The Immigrant Issue and Human Kindness

There is something about the illegal alien problem that reminds me of that parental game we play on kids at Christmas. “Santa’s coming, Santa’s coming. Tell Santa what you want.” Then when the kids are nearly delirious after a month of anticipation, we scold, “Stop it. Wait your turn.” It must be hard on a man to know of all the work that’s right over the border but be told to wait his turn. To be hungry, or see your children hungry, gives a man few choices.

Outside my window is a group of Mexican men eating their lunches, day laborers hired to repair my landlord’s roof. I know the economic and safety ramifications of using mostly unskilled workers. But as I listen to their lilting Spanish and hear the salsa music wafting from a small radio, I realize, as a native Californian, how much of the fabric of my life they’ve become. It’s time for a compromise based on human kindness.

Diane Nichols

Los Angeles