Bernie Sanders State of the Union Essay Contest
The United States does not have a national language because we are a nation built on the backs of immigrants from around the world. For hundreds of years, people from every country have seen America as a land of opportunity where if you worked hard enough, you could achieve the American Dream. It's a nation where entrepreneurs would strive for professional success because they knew they could find workers to support their vision. The dream of those immigrants and the aspiration of those employers are no longer a reality in the United States.
According to the Population Reference Bureau, from 1880-1914, over 20 million European immigrants came to the U.S., an average of 650,000 per year at a time when the U.S. had about 75 million residents. In 2023, when the U.S. has a population of over 330 million, only 221,000 noncitizens obtained lawful permanent residence according to the Department of Homeland Security. The rate of immigration in the U.S. has not kept pace with the increase in our nation’s population and its need for workers.
Opponents of immigration reform argue that immigrants will take American jobs and lower wages. This is simply not true. Many immigrants who enter the U.S. take the lowest paying jobs, ones that are difficult to fill with American workers. My family runs a third-generation business in Killington which relies on service industry workers. All of my grandparents came to the U.S. as immigrants. They worked hard and made a life for their families in this country. New immigrants deserve the same opportunity to live the American Dream.
There are simply not enough workers in Vermont. Killington needs hundreds of seasonal workers. We hear constantly about the hundreds of thousands of people waiting at the Mexican border to come into the U.S. to work. Congress must develop a way to help both the people who want to immigrate legally and the Vermont business owners who need employees. Killington Resort, one of the state’s largest employers, brings approximately 160 international employees into Vermont each winter on J1 visas, according to VTDigger. Those workers can stay for 6 months and then must return home. It costs employers several thousand dollars to bring each J1 worker so most small businesses can’t do this. Congress must enact sensible legislation that offers a fast, legal way for immigrants to come into the U.S. and start work immediately. This would grant economic opportunity to the immigrants and relief to U.S. employers desperate for workers.
Immigration is one of the most haunting topics in American politics, yet some officials are able to clearly state a solution. According to VT Digger, Governor Phil Scott “has long advocated for immigration reform that would allow for pathways to citizenship and greater opportunities for law-abiding individuals to earn a living in our state.” Governor Scott understands the desperate need for immigration reform. Why can’t our federal leaders?