Detention for Illegal Aliens

The Chiswicks attribute the revolving-door syndrome to the no-cost-to-the-illegal-alien deportation proceedings. I disagree, the revolving-door syndrome is created by a mentality on the part of illegal border crossers that the border will be pierced at all costs. And it will be, regardless of whether or not “detention” sanctions are imposed.

The authors state that temporary detention sanctions will be a “definite deterrent.” In their example they state: “An agricultural worker who missed a key harvest season and was sent home empty-handed would think twice about attempting to cross illegally again.”

Wrong. Such a penalty would only pose a temporary setback. It would be a mere hazard of crossing the border. People literally die in the blazing desert sun and in the murky waters that separate Mexico and the United States. If the possibility of death is not a deterrent, what justifies the authors’ claim that “temporary detention” would be an effective one?

The whole problem of “illegals” entering this country is very intricate. Citizens in the United States are willing to sell authentic-looking documents to the “illegals.” Employers exploit their voiceless presence. The coyotes , the smugglers, charge a high price for transportation into this country. There are many who contribute to the “problem.” A simple solution is not the answer.

Perhaps this nation has been reluctant to impose penalties on illegal border crossers because this country is ingrained with a history that perceives a distinction between the law as written and what is right. The two do not always mesh.

Circumstances as they stand must be taken into account. It is easy to draw an analogy of the “kid in the candy shop,” but it will not suffice when real human lives and real human sufferings are at stake. There is a difference between the kid in the candy shop and a hungry kid in the shop. If both children eat too much, how can you blame the latter?

DEBORAH SANCHEZ

Wilmington