Immigration debate sparks conversation at SUSO event

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Speak Up, Speak Out invited students to debate solutions to illegal immigration Wednesday during a forum titled “Immigration in the U.S.”

About 50 people attended the event to discuss the effects of immigration on jobs and justice in the U.S.

Justin Hayes-Smith, a sociology, anthropology and social work faculty member, facilitated the forum. He said politics and economics influence the issue of immigration.

“It’s a complex issue,” he said. “It cuts across partisan lines.”

Hayes-Smith said although Michigan is not a southern state, it is still affected by immigration legislation.

“We have a very large immigrant population,” he said.

The panelists began the forum with a discussion of the DREAM Act, a legislative proposal that would allow immigrants brought to the U.S. as minors to obtain residency if they go to college or serve in the military.

Panelist Shannon Salk said she believes the DREAM Act will help illegal immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children get jobs and improve the economy.

“I don’t think the DREAM Act is perfect, but it’s a step,” the Milford senior said. “I think it has long-term benefits.”

Salk said it is a myth that immigrants take jobs from Americans. She said people want someone to blame for high unemployment rates.

“Illegal immigrants are kind of the scapegoat now because the economy is bad,” she said.

Immigrants actually help the economy, Salk said.

“They create the jobs that they’re in,” she said. “They’re actually expanding our economy.”

Panelist Michael Pisani, professor of management, said he has lived on the border in Texas and saw people cross into the U.S. He said it would be difficult and expensive to secure the border.

“You’d have to build a Berlin Wall,” he said.

One solution to illegal immigration would be to “legalize the immigration flow” from Mexico, Pisani said.

Jason Taylor, professor of economics and a panelist, said immigrants come to the U.S. for “economic freedom” and one way to stop illegal immigration would be to spread economic freedom to other countries.

Taylor said the issue of immigration is much broader than Mexico. He said people from all over the world immigrate to the U.S. to make better lives for themselves.

“People that come to America tend to be entrepreneurial,” he said.

The panelists also debated the new Arizona immigration law that requires police officers to ask people about their immigration status if they are suspected of being illegal immigrants. Salk said she believes the law will lead to racial profiling.

“I don’t know how you could be reasonably suspected of being an illegal immigrant other than the color of your skin,” she said.

Schoolcraft freshman Shane McGoff told the panel it is a misconception that illegal immigration causes an increase in violence. He said big cities such as New Orleans and Detroit have higher crime rates than cities along the Mexican border.

“Illegal immigration is not causing an increase in violence in the South,” he said.

McGoff said he believes the new Arizona immigration law is a “racist law.”

“A lot of it comes to xenophobia — a fear of foreigners,” he said.