July 2018
by Seth Halpern/Editor In recent days, nothing has been as talked about and argued as the “Zero Tolerance” policy and the resulting separation of children from their parents. It has been an understandably controversial and largely protested issue. Under pressure from both public and legislative scrutiny, President Trump signed an executive order to hopefully end future separations for families awaiting legal decisions. As of this writing, there are still more than 2,000 children in the custody of the federal government. How did we get here? No one wants to see families separated and children screaming as they are removed from their parents. I don’t
Sponsor Spotlight Brandon Carter of Signarama
Page 9
think that any sane person would want to see that. However, there is a larger issue. That is the issue of “criminality”. The term “illegal” in front of the word “immigrant” is often overlooked and often changed to “undocumented” in order to water down its unfavorable meaning. However, “Undocumented” is not legal either. Many people who enter the U.S. on work visas or otherwise and then stay past their expiration are now “unauthorized or illegal”. It’s the same way when Americans outstay their visa to a foreign country. It’s also true that many work jobs and even pay taxes. The point is not whether or not they are good, kind, or productive people, but whether or not they are allowed to be in the U.S.
Caught Serving!
Page 10
Therefore, we have an issue with the person or in this case “parent” coming into this country “illegally”. We have an issue of Justice that needs to be resolvedeither by enforcement or by changing the law. It has been stated that every “legal” parent (in terms of residency) who breaks the law (that is, does something “illegal”) goes to jail/prison and is separated from their children who are then taken into the custody of the state. Zero tolerance would mean that the illegal (or unauthorized) entry itself could be a criminal offense and would be prosecuted. (Granted I am not an expert in immigration law and this article is more about ethics and spiritual application than law) Many would argue that people from
Assemblyman Gallagher’s Legislative Update
Page 16
Mexico or other poor or corrupt countries simply want a better life and shouldn’t be penalized or treated as criminals. It may certainly be the case that many cross our borders for these reasons, and simply seek a chance to provide for their family. However, we would then need to consider other “crimes”. What about the person who steals because they don’t have enough food or rent money for their family? What about the want-to-be parent that kidnaps a child because they cannot conceive? I’m sure we can think of dozens of scenarios of people who want a “better” life. What would we say to the North Korean citizen attempting
Continue on page 16 1040 Lincoln Rd., Suite A, #124 Yuba City, CA 95991 530-933-1385 editor@ambassadornewspaper.com
The Ambassador
1