Speech #750060901

Mr. Chairman. I served on the Committee on Immigration and Naturalization for 2 years. and I am not sure that even as a member of that committee approaching the job with proper diligence and devotion. I was not afflicted with considerable confused thinking about this whole subject of immigration and naturalization and deportation. I wonder if it would not be a good idea. in connection with the consideration of this bill. to present a broad concept of the philosophy and the jurisdiction over which that committee operates. It deals. first of all. with immigration. This means the application of standards under which people can come from foreign shores into this country. Prior to 1917 our law was in a condition of chaos and it was codified in 1917. so that today. for all practical purposes. we have a fairly good basic law dealing with the subject of immigration and applying to those who come into the United States of America. The second aspect of the Jurisdiction of this committee deals with naturalization. It applies certain standards under which those who have come from foreign shores may become citizens of the United States. With respect to the observations that my friend from Ohio made earlier in the afternoon that when you talk about the unAmerican aspect of the attitude of anybody coming from a foreign shore into this country who has been here for 10 years without taking out citizenship papers. I may say to this House that there are two sides to that story. We are in the habit of saying to an alien. "Go and get yourself naturalized." We place the entire responsibility upon him. We had a reasonably high level of fees. We made no openhanded invitation to prepare for citizenship. I do not know that in general we properly approached that problem and said. "Come. we will take you by the hand and take you through the processes whereby you can become a citizen of the United States." When we get ready to level the finger of reproach and fasten the fault upon one group or another. let me say that the fault is in some measure ours as much as it is the fault of the alien that we have today in this country 3.000.000 aliens who have not yet made application for their naturalization papers. Whenever we can infuse our people with the kind of spirit that will bid them say: "We will take you by the hand and make citizens of you. we will welcome you into the fold of this great family. we will do everything possible that you may assimilate the ideals and traditions of the country". I fancy then that the number of aliens in this country who are eligible for citizenship will certainly diminish even as the number has diminished in years gone by.