Monday, March 27, 2006

Border controling human rights issues

I found this article to be very interesting, because I think that this is a really difficult issue to piece apart. I think it's a bit tragic that granting rights to immigrants tends to be labeled as the view of the Democratic party. Seeing as this is the land of the free and the home of the brave, shouldn't EVERYONE be free to the same extent? I think that it's a bit hypocritical not to offer immigrants any sort of status after these immigrants have been granted the right to legally work in the United States. After all, these people contribute to the workforce and the economy by working here, so why shouldn't they be given legal status here?

Two perspectives on immigration

Here are two articles from the Washington Post:

The first is from Friday, about the impact politics and the next Presidential election has on the immigration bills being debated in Cogress.

The second is from today, regarding the impact immigration laws have on businesses looking to hire immigrant workers.

Missing Athletes Fear Reprisals

In this article, multiple missing athletes have been reported to Australian immigration officials since the Commonwealth Games took place in Australia. Missing athletes have been determined to be from Cameroon, Tanzania, Bangladesh and Sierra Leone. Most interestingly, fourteen Sierra Leone athletes became fugitives and the athletes bridging visas expire on April 13, 2006.

Yet many of the athletes do have a "credible fear of persecution" and strong cases. One Sierra Leone athlete lost his twelve year old brother to government officials when he was forcibly returned. Three females from Sierra Leone face being forced into FGM when they return. "They have both been told when they get home they are next." How much more evidence do we need to determine torture or persecution is specifically intended? I think that if I was told that I was to be killed or forced into FGM and was granted a visa to go to another country I would not want to leave either.

War against Euphoria

  Hate Hope and Human Rights  At least that's what the addicts describe it as. In 2020 alone, an estimated 9.5 million Americans, just A...