"There is No Such Thing as an Illegal Human Being": Kucinich and Immigration

We cannot forget who we are. We are a nation of, a nation welcoming and built by immigrants. And though this Administration wants to divert attention from its current mistakes, we cannot forget who we are in the process. To Dennis Kucinich, America means "give me your poor, your tired, your huddled masses...". To Dennis Kucinich, in an open and free democratic nation there must be a path to citizenship. To Dennis Kucinich, there is no such thing as an illegal human being.

Speaking at the Latino Congresso last month, Kucinich said:

I want to let you to know something; how I feel about what’s happened to our country...

in this toxic environment, the Administration, in its never-ending quest for more scapegoats, focuses on immigrants. You know it and I know it. And we see, unfortunately, the failure of the Democratic Party to stand up to this Administration...

Isn’t it interesting how famous Ronald Reagan became for saying, “Mr. Gorbachev, take down that wall.” Oh, how far we’ve come from those days. When President Reagan said, “Take down that wall,” and President Bush now says, “Build up a wall,” where are we going as a nation?

I believe the way the immigrant community is treated, whether documented or not, reflects the direction and future of America. We must believe that our brothers and sisters, Latinos and all of the other ethnic groups, are essential to who we are as Americans.

Kucinich has voted against and vocally criticized the debate on the border fence, though he does support securing our ports and borders. However, to really address the immigration issue, we reform our trade agreements that have caused the mass immigration from Mexico. NAFTA and the WTO not only destroyed high paying manufacturing jobs at home, but seriously depressed the economy in Mexico and forcing millions to cross the border in search for work. The immigration issue is becoming more and more the scapegoat for our disastrous trade agreements and wars. Only by renegotiating fair trade agreements and improving the Mexican economy can we hope to begin to solve our immigration issues.

Kucinich wants to offer immigrants a clear road map to legal status in the United States and grant legal permanent residence to immigrants who have been living in the U.S. for five or more years. He would also offer conditional legal status and work authorization to all law-abiding immigrants living in the United States for less than five years and revoke current laws that bar certain people who live abroad from re-entering the U.S. for a period of three to 10 years. Kucinich wants to stand for all Americans and all people:

It is time that we had a President who understood that human unity is what makes for peace. And that when we impose the wrath of the law that is unjust, what we’re doing is we’re stopping peace from happening. So, I’m running for President to make sure that all the people in America know that they have someone who they can count on, and know that they will have a President who will stand up for them. And I will tell you today that the Latino community, in particular, has a right to expect that all the candidates will stand in front of you and say, “Yes. We must have a path to legalization. Yes. There must be a way for people to work in this country, if they want to live in Mexico. Yes. We must take down that wall!”