US born illegal's

[adgal]

So with all the talk about various states passing laws around illegal immigration, I started to think about a CNN documentary I saw a month of so ago.  It profiled and talked to children of illegal immigrants who were born in the US.  These were good kids, all getting ready for college, and the focus was on whether or not they should be allowed to stay or deported along with their parents (if deportation was in fact the final decision).  All these kids knew was the US and they just wanted to go to college and make something of themselves (again, these were the kids interviewed,).  Most had never even visited the country of their parents birth.  I was wondering what others thought...should those kids be allowed to stay, or should they also be deported?

[adgal]

I am really confused now about this issue.  Why were these kids then so afraid of deportation?  I remember one young man in particular being interviewed and he was worried about being sent to Columbia (his parents were illegal immigrants from there).  He had never even been there.  Someone help!!  I am super confused.

[mikesimon]

Birth within the United States
Main article: Birthright citizenship in the United States of America
Main article: Jus soli

The Supreme Court has never explicitly ruled on whether children born in the United States to illegal immigrant parents are entitled to birthright citizenship via the 14th Amendment,[5] although it has generally been assumed that they are.[6] A birth certificate issued by a U.S. state or territorial government is evidence of citizenship, and is usually accepted as proof of citizenship.

In the case of United States v. Wong Kim Ark, 169 U.S. 649 (1898), the Supreme Court ruled that a person becomes a citizen of the United States at the time of birth, by virtue of the first clause of the 14th amendment of the Constitution, if that person is:

    * Born in the United States
    * Has parents that are subjects of a foreign power, but not in any diplomatic or official capacity of that foreign power
    * Has parents that have permanent domicile and residence in the United States
    * Has parents that are in the United States for business

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_nationality_law

[margypops]

Thats right but their parents could be sent back to whence they came , also any older siblings that came in with the patents ..this is the bit I dont like and they need to work on , I abhor the thought of families split up...if they stopped them coming in it would help but they are still procrastinating ,,it will come to amnesty I expect ...

[swampcritter]

Any child born on US soil is automatically a citizen, its called jus soli, and it is part of the constitution.

[flmagi]

When the Gov. gets around to dealing with this issue, they will probably use a 5 year rule (so I've heard). If there is a amnesty thing, it should be if they have been in the country for 5 years or more (illegals or children of illegals) they are granted amnesty and a path to citizenship.

[StormyRenee]

I must say that I feel that AZ passing this law has gotten folks talking about this issue.
Government is finally getting involved.....

I do not feel that there is any solution to this problem that will not make some one angry...

[teko]

This is all part of the problem and why it has not been addressed to this point. What is fair? Are they illegal or are they not illegal? And if we are going to deport all these illegals, who is paying for it and how in the world do you go about rounding them all up. The manpower alone mixed with the funds it is going to take to even attempt it is beyond comprehension. I do not think that possible or feasible, however I also do not think they should get immediate amnesty either. These points are precisely what makes this law iffy at best.

[adgal]

I completely understand the borders need to be tightened.  Again, especially with the current violence happening in Mexico.  That has to be quite terrifying.  I still wonder about the US born children to illegal immigrants.  On the documentary I saw most of them felt threatened by the idea of deportation and seemed to think it was a very real threat.  I find that particular issue one of those gray areas.  Some hadn't even known they were technically illegal.  

Stormy, your point about amnesty makes sense to me.  I guess it could very well increase the influx of illegal immigrants, thinking that they too would be able to get citizenship just by showing up.  I hadn't thought of it that way.

I think the reason I was thinking about this was based on some of the comments I saw about the escalating crime rate in border states such as Arizona.  So in my thinking, those that had been here a long time and were living their lives within the law seemed seperate to me from those that came here and are living as criminals.  Especially the drug dealers.   I still go back and forth on my opinion on this.  This is one of those issues where I can see both sides of things.

[margypops]

thats the idea if amnesty goes through  its all the new votes as amnesty means immediate citizenship, if they go the other  way  want them , thats tightening the borders and doing what AZ is doing he wont get all the votes ...

[StormyRenee]

If they were born here then they are legal american citizens and should be allowed to stay...
I do not believe that deportation is a viable solution to this problem..But I also do not feel amnesty is the way to go either....
If we think its bad now what do you think will happen if we allow amnesty? The influx will be even more overwhelming than it is now....
I agree there is no easy solution to this.....

[adgal]

I can see your point.  What about the older kids who are old enough to be on their own?  Should they be allowed to stay and their parents deported?  Or should the children (young adults) be deported as well.  The more I learn about this whole illegal immigration situation, the more complicated it seems.

I can see peoples fear, especially with a fair amount of the current violence in Mexico spilling across the borders.  That would make me afraid.  I can also see why amnesty might be a good idea is some situations (people that are working hard and truly just want to build a better life).  The more I learn about it, it's clear there is no real easy solution.

[StormyRenee]

They are called Anchor Babies....Ilegals are not stupid they fully understand that if they have a baby on american soil then that baby is by right an american citizen.Since you cannot separate a newborn baby from it's mommy everybody gets to stay legal or not..This is done on purpose by the parents.Unfortunatly the kids dont have a choice if they are born over here or not.They are innocent in this.

[ILADVOCATE]

This is one aspect an appropriate immigration law should address. It would make sense given that they were born in the United States and obviously would be seeking work. That is why this issue is complicated.