01 Mar Amnesty Act for or against the US Illegal Immigrants?
People across the world have faced a varied range of crisis at least once in their life. Same is the case with many immigrants who had to leave their homes and settle down in the United States as their first and last home. Considering them, last year in November President Donald Trump announced an end to deferred action childhood arrivals program. He also proposed to grant temporary amnesty to the immigrants which can lead to their deportation.
Amnesty is an act by the federal government which awards immunity from immigration laws to undocumented immigrants. Proponents of Amnesty Act across the nation sparked angry debate against the state. They demanded the government to take back their policy and claimed this as a violation of the rights of an immigrant. However, the opponents are demanding deportation as they believe that providing amnesty would encourage illegal immigration at a higher level.
Though the immigrants will be benefitted with the fundamental rights after turning into a legal citizen of America, the situation remains unclear about what will be next?
DACA, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, was formed by Ex-President Barack Obama in 2012. It offers relief from deportation and helps people live a standard life. They denote immigrants as ‘dreamers,’ provide them with work permits, but not citizenship. DACA currently protects approximately 700,000 young adults, mostly Hispanics (person belong to Cuban, Mexican, or other Spanish culture), with the number previously as high as about 800,000 people. This is not the first time when the state is providing amnesty. Earlier in 1986 president Reagan provided it on a large scale to nearly three million people who were granted legal status. In 1990 the life act also offered legal status to some undocumented immigrants, if they had family members as US citizens, and could petition on their behalf. However, this ended in 2001.
Sanaa Abrar of the group United We Dream, which advocates for DACA recipients said, ‘another federal court has said what we’ve always known that Trump’s decision to kill DACA was wrong and that his sole motivation was to deport 8lacs people of color’.
Proponents are also worried about the taxation policies immigrants will have to go through if amnesty is provided. However, people will be protected, and they will be set free if there will be no flaws from their side. On this note, Tony O’ Rourke, a professor at the University at Buffalo School of Law, now in federal defenders’ service of New York said, “criminal statutes of limitations are an essential part of due process protections. Statutes of limitations are a way to shield both the public and defendants against government overreach. It is a control on the power of the state, in the same way, that the Bill of Rights is a restraint on the power of the state, and the due process clause is a limitation on the power of the state.” Tax amnesties, for instance, increase the revenue that is collected. Moreover, the government then doesn’t have to investigate and prosecute tax crimes.
When President Trump announced his take on illegal immigration, he argued that Ex-President Obama exceeded his constitutional powers when he bypassed Congress and created DACA. The panel of three judges stood united and said that the president’s plan violates the US constitution’s guarantee of equal protection under the law.
The myths and questions on the amnesty acts are never ending. In the meanwhile, researchers of the US also found that this has caused many to put down roots in the US instead of returning seasonally to Mexico or Central America. Since then the US has many undocumented immigrants who live, work, take care of their families with less hope of getting legal status. What do you think about the issue?
Should working illegal immigrants be given temporary amnesty?
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