Speech #970224423

Mr. HDDLESTON. It would lump refugees and other immigrants in the same category. thereby limiting their total immigration to 425.000 persons a year. The proposed amendment would frustrate one of the central aims of the Nations immigration policy. The tradition of the United States as a haven for refugees runs deep in our history. from the earliest landings of the Pilgrims in the 17th century to the arrival of Indochinese war victims in the past decade. The tradition of the United States as a haven for those fleeing persecution and hardship is fundamental to this Nations identity. This amendment puts that long and hallowed tradition in jeopardy. It would. for example. force refugees to compete with brothers and sisters of U.S. citizens desiring to immigrate. If this Nation is to remain true to its historic ideals. such a crimp on the immigration of refugees is intolerable. Refugees are sometimes portrayed as a burden. exacerbating unemployment and straining the demand for scarce Federal funds. In fact. the vast majority of refugees have become hardworking and taxpaying Americans. The same kind of people that this amendment would unduly restrict from our shores have contributed importantly into building the United States into the great Nation it is. If the proposed amendment passes. it would be a signal to the rest of the world that the United States has lost sight of one of its most cherished ideals.