Immigration has been the hot issue this campaign season, but the debate mostly focuses on “illegals.” Less has been said about “legals” – those people who actually possess the documents they need to live and work here. Those who have lived here for at least five years, speak English, have no criminal record and pay their taxes are eligible to become citizens.
The Denver Post reported this week that a record number of legal immigrants are applying for citizenship in Colorado and Wyoming. They’re doing that partly out of fear that growing resentment toward illegal immigrants could strip them of the opportunity to become citizens.
Between Oct. 1, 2005 and Sept. 30, 2006, 8,121 people applied in both states, a 28 percent increase from the previous fiscal year. In that same period, 5,700 citizenship applications were approved in Colorado alone.
Immigrants who entered this country legally by seeking proper work visas should serve as models for others. They are going about it the right way, and the payoff is that they’re eligible to apply for citizenship after five years.
Citizenship provides many privileges and protections that people here illegally cannot get under current laws. For example, Colorado just passed a new law in July to bar illegals from receiving many taxpayer-funded government benefits.
One of the biggest benefits of citizenship, of course, is the right to vote. Immigrants of all kinds can demonstrate and march in parades all they want, but such protests won’t net them the protections and privileges that will come with citizenship.
Colorado has a big stake in the national debate over illegal immigration. It is one of a handful of states experiencing the greatest growth in illegal immigration. The Pew Research Center estimates that between 200,000 and 250,000 foreign-born undocumented people live in Colorado. Nationwide, the number is estimated to be 12 million.
Legal immigrants undergo thorough background checks and meet other requirements before taking the oath of citizenship. Their success in completing the process, and the soundness of the system, underscores that a workable solution to deal with undocumented immigrants should be possible. Surveys have shown that while many Americans are cautious on immigration, they favor President Bush’s proposal to allow illegal immigrants to eventually set out on a path to citizenship. It makes more sense than trying to deport them.
Colorado has always benefitted from the contributions of newcomers, and we hope those 5,700 new citizens follow in the footsteps of those who came before.
