Public Employee Press

Immigration reform: the time is now
Fighting for a real path to citizenship

By ALLAN WERNICK

Immigration reform has been a long time in coming, but coming it is. The overwhelming Latino vote for President Barack Obama in November's election sparked the recent movement, but the struggle has been waged for years. Since the AFL-CIO announced its unequivocal support for legalizing undocumented immigrants in February 2000, immigrant activists have believed victory is possible.

Now Democrats, pushed by Dream Act militants (young immigrants brought to the United States as children who are demanding legal status), have found their voice on the immigration issue. The 70 percent Latino vote for Obama convinced Republicans that continuing their opposition would be self-destructive. A recent accord between the AFL-CIO and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce has sealed the deal. With labor and management both supporting reform, who's left to oppose it?

Still, the battle is far from over. Opponents of justice for undocumented immigrants continue to babble about securing the border and forcing immigrants to "go to the back of the line."

Expect anti-immigrant hysteria

As legislation moves through Congress, restrictionists should become more vocal. The closer reform gets to becoming a reality, the more likely anti-immigrant rhetoric will resonate. Calls for increased border control and objections to so-called amnesty for undocumented immigrants will require a sharp and clear response.

The border is effectively closed already. Post-9/11 security concerns and Obama's efforts to get tough on undocumented immigration have resulted in a radical increase in border patrol expenditures. Last year, Congress raised the Customs and Border Protection budget to almost $12 billion. We now have more than 20,000 officers guarding our borders, the most ever. Intense enforcement has combined with the recession, which ended the job magnet for undocumented labor, to cut unlawful entries to the lowest point in more than 40 years.

As for making undocumented immigrants "go to the back of the line," there is no line. Many in the media, and even many immigrants, think a hard-working immigrant of good character can somehow get legal status simply by applying. That's a myth.

Once, our immigration policy was open-door. Then, anti-Chinese hysteria brought racist laws in the late 1800s, and the Emergency Quota Act of 1921 marked a turning point by blocking further Jewish and Italian immigration with restrictions that favored Northern Europeans. Today, only individuals in special categories, mainly those with close family ties or highly needed skills, qualify for permanent residence. Most undocumented immigrants have no legal way to attain legal status.

The "line" some critics refer to is the line for green cards under the family and employment-based quota systems. For many, such as the brothers and sisters of U.S. citizens, the waiting line is exceptionally long-more than 20 years. Surely no reasonable policy maker would suggest that undocumented immigrants wait 20 years for permanent status. Just like the border security issue, pressing for "go to the back of the line" is a tactic to block the road to citizenship.

One good solution for those in line would be to increase the visa allocation for family members and needed workers. I've long thought the quota system is silly. If we want to reduce undocumented immigration going forward, we need to make immigration easier for close relatives of U.S. citizens and permanent residents.

Labor supports citizenship

As the immigration reform debate gets under way in earnest, immigrants' rights advocates are fortunate that labor remains firm in support of a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, DC 37's parent union, has been a strong advocate, particularly on the "path to citizenship" issue, which has become a line in the sand in the battle for reform. On the other side, some in Congress, particularly Republicans who have yet to absorb the lessons of the last election, support legalization but only if it does not include a path to U.S. citizenship.

Mass pressure for reform has been growing. District Council 37 members have joined in May 1 pro-reform rallies for almost a decade, and AFSCME is urging Congress to pass "comprehensive immigration reform legislation that includes an immediate roadmap toward earned citizenship." Let the battle begin!

Allan Wernick is a professor of law at the City University of New York's Baruch College and the director of CUNY Citizenship Now!, the nation's largest college-based citizenship and immigration law service program. You can follow him on Twitter (@awernick).