Amid a government shutdown and debt ceiling crisis, the issue of immigration made headlines once again as pro-immigration reform groups rallied in Washington D.C. a couple of weeks ago in order to pressure Congress to act on the issue.
Several supporters of the cause, including religious leaders, politicians and civil rights activists, attended the rally. More than one hundred were arrested there, including eight House Democrats. Congressman Luis Gutierrez (D-Chicago) and Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (D-Evanston) were among those arrested.
In an op-ed entitled “Why I was Arrested,” featured in the Huffington Post, Schakowsky wrote, “As I sat in the police station and looked around at all the people who were expressing their commitment to changing a hopelessly broken law through their civil disobedience, I was proud to join them.”
Once at the top of Congress’ agenda, the immigration reform effort hit a snag in the House of Representatives, where Republicans are uneasy about passing the legislation without major changes to the Senate bill, which passed with a bipartisan majority in July.
“There are not enough Republican votes in the House to pass it because some Republicans do not support a path to citizenship for those who are legalized, and this is something the Democrats will not forsake,” Amalia Pallares, a political science professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago, said.”Also, many of those same Republicans believe the bill should be even stronger on enforcement, even though it is already extremely strong.”
The Senate bill contains a pathway to citizenship, an unwavering Democratic demand, and increased funding for border security and E-verify, a key Republican demand. However, the partisan gridlock that was shown throughout the government shutdown may prevent the House from even considering the bill.
After all, many Republicans come from districts with low Hispanic populations, making the political ramifications quite small. However, the issues plaguing the system are undeniable for both sides.
“It’s stuck. Inefficiency and immobility are harming the current system,” DePaul law student and president of Society for Asylum and Immigration Law Zara Rashid said. “As can be seen by the recent immigration reform protest, there is a demand to get things moving and a fear that they won’t.”
Hanging in the balance are nearly 11 million undocumented workers, as their fates are quite uncertain.
“Legal status affects income, as undocumented immigrants are concentrated in the lowest- paying and most vulnerable jobs,” Pallares said. “Lack of status and deportability means that undocumented immigrants withstand hardships that they hesitate to report, such as unfair and poor working conditions, pay below minimum wage or no pay, and cases of domestic violence.”
Deportation has been the cause of angst among Hispanics with President Obama, a Democrat and ally of immigration reform. During his first term in office, the president deported more than 1.5 million undocumented workers, which was a faster pace than his Republican predecessor, George W.Bush.
In a political climate where consensus is hard to find, there is nearly universal recognition of the problem. A solution, however, may come later rather than sooner.
“I’m confident there will be a solution but I don’t know when,” Rashid said. “There has to be solution – eventually.”