From the Right

By Alex Fries

There are many important issues being discussed in our nation’s capitol, in state houses and in the homes of many Americans across this great country that we call home. While each and every one of these issues can be considered to be important in its own individual way, today I would like to focus on immigration.

A couple of weeks ago in an address to the American people President Obama talked about immigration. In his address he spoke about how while we are a nation of immigrants, we’re also a nation of laws. Considering the fact that we are a nation of laws, how can we accept the blatant disregard for our laws of entry by “undocumented” people? What does it say about us as a nation and each of us as individuals if we just shrug it off every time someone disregards a law? And what about those immigrants who entered the country legally and went through the arduous task of obtaining legal citizenship? What message does it send to those people? While I am not qualified to judge if it is within the president’s executive power to shield roughly 4 million undocumented people, what I am able to do is to express my opinion on what I believe has to be done.

I believe that there is not a doubt in anyone’s mind that we have problems in our country that have to be addressed — immigration included. While many of the illegal immigrants reach our borders with hopes of improving their life’s situation, and I can only hope that no one would be unfazed by the poor conditions many human beings outside of the U.S. have to live in. We as a nation have to realize that yes, helping human beings is a responsible and noble cause, however it is a hopeless endeavor if one can not do so without sacrificing the good of the nation.

Going forward, our first and foremost priority has to be securing our borders. While we can be humane and give comfort, we also have to be realistic and conservative because not everyone who comes to our borders, or lives within them, has the good of America in their heart. I do not foresee the solution to securing our borders to be simple and I do not foresee the possible solution to be permanent, but rather the beginning of a constantly evolving system.

Secondly, to the issue of the roughly 11.2 million unauthorized immigrants in our nation, I think it would be incredibly difficult, if not impossible, to deport said unauthorized immigrants, and I think it would be incredibly irresponsible of us as a nation to do so.

We as a nation can very much benefit from numerous of these individuals and the skills and work ethics they bring. However, the process of them proving not only their value to our society, but also their comprehension and respect for our laws, is not something that can be overlooked and granted with the stroke of a pen. It has to be done with a complex and thoroughly developed plan, which ensures that the standards set are met sufficiently. If the standards, however, are not met, it is imperative that there is a clear process lined out that deals with such cases.

In order for this issue to be resolved, it will require all of us as a nation to be compassionate yet realistic and determined to achieve a reasonable solution.

Alex Fries is a sophomore athletic training major and is the president of the UNH College Republicans. Follow Alex on Twitter @AJFriesNH.