Forty percent of its population is unemployed. 60 percent is under the age of 19. These factors obviously contribute to the desire to leave. In fact. in a Spanish International Network poll conducted of the people who were voting in elections in El Salvador a couple of years agoobviously people who had a commitment to their country. because they were willing to go ahead and vote. even though under penalty of death by the rebels at that time67 percent of them responded that. if given the opportunity. they would naturally emigrate to the United States. It had nothing to do with fear of persecution. but had to do with the great economic opportunity here in the United States. Mr. Speaker. perhaps the most important point is this one. El Salvador has been the second largest source of illegal immigration to the United States for more than 30 years. Let me repeat that: El Salvador has been the second largest country to send us illegal aliens for over 30 years. That was before Mr. Duarte. before the Communist insurrection. That was before what some people are talking about now as the cause for these illegal immigrants being here. Historically. it is ranked behind only Mexico in terms of illegal aliens apprehended in the United States. The question is. do you create a situation where you grant extended voluntary departure to a country which is the second largest source of illegal immigration into the United States? If you do that. what precedent do you set for the rest of the world? If these Salvadorans were primarily motivated to leave their country because of fears of persecution. why is it that they pass through two or three safehaven countries on the way to the United States?
Identified stereotypes
Generalizes that Salvadorans emigrate to the US for economic opportunity, not fear of persecution.