EDITORIAL: A broken promise (10/06/96)

EDITORIAL

A broken promise

Just a decade ago, the Statue of Liberty celebrated its 100th anniversary. The words on the statue's pedestal - "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free..." - were cited again and again, and much was written and said about how ours is a country of immigrants who arrived on these shores from faraway lands with diverse backgrounds and how all, in the end, became Americans and contributed to their adopted and adoptive homeland.

A short 10 years later the tide has turned. An anti-immigrant fervor seems to have seized America. To wit, the recently passed immigration and welfare bills. The culmination of two years of work, the immigration bill was purportedly aimed at restricting illegal immigration to this country. But it also does more to restrict legal immigrants in the United States - the people we allowed to enter this country, for whom there was a promise of a better life.

The new welfare law also imposes new restrictions on immigrants. Under that law, most legal immigrants will not be eligible for many public assistance programs, including food stamps and Supplemental Security Income; they will be denied welfare and Medicaid benefits in their first five years in this country.

The immigration law makes family reunification more difficult as it requires sponsors of new immigrants to earn more than 125 percent of the poverty level ($15,455 for a family of four). It makes it more difficult for refugees to claim asylum, and raises the burden of proof for immigrants claiming job discrimination.

George Soros commented on the new laws in an op-ed article in The New York Times on October 2: "Legal immigrants - refugees fleeing religious and political persecution, family members wanting to be reunited with loved ones, young entrepreneurs with talent and drive - have long come to America seeking a fair chance to contribute and, in the process, have enriched our culture and strengthened the nation. Yesterday Congress began taking away much of that fair chance." Mr. Soros went on to cite the fact that "Legal immigrants represent only about 5 percent of those on public aid, yet they are absorbing more than 40 percent of the cuts in welfare." And, these legal immigrants pay taxes, serve in the military, etc.

New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, too, has raised his voice against the new xenophobia. He speaks out about the contributions of immigrants to his city, saying "immigration is the principle that has been at the core of New York City's success for 200 years," and he argues that the city and America have thrived and been enriched as each successive wave of immigrants has arrived.

In response to what he perceives as a grave injustice and a serious mistake on the part of the U.S. government, Mr. Soros has created the Emma Lazarus Fund, named for the poet whose words are inscribed on Lady Liberty's pedestal. This hugely successful immigrant from Hungary who became a naturalized U.S. citizen has pledged $50 million to assist legal immigrants in the U.S.; most of that will go to help immigrants become naturalized citizens, and to support English-language classes and other aid to immigrants offered by local and community organizations. His initiative is most admirable.

As for the new laws, without even delving into the details we can state that they are not only anti-immigrant - they are anti-American. Why? Because they break the promise of America as a land accepting of immigrants. Because they punish those among us who can least help themselves as they begin a new life in a new world - a world to which they will contribute greatly if only given a chance.