Speech #850041018

Mr. Speaker. our present immigration laws are far from perfect. In their application to a difficult problem they sometimes. unwittingly. lead to discrimination and hardship. . I am thinking of the hairsplitting interpretation whereby one member of a family is permitted to come to the United States for permanent residence while other members of his immediate family are treated as separate cases who must wait their turn. This impersonal policy is cutting off members of a family from one another. Under the Refugee Relief Act. it opens the door for one member of a family and quickly closes it. sometimes for years. to the wife and children who are left behind. This inhuman division is most unfortunate. In its contradictions. it exposes the United States to the charges of confused thinking. if not hypocrisy. regarding our overall immigration policies. We know that this is not intentional. but this is small comfort to those who suffer from the inflexible provisions of the law. I have listened to pathetic appeals from Italians who have come to our country in recent years and have asked me to cut the red tape that prevents their loved ones from joining them here. How can I answer them? Until the law is changed there is no answer. I realize that our immigration laws must be written with due regard for our own security and our ability to provide opportunities for those who want to begin a new life in this country. But if we become too cautious. the spirit of the law can be lost in a maze of selfdefeating technicalities. Among our own people the strength and unity of family life is a precious asset. It is a vital element in the nourishment of our free institutions. I suggest that we keep this in mind as we consider the revision of our immigration laws. When one member of a family is admitted to the United States we should do everything possible to clear the way for his wife and children to join him in this sanctuary of freedom. Any legalism that delays or obstructs this reunion is intolerable.