Speech #1090098924

Mr. Chairman. I rise today in opposition to H.R. 4437. the Border Protection. Antiterrorism. and Illegal Immigration Control Act of 2005. Rather than take a hard look at our immigration system. this legislation uses broad strokes targeting both legal and undocumented immigrants and would make felons of nonprofits working to care for the underserved in our communities. The American public knows that our immigration system is broken. Polls show that twothirds of the country believes that our system needs to be fixed. But instead of working to assemble a comprehensive package to fix our Nations immigration system. we are being given this bill that has no chance of being enacted. that is intent on punishing immigrants. and relies more on rhetoric than real solutions. What we need is a comprehensive approach that deals not just with border security. but with employers and the undocumented immigrants who are supporting our economy by working in jobs Americans refuse to take. This legislation is a punitive. heavyhanded measure that would not in any shape reform immigration. but would only make matters worse. First and foremost. this bill seeks to criminalize both legal and illegal immigrants. Current law holds that undocumented immigrants face civil charges and may be subject to fines and deportation if found to be living here illegally. This legislation would change those civil charges to a criminal felony. ensnaring not only undocumented immigrants but also people who are here legally but have not notified the Government of technical changes in their status. such as an address change. These people. here legally and working hard to support their families in low wage jobs. could face up to a year in prison under the bills provisions. Many of the working immigrants who are here illegally perform jobs that U.S. citizens simply do not want or will not take. They are mainly in service and agricultural jobs. which are a vital part of our economy. Punishing those people. who contribute greatly to our economy. rather than providing some form of guest worker visa program. is penny wise but pound foolish. We should be in the business of helping them gain a pathway to legal status rather than locking them up. One of the most deleterious provisions of this legislation is the section that would make it a crime for a U.S. citizen to help an undocumented immigrant. even if this is done unknowingly. Under the expanded definition of smuggling. a citizen could be prosecuted for simply driving a neighbor to the grocery store or hospital emergency room. Such a provision risks criminalizing the work of nonprofits and religious organizations. whose sole purpose is to help human beings in need. Many organizations work on behalf of refugees and asylum seekers. helping them navigate their way through the Byzantine immigration process. Because our immigration system is so complicated. it is possible that asylum seekers are in the United States illegally for a short time. Any citizen who helps people who have fled their home country because they feared for their lives could be prosecuted under the wording of this bill. This is totally unacceptable and runs counter to the values that have made our country great.