Arizona’s geography makes it ground zero for an issue that gets everyone riled up. That issue is — you guessed it — immigration. Ever since Senate Bill 1070 was signed into law last spring, it has thrust both Arizona and immigration into the national spotlight. Our state is making headlines once again by leading the crusade to revoke birthright citizenship.
Polarizing solutions are not what we need to solve this thorny issue. Conservative solutions laud SB 1070 and other far-right immigration policies, while liberal solutions call to give undocumented migrants amnesty. If we attempt to be realistic, we will find the solution lies somewhere in the center, rather than deporting everyone or giving blanket citizenship.
Thankfully, the Tempe Chamber of Commerce and 19 other chambers of commerce from around the state have pooled their resources together and sent an urgent and rational plea for immigration reform to Congress. According to The Arizona Republic,
the 20 chambers of commerce, which represent over 70,000 businesses, detail five cornerstones of fixing our nation’s broken immigration system.
The plan asks for better border security, a better system for employers to check the legality of job candidate’s residency, an immigration program that will support a wide array of job needs and a guest worker program for undocumented workers who are already in the country and have had no run-ins with the law. It also asks the federal government for reimbursement for money that states have spent on illegal immigrants in areas such as health care and education.
This program has something for everyone — conservatives will appreciate the request for stronger security on the borders, and liberals will be glad to see that a guest worker program has been included.
We may not agree on every aspect of this plan. In fact, there isn’t even a unanimous consensus in the chambers of commerce, according to The Arizona Republic.
This is the nature of compromise. This country can only move ahead when we move forward hand-in-hand rather than hand-around-the-throat. The country has compromised on controversial issues like deficit reduction plans, taxes and education. Who is to say we couldn’t achieve something great like immigration reform in an era of divided government?
When a policy has parts everyone takes issue with, that’s a good indicator of a sound idea. This gives us reassurance that everyone’s voice has been heard. If a sect of people overwhelmingly hates the law, chances are their voice was not heard.
Such is the case with SB 1070 and the movement to revoke birthright citizenship. These are polarizing solutions that leave many angry and emotional. It makes sense to take the best from each solution. The immigration ideas outlined by the 20 Arizona chambers of commerce do just that.
Only when cool heads prevail can America succeed in solving the big issues. We are a nation with a history of turning our hopes into reality. Should we take a cue from this immigration plan, we have the potential to do just that.
