Here are some of his reasons to be against immigration, followed by my own thoughts on the matter, in italics and bold.
IN GENERAL:
“The key word in all of this discussion and debate, which folks seem to be forgetting, is ‘illegal.’ I hate this kind of thinking. Yes, they are illegally here. But so were Americans doing a revolution against their own country. So was the Underground railroad. So was marching out in against Jim Crow laws and segregation. Those people broke the ‘law’. Would any anti-immigrant person tell them to stop it because what they are doing is illegal. Yes, the students broke the law by following their parents but it is not their fault. It is against the law for them to be in our country. Americans don’t get free tuition when we travel in other countries. Americans don’t need to go to other countries, they are a first world country. I also highly doubt any immigrant will call it traveling, what they do. Why should we build a reward system that encourages illegal activity? Ilegal activity, breathing? Going to school? So should students be punished for the mistakes of the parents. We need to fix our immigration policy. Let’s bring people here legally, and then we’ll address all the problems. We’ve been a generous nation for centuries, but we’ve done it legally. … Again, before the year 1918 there was no term of illegal alien. Immigrants didn’t even need passports to come. We’re trying to fix things in a piecemeal way at the state level, and that’s not going to work.”
ON COMPETITION:
“We have a waiting list of North Carolinians, taxpayers, who would like to go to our community colleges, and they can’t. We’ve got North Carolinians who want to send their children to UNC-Chapel Hill, and they get denied. Well, there are only 27 undocumented in the UNC system, I’m sure they were good enough to be admitted. People should not be denied admission because they are illegal, they should be denied because they are not good enough. Every seat that is given to an illegal immigrant is taking the seat from a North Carolinian who is a taxpayer, and that is wrong.” Immigrants do pay taxes. Even through fraudulent means, they still do. Money does get taken away from their checks. Also, while the parents might have fraudulent documents, usually the kids don’t. It is quite a shock to them when they find out that they are illegal, we are speaking about students who came when they were babies.
“Competition is fine, and immigration is fine. Our country was built on immigration. The key difference here is that we’re talking about people in this country illegally.” I’m sure all immigrants would like to come into the country legally, they just can’t. When one wants to survive, they will do anything.
ON THE BENEFITS OF EDUCATION:
“How are they going to get a job? It’s illegal to get a job if they don’t have legal status. Go look at our university system. There’s a very elaborate process to verify citizenship to become an employee. We’re training people for what? Jobs they can’t get. We’re building false hope.” Well, would the good senator like an uneducated group of people or teachers and scientists? Would he rather have them join gangs? I think hope is good, hope keeps students in school.
ON THE ARGUMENT THAT CHILDREN WHO COME ILLEGALLY WITH THEIR PARENTS SHOULDN’T BE PUNISHED:
“By the time they go to the university, they’re adults. They’re still illegal, and now they’re an adult illegal.” Stevens said they should return to their home countries. We are talking about students who came when they were less than a year old to ten. Anyone within that age range has no home country, America is their country by no choice of their own.
ON THE ASSERTION THAT OUT-OF-STATE TUITION MORE THAN COVERS THE COST OF A STUDENT’S EDUCATION:
“County taxpayers pay for the buildings. Immigrants pay taxes. Tuition doesn’t cover the cost of those buildings. Look at the total cost of the education, not just the instructional cost. Look at the buildings, the overhead costs of the programs, the operating costs. Even out-of-state people are subsidized” So the good senator is more worried about buildings than the future of a child?
ON THE UNC SYSTEM’S STUDY:
“I can’t imagine, in my wildest imagination, the General Assembly of this state passing a bill to give in-state tuition to illegal immigrants. So if you’re going to do a study and you know the outcome, you’re wasting your time, in my opinion.” Why don’t you wait for the results, you might be surprised.
ON PUBLIC REACTION:
“Young people right now are applying to colleges in this state. Here’s a parent who has been paying taxes in this state for years, and the spot their child would like to take is going to be taken by someone who’s here illegally. And then we’re suggesting subsidizing that? It angers people.” There is no subsidizing, they are competing. Again, we are talking about kids who go to school with citizens. They are friends with citizens. They play video games, sports, go out like any one else. The good senator here is judging them on the sins of their parents which is appalling. And again, the parents do pay taxes. Sales tax, property tax, tax taken out of their checks, even if they have fraudulent documents. Anti-immigrant people say that they don’t want criminals who have fraudulent documents, that’s fine. I’m sure if you were to ask any parent if they would give up their living and go back to their country of origin so their kids could go to school and stay here, they would accept in a heartbeat.
