U.S. needs a new Ellis Island

From 1892 to 1954, over 12 million immigrants had the opportunity to immigrate to America in search of a better life or refuge through a system of legal registration on Ellis Island.

The policy of the nation back then was one of open arms to all who wished to work hard and help build a better country, regardless of national origin.

That system allowed for people to enter the nation legally, and start many families that ascend from the average Americans of today. The fact is that today the United States of America does not have a legal immigration system and that, and that alone, is the cause of illegal immigration.

As a legal immigrant myself, I get asked a lot: why don't illegal immigrants just do whatever it is that I did to get here? Well, simply enough, it is already complicated to get here, but to stay here is virtually impossible.

In order to study in America, in hope for a job opportunity and a career in this country, after being admitted to the University, I had to apply six months early for a study visa, which cost me $500, and had a 90 percent chance of being denied.

On top of that, I have to pay out-of-state tuition here in addition to many other fees with the Department of Homeland Security, which total my yearly costs in the tens of thousands.

It gets better. It is virtually impossible for non-residents of the United States of America to get loans and discounts, much less governmental scholarships. I do not even qualify for the laptop initiative.

To work in the U.S., an individual needs to apply for a work visa costing over $1,000 and with a 95 percent chance of being denied. To apply for that work visa, the individual needs to be previously hired by an American employer.

The chances of an American employer going overseas paying traveling expenses and other costs to find an employee are absolutely non -existent, and one is not allowed into the country for the purpose of looking for a job.

The very few who get a work visa by extraordinary circumstances have the visa for a period of six months to six years, but once that time expires, the odds of the individual being granted a Green Card are slim to none.

Out of 1,000 people applying for Green Cards promotions from work visas yearly, only one gets accepted. The United States needs a new Ellis Island. This country is supposed to be a land of opportunity, not a land of rejection.

Naturally, given the problem of population growth, there must be tougher filters in the immigration system, but to deny entrance into the country to people who are willing to work as hard as they can in order to make this country greater is unacceptable.

This nation has been built by immigrants, its very foundation and progress tailored by foreigners. If immigration is to die out, then so is progress and change in the country, and that is something that cannot be allowed to happen.