Ralph D'Ambrosio has it wrong. It is an old, worn-out myth. What exactly are these jobs that are taken away? There are i lines of US citizens or legal residents standing in lines to pick strawberries, lemons, or lettuce; no lines of eager employees in the packing houses making ketchup; no lines of eager employees waiting for the jobs in hotels to clean rooms; no lines in industrial laundries washing and folding towels and sheets; no lines to be bus boys in restaurants or tending to our very young, elderly, and the sick and dying.

The question is boils down to what are Americans, as a nation, willing to give up, willing to sacrifice in our way of life when the "illegal" immigrant is thrown out and whole sectors we rely on collapse.

This is a complex issue.... No fifteen-second soundbite provides a rationale solution.

Rochelle Cisneros
Florida Sunshine State TESOL Advocacy E-Group

Cocoa Beach, FL

Why has Congress and President Bush failed to enforce existing immigration laws and to secure our borders and ports? I think Carl Donno hit the nail on the head. Someone is benefiting from this and it's not the average citizen of the United States. I'd like to see the government prove that we can have secure our borders, ports and harbors, then talk about a pathway for citizenship of the illegal immigrants already here. Congress needs to address the economic impact and consequence of any type of immigration reform before they get my support.

Deborah Miller

Huntsburg, OH

I am all in favor of immmigration and immigrants my grandmother came here as an immigrant, but she like millions like her since came in through a controlled channel.

There is no saying that they are not worthy individuals, my grandmother sure was, but it is our ountry and we need to know who is here.

I consider myself a progressive, but that does not mean that I am in favor of opening our borders to everyone who wants to come in without knowing who we have within our borders. There has always been an immigration law and there should be one now. What is upsetting is that there are laws on the books that are not being enforced and we really do not need any more if they enforce the ones we have.

Sally A. York

Brighton, MI

The reality is, illegal immigrants are not immigrants; they are law-breakers. We used to give "political asylum" to those persecuted in their countries; not to those looking for a job! We used to be a melting pot of a certain percent of varying cultures, education, languages, etc. Now, we don't have a choice,...they just knowingly jump over our borders and under our laws. (By the way, eternal Cubans that row themselves here have a green card and SS waiting for them [Cuban Adjustment Act of 1966]).

And we're going to "reward" law-breakers with a "Z Visa", "Guest Work Programs" and eventual "citizenship?"

We've lost our marbles. We are "delusional" about our own values. We no longer have a clear self-image. Who are we? Can we identifiy ourselves?

If we can "afford" a pre-emptive ridiculous war for oil and power, we can certainly "afford" to send every illegal law-breaker back to their own country and let them "take a number"--and let us regain the control, jobs and respect of our own country.

Ms. Chesler's article was inspiring, but try looking at it from the "real world"; try thinking about what is best for the American people and what is left of our justice system, rather than thinking what is best for law-breaking foreign people in our country.

P.S. Time to impeach. If not now, then when?

Rucy Jason

Ft. Lauderdale, FL

Your statement that "at Hunter, approximately one-third of our students are foreign born, and many more are the children of immigrants, most of them first-time college graduates in their families" is hardly a unique scenario in the United States. The students you highlight are legal immigrants, as are their parents. I have not heard one politician or commentator talk of cutting off legal immigration to our country. The issue is illegal immigrants, whose children could have easily take the college opportunity away from those foreign-born children if an "amnesty" bill had been passed.

Vickie Paradise Green
Paradigm

Philadelphia, PA

What most people fail to realize in this debate is that the double-edged sword of illegal immigration is very prevalent. My spouse is a native of the Philippines, and went through every hoop to become a citizen of the US. It was not easy, as there are huge pools of hopefuls who are waiting in line. If she had made the decision to say, "The hell with it, I'm going in and hope for the best," what happens to those left behind, who are legitimately attempting to come over legally? Heck, they just should come anyway, if its a free for all. All I see in regards to this issue is imported outsourcing by small and big businesses. You don't have to be a brain scientist to observe how this works. The market value of your average legal worker is plummeting. And who is benefiting from all this? Someone and their bottom dollar. I consider myself extremely liberal in politics, and the stories of Americans who already live here are not being represented properly. Now if we should open our borders completely and ask Mexico, Canada and all other lands in our hemisphere whether we should combine and all move about freely according to the market, that is something we should debate.

Carl Donno

Seattle, WA

Your article neglects one very important point. Every job held by an immigrant is a job stolen from an American citizen. Whether it is a job held by an undocumented immgrant (i.e., illegal) or help by an educated immigrant with a visa, an American citizen has lost that job. Not all people who oppose immgration are racists. We merely want to protect our careers and lives.

Ralph D'Ambrosio

Buffalo, NY