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The following opinion piece, by Ian Greenberg, a freshman government student at University of Texas, puts the illegal immigration dilemma into perspective better than all the network and cable talking heads combined! Go IAN!

The only quibble I have is with "It is hypocritical to say that illegal immigrants don't belong in the United States because they break the law to get across the border. Even good people who respect law and order will do whatever it takes to feed their families." .. but you can't fault the reasoning.

Smart kid, that Ian!

Opinion | 4/5/2005
Minutemen group misunderstood
By Ian Greenleigh

Jim Gilchrist is a well-spoken, well-groomed Vietnam veteran with a kind and thoughtful manner and a penchant for figure-dropping as if he had a Ph.D. in illegal immigration studies. It would be a lot easier to dismiss him if he was your typical testosterone-brimming redneck, barking about "illegals" with a xenophobic paranoia. In other words, he's a bleeding heart's worst nightmare.

The Minuteman Project, which Gilchrist co-founded, is a volunteer effort of about 200 U.S. citizens attempting to curb illegal immigration by acting as "spotters" along the Arizona-Mexico border and alerting authorities to the location of border-crossers. The group has provoked intense debate and increasing attention from television pundits and columnists. Even President Bush decided to throw in his two cents, decrying the project as "vigilante" justice. When George W. Bush uses "vigilante" as an insult, it's time to pay attention.

The issue of illegal immigration has become so mired in partisan filth, it is hard to discuss it rationally without feeling traitorous to your "team" - especially if you are a proud liberal. Sociologists might call this "political role strain."

Illegal immigration cannot be overlooked any longer. We complain about drugs and violence in our streets but ignore a major source of both of them. We send our troops to war in the name of national security but fail to secure the entrances to our country. Forget for a moment who you voted for. Think about what it means to have poor border security.

Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13, was called most dangerous gang in America by Newsweek. The Salvadorian-rooted group smuggles hundreds of fellow members and paying hopefuls into the United States each year by taking advantage of the porous Southern border.

According to the Brownsville Herald, the gang has been caught smuggling a non Latin-American in to Texas with a group of Mexicans. This is alarming because, as reported in The Washington Times, al Qaida has been negotiating with MS-13 to smuggle operatives into the United States.

Time Magazine reported that the terrorist group plans to have members literally walk across the border with nuclear materials.

The Sept. 11, 2001 attacks damaged not only America's citizenry, but also America's sense of security. Shaken, but unified, this country took huge steps to avert further terrorism. Why don't we do something about the thousands of undocumented immigrants crossing into the United States? It is not callous or paranoid to recognize the fact that each unchecked entrance represents a potential threat. It is defensive thinking. Avoiding the issue for political purposes is negligence.

It is alright to have a big heart. Everyone can sympathize with those that desperately want to live in America. As Gilchrist puts it, illegal immigrants "are not barbarians coming over here. ... They're just looking for a better life."

It is hypocritical to say that illegal immigrants don't belong in the United States because they break the law to get across the border. Even good people who respect law and order will do whatever it takes to feed their families.

Americans are such a caring people that we are shelving our security in order to let those in need seek their American dream. We support them with social programs and charity; charities such as Humane Borders even leave water in the desert for them to survive the illegal trek. Jim Gilchrist doesn't hate illegal immigrants. He just loves his family and country. The people that see strangers in their backyards daily and do something about it are not "vigilantes." They are just protecting what they have. Even Mexico puts troops on its southern border.

The fact that the organizers of the Minuteman Project have gone to great lengths to ensure an event free of "separatists, racists or supremacy groups or individuals" is a testament to the legitimacy of immigration reform. Racists and xenophobes have tainted the movement for more secure borders because they shout the loudest, but they have misguided and hateful reasoning. There are far more Americans who see illegal immigration as dangerous to national and personal security, while sympathizing with those who are trying to seek a better life.

It is something to be proud of that Americans are such a caring and sympathetic people. However, just as those that cross the borders are putting the interest of whom they care about most before all else, so too must we.

- Ian Greenleigh is a government freshman. Contact him through the newspaper's editor (editor@dailytexanonline.com)