Sociology Essay Example: Illegal Immigrants and Education

There are close to 12 million illegal immigrants living in the USA today, with each year approximately new illegal ones coming, primarily through the Mexican border (Hanson, 2). Other unlawful immigrants use temporary entry visa to overstay and find their way to becoming American citizens or keeping a low profile to avoid deportation. America is not the only nation will illegal immigrant cases, for instance, the UK currently have almost one million undocumented immigrants with at least 120,000 being children (Walsh 1). The immigrants move from their countries for reasons of war, poverty, and unemployment from their homeland in search of better opportunities. On a recent American dialogue for allowing undocumented youths to access the higher education, it was considered that some of these people enter the USA as minors with their parents. Therefore at that age, they cannot make decisions on whether to enter the USA illegally or not. Hence they should be allowed to pursue their academic dreams since they are just victims of circumstances posed by their guardians. Consequently, the American Supreme Court decided that undocumented children should have access to primary school education just like any American child (Walsh 1). For this reasons, the illegal immigrants should be provided with education.

More than 75% of the adult illegal immigrants are employed with male immigrants taking the most significant share of more than 90% (Johnson and Laura 7). This group is a critical part of the unskilled American workforce. American firms choose to hire them despite being considered undocumented, hence producing education to their children should also be considered. If the American economic system is benefiting from their input, they should also be granted a social right of educating their children in the American schools. The discrimination of immigrant children by the education system should be considered illegal as long as the immigrants are allowed to work. The reason they are allowed to work is that they provide cheap labor and have loyalty to their employers who are their only source of livelihood. Some selfish employers choose to withhold some of their wages by blackmailing them with delivering reports to the authority or asking them to contribute towards their tax obligations. A New York court decision was passed regarding 20 schools that had been charged guilty for blocking access for the children of the undocumented parents from joining the school (Mueller para 1). The judgment was passed regarding them to amend their school enrollment policies to accommodate such children. The New York state attorney considered the barrier illegal and recommended immediately modified to avoid punitive measures.

The American constitution prescribes a free public education for K to 12 level children without discrimination. Therefore it is only right to allow illegal immigrants to enroll their children in the American schools to access education. It is a constitutional right that when violated a person should be considered for a prosecution. The denial of undocumented children the right to be schooled in America is a violation of human rights. Some studies have emerged claiming that illegal immigrants in the workforce pay a lot of taxes compared to the public services they can access (Johnson and Laura 9). Therefore their children should be provided with education as part of the equation. Most of the illegal immigrant have their children born in America which automatically gives the children an American citizenship. Unfortunately, these children instead of being treated as such, their parents status are used to deny these children chances in the American education system. These children are legally American citizens and deserve an education as other children. Therefore children should not be punished based on the citizenship of their parents. Hence to make the work easier the Supreme Court ruled that all children regardless of their citizenship status, but reside with the American borders, are entitled to enrollment in the public schools.

A survey by the Public Policy Institute of California in 2006 indicated the people of California considered illegal immigrants harmless and should be provided with opportunities for attaining legal citizenship (Johnson and Laura 11). They also stated that those undocumented immigrants who had worked for more than two years in American should be allowed to apply for work permit. These views were aired by more than 49% of the participants in the survey. This shows that the American population has no problem with already existing illegal immigrants and therefore the government should have a soft spot towards them. Additionally, their children should also be provided with a chance to make their future in schools like other American students. California is the city in American with the highest number of illegal immigrants with most coming from Mexico and Latin America. Therefore with such opinion poll in can be considered than immigrants are not harmful when incorporated into the system appropriately. It is unfair that the American economic system accommodates illegal immigrant without strictness but becomes stringent to the same immigrants when they try to access the education system. The American policies should be balanced otherwise the immigrants should be allowed to school in America.

In conclusion, the cases of illegal immigration have become rampant across the world with 11 million and one million cases in the USA and UK respectively. The immigrants come to sick asylum, escape wars, and economic challenges in their nations among other reasons. Unfortunately, these people are denied a chance to access the education system. American constitution requires that all children regardless of their immigration or citizenship status to obtain the public education. Some studies have shown that the unskilled labor force is catered mainly by the immigrants who pay taxes as other Americans but get less public services. Therefore as they contribute towards the growth of the American economy, it is only right to allow their children to study in American schools. Most of the immigrants give birth in America which makes their children American hence they deserve to be enrolled in American schools.

Works cited

Hanson, Gordon Howard. The economics and policy of illegal immigration in the United States. Washington, DC: Migration Policy Institute, 2010.

Johnson, Hans P., and Laura Hill. Illegal immigration. San Francisco, Calif, USA: Public Policy Institute of California, 2006. Retrieved from http://www.ppic.org/content/pubs/atissue/AI_711HJAI.pdf

Mueller, Benjamin. New York Compels 20 School Districts to Lower Barriers to Immigrants. The New York Times, The New York Times, 18 Feb. 2015, www.nytimes.com/2015/02/19/nyregion/new-york-compels-20-school-districts-to-lower-barriers-to-immigrants.html.

Walsh, Amanda M. "Around the World: Illegal Immigrants and the Cost of Higher Education in the UK." Child. Legal Rts. J.33 (2013): 207. Retrieved from https://www.luc.edu/media/lucedu/law/students/publications/clrj/pdfs/walsh%20.pdf