EMIGRATION AND IMMIGRATION LAW--UNITED STATES---options for immigration reform

IMMIGRATION REFORM:
A RANGE OF OPTIONS

SYNOPSIS:

    The United States of America will reform its immigration laws and practices.
Almost everyone agrees that our present system is broken and needs repair.
We all acknowledge the problems, but we have a range of solutions for each.
Here we will attempt to outline both the problems and the solutions available.

OUTLINE:

1. DETENTION FACILITIES

    A. IMMIGRATION PRISONS

    B. ORDINARY PRISONS FOR COMMON CRIMINALS

2. WHAT SHOULD WE DO WITH THE MILLIONS OF FOREIGN NATIONALS
            SETTLED IN THE UNITED STATES WITHOUT PERMISSION?

    A. AMNESTY

    B. REPLACE GREEN CARDS WITH ELECTRONIC WORK AUTHORIZATION

    C. SELECTIVE AND GRADUAL REPATRIATION

    D. EARNED CITIZENSHIP

3. FAMILY SEPARATIONS CREATED BY U.S. IMMIGRATION PRACTICES

    A. EXPAND FAMILY VISAS

    B. END CHAIN-IMMIGRATION

    C. FAMILY RE-UNIFICATION IN OTHER LANDS

    D. END BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP

4. THE CONTINUING FLOW OF UNAUTHORIZED PERSONS INTO THE USA

    A. BETTER BORDER CONTROLS

    B. INCREASING AUTHORIZED IMMIGRATION

    C. NATIONAL IDENTITY FILE

5. THE UNDERGROUND SUB-CULTURE OF UNAUTHORIZED PERSONS

    A. REGISTRATION OF ALL FOREIGN NATIONALS LIVING IN THE USA

    B. NATIONAL IDENTITY BUREAU

IMMIGRATION REFORM:
A RANGE OF OPTIONS

by James Leonard Park

1. DETENTION FACILITIES

    We use a wide range of prisons and jails
to keep unauthorized persons in custody
while we decide what should happen to them.
Sometimes deplorable conditions have been discovered,
especially in private prisons for housing foreign nationals.

    Not all citizens of other countries need to be kept locked up.
Some have good roots in their communities; they will not easily disappear.
But a few would uproot themselves
and move to a completely different location in the USA if given the chance.
Those who are a flight risk might need to be detained.

    Thus, if foreign nationals might move away and disappear,
we need secure facilities to contain them
while their cases are investigated and decided.

    New immigration laws will decide how to handle unauthorized persons.
But without waiting for new laws to be enacted,
the Department of Homeland Security will issued new guidelines
for deciding which foreign nationals to deport
and which to permit to continue living in the USA.
And while such changes in procedure are more fully implemented,
we will have thousands of foreign nationals in detention facilities.

    A. IMMIGRATION PRISONS

    Because most foreign nationals who are 'out of status'
have committed no other crimes besides violating the laws of immigration,
they should not be kept with common criminals.
Special facilities should be created by the Federal government
which will be used exclusively for keeping foreign nationals
(including whole families) until their cases can be decided.

    Such immigration prisons will include all of the necessary staff members
for investigating the history of each individual or family.
Immigration judges will hold court within these secure facilities.
And the fact that the judges will know the living conditions of the prisoners
will further ensure that the detention facilities are humane as well as secure.

    The basic alternative to immigration prisons is immediate return
to the countries where the detainees are citizens.
This has been the basic policy of the Border Patrol.
But it has not worked very effectively,
since the people trying to cross the U.S. border without permission
will probably try again---perhaps at another time and place.

    When unauthorized persons kept in immigration prisons
know they have no hope of getting permission to live in the USA,
in careful cooperation with their countries of citizenship,
they should be helped to re-establish themselves in their homelands.

    B. ORDINARY PRISONS FOR COMMON CRIMINALS

    Some foreign nationals do violate criminal laws.
When such violations of law go beyond breaking immigration laws,
these citizens of other countries should be handled
by the ordinary criminal-justice systems where they were apprehended.
Only the individuals arrested will go to jail—not their whole families.

    Ordinary prisons with large numbers of foreign nationals
could create programs for the specific problems of foreign prisoners.

    Prison reform should include good work-experiences for all prisoners.
If they are required to learn a useful trade or occupation,
there is a better possibility that they will become law-abiding citizens
wherever they live after release from prison.

    What about family separations caused by criminal prosecution?
This also happens when U.S. citizens are arrested:
Only the suspected criminals go to jail.
The same local, state, & federal laws should apply to all people
---regardless of their citizenship.

2. WHAT SHOULD WE DO WITH THE MILLIONS OF FOREIGN NATIONALS
            SETTLED IN THE UNITED STATES WITHOUT PERMISSION?

    One of the most basic problems of immigration reform
asks what should happen to the 10 million foreign nationals
already settled without permission inside the USA.

    The fact that so many millions have avoided immigration controls
shows that the immigration system has not worked as intended.
Perhaps we should openly acknowledge that half of the blame
for this situation rests with the United States of America.
Not only have foreign nationals taken advantage of holes in the system,
but the immigration system itself
continues to enable thousands of new immigrants each year
to settle in the USA without permission.

    A. AMNESTY

    Because the USA is partly responsible for these demographic facts,
we might consider allowing all foreign nationals to apply for citizenship.
Should we forgive and forget all past violations of immigration laws?

    Amnesty was granted in 1986 to all foreign nationals who applied.
Pathways to citizenship were opened that did not penalize applicants
for the fact that they were already living in the USA.

    About 3 million foreign nationals became permanent residents.
However, nothing was done about those who did not qualify.
They formed the base of the renewed population of non-citizens
living in the USA without permission, which grew to 12 million.

    If amnesty is considered once again,
it should be coupled with changes in immigration practices
that would at the same time prevent more foreign nationals
from entering the USA without permission.

    This was the basic defect of the 1986 amnesty:
It did little to prevent future immigration without permission.
Thus, since that amnesty, hundreds of thousands of foreign nationals
have continued every year to settle in the USA without permission.

    B. REPLACE GREEN CARDS WITH ELECTRONIC WORK AUTHORIZATION

    The present system for granting the right to work to foreign nationals
is called the "Green Card".
Even with improved security and anti-counterfeiting measures,
there are still millions of fake Green Cards in use.

    One easy way the U.S. government could end all Green Card fraud
would be to replace the whole system with a simple electronic record
of every foreign person granted permission to live and work in the USA.

    Unlike the flawed E-Verify Program, this would begin with photographs.
Instead of just checking names and numbers,
this electronic data-base would display the picture of the foreign worker
authorized by the federal government to live and work in the USA.

    Because of the high stakes involved in creating false Green Cards,
millions of dollars are spend on each side of the Green-Card wars:
The U.S. government employs more and more specialists
who are good at telling the difference between
a real Green Card and the various kinds of fake ones.
High-tech machines do microscopic examination of Green Cards
to separate the genuine Green Cards from the counterfeit cards.

    False-document criminals improve their skills every day.
And the government agents are usually only a few steps behind.
But as long as a small plastic card (the size of a credit card)
is all that a foreign national needs to get a job in the USA,
criminals will always produce ever-improved imitation Green Cards.

    This whole industry would collapse if the Green Cards now in use
were completely replaced by a super-secure computer file
for each foreign national with permission to live and work in the USA.

    Potential employers could give up squinting at Green Cards
and simply turn on their nearest computer with Internet access,
type in their security codes and any other verification methods needed,
and have a look at the individual File of the person applying for a job.

    Applicants who can prove that they are U.S. citizens
would not be subject to this Work Authorization check.

    For all applicants who are not U.S. citizens
but who claim to have permission to live and work in the USA,
the computer screen would display a picture of the authorized worker.
If the face in the picture is not the same as the face of the applicant,
there will be no job for this foreign worker.

    As soon as the computer File is complete
for all foreign workers who are authorized to hold jobs in the USA,
then employers will be required to check all of their current employees
who previously presented Green Cards or other authorizing documents.
Are these workers in the national data-base?

    Whenever unauthorized workers are discovered,
they should be reported to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
This will not require instant deportation,
especially when the worker has deep roots in the community.
But an investigative file will be opened for this unauthorized worker.

    A pathway toward some form of authorized residence might be opened.
For example, the foreign worker might be offered
an opportunity to register with the U.S. government.
Once registered, all members of the family
would be permitted to live and work in the USA.
The employee could either continue in the same employment
or look for a new job now possible with official work-authorization.
But if deeper investigation of the facts and possibilities
determine that this worker must return to his or her country of citizenship,
then appropriate plans can be made both by the family and the employer.

    Once it becomes known that the Electronic Work Authorization
will completely replace Green Cards,
then thousands of citizens of other countries
living and working in the USA without permission
will voluntarily make plans to return to their home countries,
where they do have a right to reside and to work.

    Those who believe they have a good chance to become U.S. citizens
will be strongly motivated to begin preparing themselves for citizenship.

    Electronic Work Authorization might also be an effective tool
for discouraging future unauthorized immigration into the United States.
Citizens of other countries who dream of living and working in the USA
will discover that they cannot get permission to work.
If they cannot work in the USA, most will simply not come.

    All jobs will be reserved for U.S. citizens and registered foreign nationals.

    Instead of entering the United States without authorization,
they will go to the U.S. consulate or embassy in their home countries
and apply for the most appropriate visa to be admitted to the USA.

    This Electronic Work Authorization should create Files in such a way
that they can easily be integrated into a National Identity Bureau
if and when such a national directory is created.
The National Identity Bureau would have an individual computer File
for every man, woman, & child living in the USA
—whether a citizen or not, whether authorized to work or not.

    Another on-line essay explores the attraction of working in America:
"If They Cannot Work, They Will Not Come:
And Many Will Return to their Homelands":
https://s3.amazonaws.com/aws-website-jamesleonardpark---freelibrary-3puxk/CY-WORK.html

    C. EARNED CITIZENSHIP

    Because ineffective immigration controls contributed to
millions of foreign nationals living in the USA without permission,
all citizens of other countries settled in the United States
should have the same opportunities for becoming U.S. citizens
as anyone else on Earth.

    And the fact that they have violated U.S. immigration laws
should not be held against them.
The United States could decide to overlook violations of immigration laws
when reviewing the applications of foreign nationals
to become authorized residents and later American citizens.

    Earning citizenship should not be easy or automatic.
Measurable standards must be applied:

    How long has the applicant lived in the United States?

    Does the applicant have relatives living in the USA?
Have all such family-connections been disclosed?

    Does the applicant have legitimate employment?
How long has the applicant held his or her current job?
And what previous jobs were held, both in the homeland and in the USA?

    Has the applicant served in any branch of the U.S. military forces?

    How long has the applicant been paying all taxes?
If back taxes are due, how will these be paid?

    What level of education has been achieved by the applicant?
Where was this education pursued?
Are there good records of all formal education?
Does the applicant have any special academic achievements
that might enhance his or her chances of becoming a U.S. citizen?

    Has the applicant been convicted of any crimes,
either in the homeland, another country, or in the USA?
This criminal record should separate immigration offenses from other crimes.
We know that immigration laws have been violated
by the mere fact that a foreign national is living in the USA without permission.
The applicant might also have false identity documents.

    In addition, serious crimes should be separated from trivial crimes,
such as parking violations.
The new immigration laws could specify how to count each kind of crime.
Perhaps only convictions that led to time behind bars
should count against the applicant.

    And the fact that criminal convictions will count in the citizenship-decision
might make new immigrants even more law-abiding than U.S. citizens.
Applicants to become U.S. citizens will know that all crimes count.
And applicants with no criminal convictions will have a better chance.

    The prescribed pathways to citizenship described in new laws
will probably include periods of temporary-resident status,
permanent-resident status,
and probationary periods before citizenship is granted.

    And care should be taken to prevent even the appearance
that foreign nationals already residing in the USA
have any advantage over those who have stayed in their homelands
while they applied to emigrate to the USA and later to become U.S. citizens.
But requiring applicants to return to their homelands
does not seem to be reasonable.
If returning to the country of citizenship were required,
most foreign nationals would probably keep hiding in America.

    Applicants will be encouraged to register with the government,
and then proceed down their chosen pathway to citizenship
step-by-step, year-by-year.

    Earning U.S. citizenship could be like applying for a very desirable college:
All may apply, but only some will be accepted.
But unlike college admissions, applying for permission to reside in the USA
does not have to be completed within a certain time-frame.
The applicant can continue to improve his or her record
before, during, & after applying for the right to live in the USA.

    Another on-line essay discusses steps toward becoming citizens:
"Earning American Citizenship: Be Above Average":
https://s3.amazonaws.com/aws-website-jamesleonardpark---freelibrary-3puxk/CY-EARN.html

    But, inevitably, some applicants for residence will not be accepted.
Orderly and meaningful repatriation should be created for them
and for all of their affected family members.

    D. SELECTIVE AND GRADUAL REPATRIATION

    New immigration laws might specify
just which foreign nationals must eventually return to their homelands.
Those who are not given permanent-resident status or a pathway to citizenship
should be helped to make an orderly move back to their homelands.

    For example, foreign nationals who must return to their homelands
might be given a year (or even more) to wind up their affairs in the USA
and to establish new homes and businesses where they are citizens.

    Read more details about returning to homeland:
"Comprehensive Repatriation of Citizens of other Countries and their Families":
https://s3.amazonaws.com/aws-website-jamesleonardpark---freelibrary-3puxk/CY-DEPOR.html

3. FAMILY SEPARATIONS CREATED BY U.S. IMMIGRATION PRACTICES

We all have heard stories of families torn apart by immigration rulings.
America holds itself forth as a family-friendly nation,
but when it comes to some actual families,
the laws and practices pull families apart rather than keep them together.

    A. EXPAND FAMILY VISAS

    One of the most serious problems under current law and practice
is the long waits sometimes required for family members to be admitted.
There are limits on the number of family-visas for each country.

    Immigration reform will re-define just who counts as "immediate family".
And the principal immigrant will be allowed to include
one spouse and all dependent children.

    Some whole families will have to wait for a later year,
but nuclear families will not be separated by the visa requirements.
What is the point of admitting an authorized immigrant
without including his or her immediate family?

    B. END CHAIN-IMMIGRATION

    Sometimes the problems are created by families
who are expecting too many people to be admitted to the USA
because they have family members already living in the United States.
Once "immediate family" has been redefined by new immigration laws,
then some former patterns of endless chains of immigrants
who claim family-connections will come to an end.

    Then each adult individual (or couple) will have to apply separately.
All applicants can list family members already living in the USA,
but having relatives with permission to reside in the United States
or relatives who are U.S. citizens
should not automatically guarantee visas.

    If the United States becomes more selective about immigration,
then family-connections will not matter as much as other factors
that would make each adult applicant an ideal new American.
If one of the parents of minor children is granted permanent resident status,
then all minor children also automatically quality for admission to the USA.
And his or her spouse will also automatically be included in the visa.

    But probably brothers and sisters, parents and cousins
will no longer qualify simply on the basis of family relationships.

    C. FAMILY RE-UNIFICATION IN OTHER LANDS

    When a nuclear family has some U.S. citizens and some foreign nationals,
we should not assume that the best choice is for all of them to live in the USA.
Sometimes it makes more sense for all to live in the homeland of the parents,
even if some of the children are U.S. citizens by birth.

    Mothers and their minor children
should never be separated by immigration law.
Sometimes children will go to the homeland of their mothers.
After they are old enough to live on their own,
they can move back to the USA
because they will already be registered U.S. citizens.

    When it is known in advance just how long a certain family
will have to wait for immigration into the USA,
they can decide which children should come with them.
If the wait will be 10 years or more,
then their children might have to apply in their own names
rather than as dependent children.

    D. END BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP

    One peculiarity of U.S. law,
(which does not apply to U.S. citizens living in other countries),
is that any baby born on U.S. soil is automatically a U.S. citizen.
This promotes family-break-up because it creates families
in which some members are U.S. citizens and others are not.
It would be more natural for the children born to foreign nationals
to become citizens of the same country where their parents are citizens.
Then, either the whole family could become American citizens
or they would all be repatriated to their homeland together.

    This proposal is also given a full exploration here:
"Born in the USA: The Easy Way to Become a U.S. Citizen":
https://s3.amazonaws.com/aws-website-jamesleonardpark---freelibrary-3puxk/CY-B-USA.html

4. THE CONTINUING FLOW OF UNAUTHORIZED PERSONS INTO THE USA

    The actual numbers are hard to discover,
but the acknowledged result is that 10 million foreign nationals
are living in the USA without permission.
This in-flow of unauthorized persons continues.

    Each year the Border Patrol turns back hundreds of thousands
of unauthorized would-be immigrants.
But perhaps a like number get past all fences and border check-points.
And many of the unauthorized persons were once given permission to enter.
But they over-stayed their visas, then becoming unauthorized persons.

    If 500,000 new foreign nationals are added to the U.S. population each year,
this amounts to an astonishing 10,000 new persons per week.
But to keep this number in perspective,
this is about the same as the number of foreign nationals
given permission to enter the USA each week.
Authorized immigration is about the same level as unauthorized.

    And if unauthorized immigration is ended,
then authorized immigration can be doubled
---to 20,000 new immigrants each week.

    A. BETTER BORDER CONTROLS

    Each year the U.S. government provides more money for the Border Patrol.
Better methods are created for detecting people
attempting to cross our borders without permission.
We have new electronic devices for discovering unauthorized immigrants.

    But why not target organized gangs of people-smugglers?
When their specific methods become known,
then effective counter-measures can be created.
And when more smugglers are in prison (in any country),
then the number of unauthorized immigrants will decrease.

     In deep cooperation with other countries,
we should discover the channels for smuggling immigrants into the USA.
When these criminal enterprises are discovered and shut down,
we should see a measurable impact
on the number of unauthorized foreign nationals living in the USA.

    B. INCREASING AUTHORIZED IMMIGRATION

    As the USA improves methods of preventing unauthorized immigration,
we can also dramatically increase the number of permitted immigrants.

     Foreign nationals can stop paying thousands of dollars to smugglers
who offer access to the USA by unauthorized means.
Instead, they can apply for permitted emigration to the United States.
When immigration-with-permission replaces do-it-yourself immigration,
millions of more people will use the official channels for coming to the USA.

    We could offer all foreign countries this incentive:
If and when it has been shown that unauthorized immigration has decreased,
authorized immigration from those same countries
can be increased by a like amount.

    This is the over-all perspective, world-wide:
About 1 million people have already been screened
and granted permission to emigrate to the USA.
But they are forced to wait, sometimes for years,
because the quotas for their countries are quickly filled.
When unauthorized immigration diminishes (or even disappears completely),
then the waiting process for authorized immigration becomes more workable.

     Can we imagine a world where only authorized immigration takes place?

    C. NATIONAL IDENTITY FILE

    Probably the most dramatic change the USA could create
would be a National Identity Bureau, which would have a picture
of each and every man, woman, & child living in the USA.

    Even the announcement of the beginning
of such a National Identity File for each of us would cause some people
who know they are present in the USA without permission
to make plans to return to their countries of citizenship.

    It might take 10 years to register everyone present in the USA,
but even the first steps would make dramatic changes in our culture.

    The problems and objections to a national data-base are easy to name,
but each of these difficulties can be solved in reasonable ways.

    The impact on people thinking of coming to the USA without permission
would likely be immediate:
Knowing that they would eventually be discovered,
it would be better for them to apply for authorized emigration
than to attempt to enter the USA without permission.

    See the details of this proposed National Identity Bureau:
"National Identity File: Directory USA"
https://s3.amazonaws.com/aws-website-jamesleonardpark---freelibrary-3puxk/CY-NID.html

5. THE UNDERGROUND SUB-CULTURE OF UNAUTHORIZED PERSONS

    Because there are about 10 million citizens of other countries
living in the USA without permission,
these people form an informal sub-culture of people who know
that they could be deported at any time.

    Being present in the United States without permission
has several implications for these foreign nationals
and for the culture of the United States.

    Foreign nationals are often exploited by employers:
They can be paid less than the minimum wage—off the books.
They can be given little or no protection from hazards on the job.
They can be fired at will—with no recourse.

    Foreign nationals fear making contact with any local authorities:
Some fear to send their children to public schools.
Some drive cars without any training or licenses.
Some do not call the police when they are victims of crime—or witnesses.
Some do not ask for medical attention except in extreme situations.
Some are not eligible for programs of public income-support.
Some receive no Social Security benefits.

    The American culture itself suffers in a few ways:
Foreign nationals compete for jobs normally filled U.S. citizens.
Because these citizens of other countries
know that they have already violated the immigration law,
they are less worried about following other local, state, or federal laws.
They know they can be deported even if they commit no further crimes.
So what do they have to lose?

    Foreign nationals are more easily drawn into organized crime
---smuggling other foreign nationals into the USA,
trafficking illegal drugs, & smuggling money back to their homelands.

    What should be done about foreign nationals living in the shadows?

    A. REGISTRATION OF ALL FOREIGN NATIONALS LIVING IN THE USA

    Immigration reform could include the registration
of all citizens of other countries living in the United States of America.
Foreign nationals who are here on visas for work, education, or tourism
are already registered with the State Department.
They have visas or Green Cards that include their pictures.

    But there are about 10 million others who are not yet registered.
If immigration reform removes the threat of immediate deportation,
and if we add other incentives such as pathways to citizenship
for all who voluntarily register themselves and their families,
then millions of foreign nationals will emerge from the shadows.

    They will come under the protection of U.S. laws and state laws
designed to prevent their exploitation by unscrupulous employers.
They will have most of the same rights as all legal residents of the USA.

    Working with ethnic sub-cultures,
millions of people with the same ethnic identity
will be encouraged to register with the U.S. government.

    If they have jobs, they are supposedly already registered.
They present Green Cards when they seek employment.
And if these are real Green Cards, issued by the U.S. government,
the Department of Homeland Security also has a copy of each card,
which includes name and picture among other facts.

    But many millions of people in the underground sub-culture
have fake Green Cards, which also have their pictures,
but which are not included in the data-base of the DHS.

    Various methods could be employed to identify the fake Green Cards
and to issue real Green Cards to these foreign nationals.
As long as they knew they would not be immediately deported,
millions might come forward to identify themselves
and to set themselves straight with all levels of government.

    Social-service agencies already serving immigrant communities
could become very important in helping foreign nationals to register.

    As registration expands, some people in the unauthorized population
will decide there is no hope of becoming authorized residents of the USA.
And they will make orderly plans to return to their home countries.

    See full discussion of replacing Green Cards with electronic files in 2B above.

    See further discussion of creating a registry
of all citizens of other countries living in the USA:

Register all Foreign Nationals:
Carrots & Sticks:
https://s3.amazonaws.com/aws-website-jamesleonardpark---freelibrary-3puxk/CY-REG.html

Registration without Deportation:
Bringing Millions of Foreign Nationals out of the Shadows:
https://s3.amazonaws.com/aws-website-jamesleonardpark---freelibrary-3puxk/CY-REG-D.html

    B. NATIONAL IDENTITY BUREAU

    The same positive benefits would emerge from a national census
that resulted in recording the picture, name, & address
of every man, woman, & child living in the United States of America.
This National Identity Bureau would include one computer File
for each person, whether that person is a U.S. citizen or not.

    This would not create a national identity card,
since it has been abundantly proven that false cards can easily be created.
Rather, the public data about each of us
would be kept in a super-secure computer system.
And when an employer or police officer needs to check someone's identity,
the nearest computer would provide a picture and other basic data.

    Facebook provides a model for a new national data-base.
Without any government funding and without any compulsion,
Facebook already registers more than 2 billion people world-wide.
This number of people is six times the total population of the USA.

    The National Identity Bureau would be more official and more secure,
but the computer-technology used by Facebook proves that it can be done.
And the National Identity Bureau would have less data for each person
than is already recorded by Facebook.

    This National Identity Bureau would not be directed
exclusively toward the underground sub-culture
of citizens of other countries present in the USA without permission.
But this 4% of the U.S. population would finally come out of the shadows.

    This proposal receives a full explanation here:
NATIONAL IDENTITY FILE: Directory USA
https://s3.amazonaws.com/aws-website-jamesleonardpark---freelibrary-3puxk/CY-NID.html

This summary of five major problems of immigration and some possible solutions
has become Chapter 6 of Orderly Immigration: Creating a New America:
"Immigration Reform: A Range of Options".

Would you consider joining a Facebook Seminar
discussing this book being revised?

See the complete description of this first-readers book-club:
https://s3.amazonaws.com/aws-website-jamesleonardpark---freelibrary-3puxk/ED-IMM.html

The discussion of all of the issues surrounding immigration reform
takes place in a Facebook Group called:
"U.S. Immigration & Asylum Reform: Reasonable Middle Pathways":
https://www.facebook.com/groups/431865303561834

AUTHOR:

    James Park is himself an immigrant to the United States.
He was a child when his whole family was admitted to the USA.
So there was no way to know ahead of time what he might contribute.
But each family member has proven to be good for America.

    And, yes, he is also found on Facebook: James Leonard Park.
Much more about him will be found on his website:
James Leonard Park—Free Library

    This electronic library contains other essays about immigration:

I am an Immigrant

Immigration Problems and Solutions:
Keeping the Debate Constructive

Immigration Reform:
A Range of Options

Children of Foreign Nationals:
New Pathways to Citizenship

Register all Foreign Nationals:
Carrots & Sticks

Registration without Deportation:
Bringing Millions of Foreign Nationals out of the Shadows

25 Million Foreign Nationals in the USA:
How Many Will Stay?

Born in the USA:
The Easy Way to Become a U.S. Citizen

Comprehensive Repatriation of Citizens of other Countries and their Families

National Identity File:
Directory USA