At one point in American History, our immigration system was a bit
different. It relied on how long you lived in country as a guest without
committing a crime. After you lived in the country for the set amount of
time, you became a citizen. So could this idea work now?
Old School Immigration: How the original immigration system
worked was that you had to live in the United States for about ten years
without getting into trouble before you became a citizen. In order to
even get into the country however you had to pass a screening exam for
diseases, past crimes and if you were from a nation who was hostile to the
United States. Very simple right. Today's system is more complex
due to the politicians desire to have people of certain economic wealth and
knowledge come into the country. Which is understandable as we have a
massive welfare apparatus that can be so overburdened that it would collapse
under the pressure of population growth. This has resulted in the problems with
our current system with respect to illegal immigration and why it leaves other
good people who would be great as American citizens in the proverbial dust so
to speak. We have become too selective as opposed to the original systems
quota system taking in a specified amount per year based on the country's
ability to absorb the people into it at any given time. But the old
system made sense as it did not discriminate based on wealth (our current
system is too expensive for people to immigrate by normal means), and you were
screened prior to entry into the country to insure diseases were not present
and that you were not there to kill us (past violent crimes, terrorists and
enemy foreign agents). Regardless though, both the old and new system
were both abused to keep out undesirables. The old system was abused based on
ethnic and racial discrimination and the new system we use discriminates based
on poverty which to a certain degree also discriminates based on race and
ethnicity as well. However, the old system if followed in a way that does
not discriminate such as just allowing a first come first serve based on
immediate families during the application process would solve the entire issue
of past and potential future racial and ethnic discrimination. Basically
a real line to decide when you could come and move in. Also a set of
rules that must never be broken must be established (basically specific crimes)
that if violated would result in deportation. Basically, do not commit
theft, of a certain level, assault of a certain level, riot or murder. If
you can do that and last the full ten years living as a non-citizen who cannot
vote and is denied a certain level of welfare (if that should be required) then
you become a full-fledged citizen.
Conclusion: The quota system works best as it
ensures that the country can absorb the immigrants economically speaking which
is a defining factor in any immigration system. If the old system is
modernized, it can ensure that entire families can come in all at once without
each member having to apply separately as I have heard rumors of having to be
done with the old and new system. No more separated families is a good thing
(this may include grandparents too). Also, as it is first come first
serve, we have a real line for people to come in as opposed to our current
systems economic and pseudo racial and ethnic discrimination. It can
work, but we need political will to do it. So is it worth it to screen
people who come in first, and then let them live here long enough to prove that
they truly wish to be citizens? I certainly think so.
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