Evie Janis

New immigration policies are negatively impacting people around the United States—we need to stop these unjust policies.

The President of the United States, Donald J. Trump, recently issued Executive Order 14159, which protects the American people against invasion, ensures that “aliens” follow the legal governmental process of entering the country as an immigrant. However, for most immigrants, their safety is often on the line, and things such as immigrating legally are not their top priority. Why are we prioritizing legal documents over the safety of people (including many families) escaping bad situations in their home countries? If America is the land of the free, shouldn’t we be welcoming them with open arms? 

The term “aliens” as a reference to immigrants is a disrespectful connotation in and of itself, comparing people who enter our country in search of a better life to fictional green monsters that live in outer space. That term refers to immigrants as though they are a different species, which is cruel and dehumanizing. Immigrants are people, just like you and me, with real emotions and real problems. In general, immigrants face constant and persistent discrimination, even if they have gone through the legal process of becoming a citizen. The truth is, the way that the United States treats immigrants is very concerning. The process of immigrants becoming U.S. citizens has an average of 5.6 months. For people who are seeking safety, financial stability, or education, this waiting period is too long, because some people’s lives are on the line. Staying in their home countries—from where they are trying to escape persecution—could be highly detrimental to their safety. 

A few of the main reasons that immigrants travel to the United States in hopes of a better life are for educational purposes, persecution, wars and armed conflicts, gang violence, discrimination, social exclusion, torture, sexual violence,  and much more. I feel as though the United States has a duty to protect these people seeking citizenship, and perhaps do not possess the financial resources to afford it, or the privilege of education to pass the tests they require. When someone is deported from the US, they are sent back to their home country, and this can raise a serious safety concern for those who were trying to escape for very valid and important reasons. Many immigrants do not choose to leave their home, but rather are forced to, either involuntarily or because they know a better life exists for them elsewhere. Shouldn’t everyone be allowed to strive for a better life for themselves? A better life for their children? For their families?

The government claims that many of these immigrants pose a big threat to national security and public safety, and that they are “committing vile and heinous acts against innocent Americans,” which is not a fair statement. Most people trying to immigrate to the U.S. are seeking asylum or escaping violence, not trying to bring more crime and violence into the U.S. There have been studies that show a U.S. citizen is more likely to commit crimes than an immigrant. Over the past few decades, the number of immigrants entering the United States has increased significantly, and with that, the crime rate has decreased. This means that claims against immigrants, stating that they are, in fact, bringing more crime into the country, are false. Moreover, because they go hand in hand, if immigrants were actually criminals who were bringing crime into our country, the numbers in crime would be increasing in proportion to the number of immigrants coming into our country, which simply is not the case. In communities with more immigrants globally, crime rates–specifically homicide rates–are lower. In fact, immigrants today are 60% less likely to be incarcerated for committing crimes than US citizens. 

Another concerning factor is that the alternative routes for immigrants to enter the United States are extremely dangerous. With all of the time and effort it takes for immigrants to enter the country, many are forced to make the choice to immigrate immediately and often illegally. These paths of travel have many safety concerns. One of those safety concerns is the terrain, which endangers travelers with the possibility of heat stroke, dehydration, or drowning. There are also risks with criminals, cartels, and smugglers who often take vulnerable immigrants. Since 1998, there have been over 8,000 reported deaths of undocumented immigrants while crossing the US-Mexico border. 

However, this does not just concern immigrants. US citizens are often viewed negatively by citizens in other countries because of these new laws. In a recent trip to Italy in Spring 2025, many people would gasp when we told them we were from the United States. On a few different occasions, my family and I were told directly that what our country was doing was bad, and all we could do was agree. It got to the point where we began to lie about where we were from; when people would ask, we said we were Canadian. This reaction shows how we are causing cross-cultural tensions by imposing these new laws, and possibly worsening our relationships with other countries. 

These actions against immigrants demonize a minority group, blaming them for our country’s problems to create common hatred for that group. Blaming a group of people, such as immigrants, does not require much effort because Immigrants are already a minority group. Many people do not view them as equals who should be given the same rights as white people. That makes it easy to blame them for issues that are present in our country, such as crime, when there are larger issues present that cause crime. 

Even Pope Francis, who recently passed away, agreed that the laws around immigration in the US are too strict. In his last moments, he met with US Vice President JD Vance and discussed deportation plans. In 2016, he prayed for migrants who had passed on their journey at the US-Mexico border. He has even stated that anyone building a wall to keep migrants out “is not a Christian.” His values stay very true to the Catholic Social Teachings, emphasizing the importance of maintaining human dignity. This is the belief that all human beings possess worth and are entitled to respect and fair treatment. Immigration policies are forceful, dangerous, and inhumane. Our country needs to work towards bettering its treatment of immigrants and being more accepting of their circumstances, instead of sending them back to countries where their well-being is at risk.