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Ben Gomez
Mrs. Tyree
English III. Per. 1
28 February 2014
Illegal Immigration and National Security
Many illegal immigrants are subjected to mockery and stereotyping because of their skin
color and other physical qualities. The three states with the most illegal immigrants living in
them are California, Texas, and New York. California leads the other states with over 2.2 million
immigrants living there illegally. Texas has the second highest number of immigrants living
illegally with 1.3 million. Only about 1 out of every 10 illegal immigrants, are a danger to
Americans. Most illegal immigrants do not pose a threat to national security, but are only
desperate and misunderstood people looking for freedom and work.
America is called “The Land of the Free,” but early immigrants would argue that they
were not treated as free. From 1850-1882, 322,000 Chinese men arrived in the United States
through San Francisco (“Asian Immigration”). Facing pressure from anti-Chinese groups,
Congress passed the Asian Exclusion Act, in 1882 (“Asian Immigration”). This Act prevented
Chinese laborers from entering the United States and from ever becoming U.S. citizens (“Asian
Immigration”).Restrictions worsened six years later, by not allowing legal immigrants to return
home to China, destroying families in the process (“Asian Immigration”). Many desperate
Chinese immigrants started their very own version of the “underground railroad.” Many tried to
smuggle their loved ones through Texas, where secret schools taught them English. The Chinese
exclusion act was lifted in 1943, but because of Pearl Harbor, Americans kept a paranoid eye on
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Asian immigrants, even putting them in internment camps. Even though the law was called the
Chinese Exclusion Act, racists Americans classified all Asians as Chinese.
Many Asian families today can trace their families back to many of the “Chinatowns”
that existed around America at the turn of the century. A very inspirational story was published
in Independent magazine in 1903, about a Chinese immigrant named Lee Chew. He unlike many
immigrants was able to make himself successful by opening up his very own business in the
United States. His story began with him living a very simple life in a village on the banks SiKiang River. Lee Chew grew up hearing the tribal elders speak of the “red-haired and green eyed
devils, with hair on their faces,” which would destroy all villages that lie in their wake. Chew
was conflicted about believing them because he knew another story about a “poor boy that left
the village, in order to go to the foreign devil’s land and came back with unlimited wealth.” At
the age of sixteen, Lee left the safety of his village in order to go to this “terrifying new world.”
Lee arrived in San Francisco, “half starved, and with no friends,” but was able to find work as a
housekeeper for an American family. He would work all week and on Sundays, he would go to
night schools at the church in order to learn English. In a year he was able to save up enough
money to buy a “small shop 500 miles from a under construction railroad… in a small shanty
shack.”(Lee Chew) When the railroad was finished Lee followed the railroad workers, but they
treated him very badly and were, “prejudice and discriminated against him.” He was chased out
of California by a “mob” of angry prospectors who accused Lee of stealing money from them.
Afraid of all of the danger he was living in, he moved to New York with only four hundred
dollars on him. He decided to change his profession and became a general merchant. He made
enough money that he was able to move back to his village, but as he was reflecting back on his
time in America, he said this about the American citizens, “They treat you as a friend while you
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are prosperous, but if you have a misfortune they don’t know you.”(Lee Chew). Lee Chew was
able to make it in America, but most immigrants do not get the chance to. The Chinese exclusion
act was against the Chinese who worked harder than most Americans at the time.
Some Chinese also immigrated to America through the Ellis Island Port. Most people that
live in the New York Metropolitan area can trace their ancestry back to Ellis Island.
Approximately 60,000 immigrants arrived on Ellis Island each year between the years of 18601890, mostly Irish and Italian unskilled workers (“The Ellis Island Immigration Station Opens:
January 1, 1892”). From 1890-1920 more than 4.2 million Italian immigrants arrived at Ellis
Island (“The Ellis Island Immigration Station Opens: January 1, 1892”). 2,000,000 Jews
immigrated to Ellis Island, in order to escape religious persecution (“The Ellis Island
Immigration Station Opens: January 1, 1892”). Ellis Island put the first glimpse of hope into the
lives of the incoming immigrants.
Between the years of 1892 and 1954, over 12 million immigrants traveled through the
Ellis Island. Ellis Island is just off the New Jersey coast in the “shadow of Lady Liberty”
(“ELLIS ISLAND - HISTORY.”). The building was heavily damaged and took more than 3
years to repair. When the repairs were finally done, a young Irish girl by the name of Annie
Moore became the first ever immigrant to enter the United States through Ellis Island. As more
people started arriving, the waiting time in lines could have been longer than 16 hours. Doctors
were needed to check the arriving immigrants for any signs of disease and other ailments. With
the rapid number of people arriving however needed to check patients faster, thus making their
visits last no more than one minute. These one minute checkups were later referred to as “6
second physicals” (“ELLIS ISLAND – HISTORY”). When World War I broke out the number
of immigrants coming into the country decreased, and security was tightened around the island.
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Immigrants entering during this time were examined very closely, and those that failed the
examination were considered enemy refugees from the war. After the war a large wave of Italian
Immigrants entered the city. This led to the development of a huge section of New York City to
be name little Italy. Here in this Italian “ghetto” lived one of the most notorious gangsters of all
time.
Living in a place called “little Italy,” there was a barber named Gabriele Capone, and his
wife Teresina Raiola. These two arrived in the country through Ellis Island and had finally
adjusted top their new life. Little did they know however that their son would grow up to be one
of the most infamous men in America. Al Capone is known throughout America for his violent
and powerful characteristics, that he showed while running the Italian Mafia. The Mafia was a
force to be reckoned with in the early 1900’s, because they were ruthless, cruel, and they
intimidated anyone, especially the immigrants that crossed with them. Al Capone was arrested
for the first time for killing two men in New York, in 1919 (History Files - Al Capone"). In 1919
Capone moved to Chicago, were he was in charge of one of the most popular crime families of
all time. He organized the St. Valentine’s Day massacre, which showcased how brutal his men
were (“History Files - Al Capone”). Al Capone’s luck finally ran out when he was arrested on
the charges of tax invasion. This man stood as a reason to the American people, to have fear
against Immigrants and their “offspring.” Italians were stereotyped as violent and lazy, but
another descendent of Latin Europeans were treated much worse.
Many Americans nowadays think of Hispanics as the ethnicity of illegal immigrants.”
Hispanics are often times shunned or thrown out of this country because a common border is
shared. In fact many American newspapers categorize Hispanics as, nannies, housemaids, and
farm hands. Hispanics often cross over into America to find work to support their families or to
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escape the dangerous drug cartels. South Texas has more Illegal Hispanics living in asylum, than
any other state along the U.S. and Mexico border (Riviera). This subject is very personal to me
because without my grandfather crossing to South Texas I wouldn’t be here. Many white people
tried to put him down and tried to crush his dreams of providing for his family, but he pushed on
through the ridicule.
My great great grandfather Canuto Guerra was born on January 19, 1882. He was born in
Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico which is 6 miles from Brownsville, Texas. He married Ines
Guerra, and had five children, which he loved very much. He crossed into the United States
legally on March 30, 1927 at 45 years of age, from Brownsville Texas. He left his family back in
Mexico in search of work. Between 1927-1932 he would send money to his family in order to
assure them he had a steady job. In 1932 however he was able to bring his entire family across
into Brownsville, Texas. He and his family travelled to Harlingen, Texas where he worked as a
barber until 1957. In late 1957 he moved his family to Corpus Christi, Texas, where he lived
until 1959 when he passed away. Not only did he have to break the language barrier, but he also
had to work hard without his family for five years in order to provide his children with a better
future. He is what the definition of a hard worker should be, because it took a lot out of him to
survive by himself in a new foreign land.
My Great Grandmother Violla Guerra was born on August 3, 1920. She was born in
Matamoros, Tamps., Mexico. Her dad Canuto Guerra came to The United States when she was
only seven. When she was twelve her father had saved up enough money to bring her and the
rest of her family over from Mexico. In 1936 at the age of sixteen she married my Great
Grandfather Jose Rodriguez on June 6. They had five children Sergio (1941), David (1943),
Margot (1951), Cora (1957), Luis (1959). In 1957 she moved with my Great Grandfather to
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Corpus Christi, Texas, along with my Great Great Grandfather. She took care of all the kids in
Corpus, while her husband worked as a salesman for a construction company. In 1969, my Great
grandfather suffered a massive stroke at the age of 55 that left him unable to speak. In 1971, my
Grandmother Margot Rodriguez married my Grandfather Robert Quinones, and had my Mother
(Audra) and my Uncle (Robert). My Great Grandmother passed away on April 9, 1992, due to a
heart condition, at the age of 71. I didn’t get to meet my Great-grandmother but, hearing all of
the great stories makes me feel like I did know her. When I was very little and my mom had to
go to work, my Great Grandfather would babysit me at the house. Even though he was unable to
speak I would still understand him, and I could tell he loved me and was proud of me. On the 9th
of January 2003, he passed away at the age 88. Because of my great great grandfathers love for
his family, this allowed for me to be in existence. Out of Canuto Guerra’s five children, three
became American Citizens; one fought in WWII and also became an Elementary school
principal, at T.G. Allen, in Corpus Christi, Texas. Not every Hispanic immigrant is bad but is
just another person with an amazing story to tell.
Many Mexican immigrants want to tell their stories but can’t because of American laws
that stand between them. A survey shows that 71% Americans say that there should be a way for
people who are in America illegally to remain in the country if certain requirements were met
(Bell). 27 % of the remaining people interviewed said that illegal immigrants should not be
allowed to stay in the United States (Bell). 67% of non-Hispanic whites say that illegal
immigrants should be allowed to stay in the United States as opposed to the remaining 31%
interviewed (Bell).
Not all immigrants are here to harm the American way of life, but to join it. Many feel
that the United States needs to reduce the number of laws against immigration, to keep out the
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dangerous terrorists that want to endanger the lives of American citizens and trash the names of
immigrants everywhere. Terrorism is a growing threat in this new day, and this new age.
However there is no need to classify all Immigrants the enter the United States borders as
Threats to national security.
Well done! Lots of good information analyzed and organized. Watch for careless minor
errors
Content: 40/40; Organization: 30/30; Grammar: 18/20; MLA: 10/10 Grade: 98
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