The United States needs to take bipartisan action to address its massive immigration problem. More than 12 million illegal immigrants are resident in the US, and are an important part of its economy. They are building their lives there, while at the same time living in fear of deportation. It is all very well for people like House Republican leader Speaker John Boehner to try to raise the urgency of legislation on immigration changes, trying to get something passed this year. But as the midterm elections approach, time is running out and if neither party acts the chances of Congress agreeing on how to overhaul the nation’s failing immigration laws grow dimmer.
What the partisan members of Congress need to realise is that history and demography are passing them by. They can argue as much as they like, but the situation on the ground is changing. This month California saw Hispanics become the state’s largest ethnic group with 39 per cent, making them larger than the traditionally dominant white community who only have 38.8 per cent. This trend is only set to grow as more and more Hispanics take their place in American society, with profound implications for the future of the US. The traditional Anglo-Saxon dominance will give way to a more inclusive mix which will have a large number of Hispanics, but also a growing number of people of Asian and African origin. Congress must wake up.
