Midwest Voices: Close door on illegal immigrants

By Juanell Garrett, Midwest Voices Panelist 2008

We are constantly reminded that we are a nation of immigrants. I think we all get that.

What’s happening now is a different matter. Thousands cross the border every day. The U.S. Border Patrol estimates that two or three illegal aliens make it in for each one detained.

The Federation for American Immigration Reform estimates there were more than 13 million illegal aliens in the U.S. in 2007. Immigration officials believe that number grows by approximately 500,000 per year.

This migration isn’t exactly discouraged by the Mexican government. In January, 2005, the Mexican Foreign Ministry published The Guide for the Mexican Migrant, a 32-page comic book containing a mixture of Boy Scout-like training (what to do when lost) and motherly advice (never swim the Rio Grande alone).

Once here, a ready supply of counterfeit identification allows illegal aliens to work. Forget all that “undocumented workersâ€