Peyton Snyder

2.11.14
3rd Hour
Immigration
Picture this, youre a fifteen year old girl who has lived in the U.S for a majority of your
life, you come home one day to find your parents packing all of your belongings because you are
all being sent back to your prior home, Mexico. Why is this happening? Its happening because
you and your family, aside from your 2 year old brother, are illegal immigrants. Youve done
nothing wrong, and youve lived a perfectly well life since youve came to America. Sadly,
being deported is the unfortunate truth for many immigrants all over the country. Illegal
immigrants should be granted citizenship because not only have they done nothing wrong or
illegal a majority of the time, but they also take our unwanted jobs for lesser pay than Americans
would ask and because everybody should have a right to the American Dream.
Illegal immigrants usually take jobs that Americans are not willing to do, the low paying,
tougher jobs. These immigrants are also more likely to work harder given their circumstances
and chance of being deported. In an article written by Patricia Smith, titled The Great
Immigration Debate, it reads ... illegal immigrants are good for the US economy, with many
taking jobs that most Americans dont want This quote proves that immigrants are not
stealing American jobs; they are only taking the ones that Americans do not want.
America is a refuge for many illegal immigrants. Most of these immigrants are being
deported back to such harsh living conditions; the government is basically sending them to an
untimely death. In the television show 30 Days, Frank the Minute Man who was extremely
opposed to illegal immigrants being in the U.S., had agreed that the conditions in which the

Gonzalez family had lived when they were in Mexico were unlivable and unsafe for the children.
Not only did the Gonzalez family have no sanitary place to use the bathroom, but they did not
even have a reliable water source, nor a roof on this house of theirs. Immigrating to America
was their only chance to live an average life and actually have their children do something better
with themselves. Let these immigrants have their shot at a good life, dont punish them just for
wanting better.
What have these immigrants done wrong? Is it a crime to want the American Dream?
Another quote from The Great Immigration Debate reads, [Illegal immigrants] are Americans
in their minds, in every single way but on paper These immigrants lead normal lives, work hard
for a living, and follow our laws just as we do, the only thing missing from their lives is the
proper documentation which allows them to be legal Americans. These immigrants just want a
better life, they deserve to have a second chance. Dont deport them just because they arent
from America, thats actually very hypocritical seeming as America was founded by
immigrants..
Some may say that these illegal immigrants are taking our jobs and natural resources, for
example in the article Scenes from on the Border written by Marc Lacey and Damien Cave it
states, ... illegal immigrants take jobs away from Americans and are a drain on US resources
This is completely wrong. Not only do these illegal immigrants work extremely hard just to be
able to stay here, but they also have no right to be blamed on the natural resources running out.
Regardless of whether or not the immigrants are here, natural resources will be used just as
much. Illegal immigrants deserve to have American citizenship.
There are thousands and thousands of illegal immigrants all over the country, it would
take months, maybe even years, to deport them all back to their country of origin. Not to mention

all the money that the U.S. would have to spend on them. All in all, it would be simpler to let
them stay here in America and grant them citizenship, not only do these immigrants work hard
and do the jobs that Americans do not want, but they also do not deserve to be sent back to a
country which is unsafe to live. Let them stay in America and have their shot at the American
dream.



















Work Cited
Immigration. 30 Days. FX. 26 July 2006.
Jacoby, Tamar and Tom Tancredo. Does the U.S. Need Illegal Immigrants? Upfront
Magazine. 12
March 2012: 22
Lacey, Mark and Damien Cave. Scenes from the Border. Upfront Magazine. 2 Jan. 2012: 18-
21
Smith, Patricia. The Great Immigration Debate. Upfront Magazine. 12 March 2012: 22