Illegal Immigration example essay topic

Illegal immigration at the southwest U.S. -Mexico border is a rising problem, and the death toll is increasing as more people are attempting to illegally enter the United States, according to Pierre tte Handagneu-Sotelo, a sociology professor at the University of Southern California. Handangeu-Sotelo traveled to campus Wednesday afternoon to discuss the issue and an annual event called La Posada Sin Fronteras, a collective ritual that calls attention to the deadly results of illegal immigration. Handagneu-Sotelo said nearly 33 million immigrants have come over to the U.S. in the last several decades because of the difficulty of legal migration. 'Immigration is a deeply contested issue,' Handagneu-Sotelo said. 'It's a key social problem in the U.S. today. ' In order to legally migrate into the United States from Mexico, an immigrant needs to qualify - he or she must either have a close relative who has citizenship and lives in the United States, or an employer in the country.

But even if an immigrant qualifies for legal migration, he will likely have to wait 10 to 12 years to migrate into the United States because of the country's quota system. Graduate student Alison Goebel attended the lecture and said she learned something that surprised her about the issue. ' I didn't realize the backlog for immigration is over a decade now,' Goebel said. As a result of an increasing number of people trying to illegally migrate into the United States, the border is guarded by border patrol officers.

The United States implemented Operation Gatekeeper in 1994, which increased the number of Border Patrol officers and the increased budget allotted to them. Handagneu-Sotelo said anywhere between 350 and 700 people die each year at the borders due to the aggression from increased border security. Most of the deaths occur in Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California. Because of increased security and blockades at the border, many immigrants have crossed into the United States in more dangerous spots, resulting in even more deaths within the United States. Many illegal immigrants suffer hypothermia in the mountains and dehydration in the deserts, Handagneu-Sotelo said.

La Posada Sin Fronteras, or 'a small inn without borders,' is a religious and political event that calls attention to the rising death toll of illegal immigrants at the U.S. -Mexico border caused by changes in U.S. border enforcement policies. It is meant partially as a protest of contemporary immigration policies, namely in response to Operation Gatekeeper. The event was started in 1994 and takes place each year on the Saturday afternoon before Christmas in a location near San Diego, Calif. The collective and diverse Mexican-Catholic ritual symbolizes Mary and Joseph searching for shelter during the days preceding the birth of Jesus Christ. The majority of attendees are white or Latino and the group ranges from youth to adult. The event includes music, speakers, reenacted discussions of illegal immigrant families traveling through dangerous parts of the United States, remembrance for those who died crossing into the United States and the distribution of bracelets reading 'not forgotten' in Spanish.

But, it is also meant to symbolize the fact that when Mary and Joseph left Bethlehem to return to Nazareth to raise their child, they crossed the borders as refugees. Handagneu-Sotelo said an interesting aspect of the event is that it is also embraced by people who are neither Mexican nor Catholic. She said those who attend the event often say it affirmed their religious and ethnic identities. Handagneu-Sotelo said the Posada is just one part of the larger issue of immigration - an extremely important topic in the United States today. 'It's hard to ignore the role that immigration plays in transitioning our society and that religion plays in shaping our society as well,' Handagneu-Sotelo said. Dorothea Schneider, sociology lecturer at the University and member of the migration studies group on campus, helped organize the lecture.

She said that Handagneu-Sotelo was specifically chosen to speak because of her unique background. ' I do think she's a fine scholar, but she's also involved in researching this issue without compromising her scholarship,' Schneider said. 'She's still looking at it as a scholar, which is rare. '.