RE: The Immigration Conundrum

I like the exercise the teacher offered the class. I used to teach social studies (geography/history/government) so I appreciate her approach: let the kids respond.

It is a complex issue. I'm what is known as a bleeding heart, but I don't believe in open borders. I think a nation needs to have a rational immigration policy. This includes room for refugees (screened for appropriate behavior) and family reunification. Beyond that, only those immigrants who will be an asset to the country should be allowed in. We need smart people, workers, exchange students.

For a couple of years I volunteered at a neighborhood outreach that tried to meet the needs of our local community and also the needs of immigrants who had entered the U.S. under Temporary Protected Status. The people I met were hard working and sought to assimilate into the U.S. culture--I even gave one woman English lessons.

It is a difficult issue. I didn't want to know if some of the people I helped were here without documents and some were here with protected status. They were just people, and on that level I wanted to help everyone.

However, as a country we can't help everyone. I believe, as many of your classmates did, that if you want to come to the U.S., then you have to learn our language, and learn our culture. You are welcome to keep your own, but only insofar as that does not conflict with the larger culture. That's what my forebears did. They treasured their native customs, but they assimilated and became truly citizens of their new country.