Illicit
Higher Education
Illegal Aliens Get Tuition
Break
By Daniel Muniz
In a handful of populous states, illegal aliens can legitimately
attend a public university using the much lower priced in-state
tuition rates while U.S. citizens who reside outside the state of
the college that they want to enroll in still have to pay the far
higher rate of out-of-state tuition. Naturally, a large number of
college applicants are outraged knowing that people who are already
breaking the law by being illegally in this country not only can
attend college but that they can also get a hefty and generous price
break.
For years, illegal immigrants have already been enjoying plenty
of state sponsored breaks and benefits which has greatly aggravated
the people who are footing the bill. Many taxpayers are often
incensed at having to pay, year after year, the enormous expense of
medical care, education, and a host of many other social services
that illegal immigrants are taking full advantage of.
In fact, many local and state governmental entities even
advertise on television that they will not ask any questions
whatsoever concerning citizenship status for assistance and
benefits. This perverse atmosphere encourages illegal aliens to
fully utilize everything our country has to offer especially since
they don’t have to worry about getting punished for being here
illegally.
In addition to the governmental agencies doling out services to
people who are illegal immigrants, there is also a large segment of
society that actually want illegal aliens to enjoy as many benefits
as possible regardless of what it costs the taxpayers. Many of these
Liberals feel that America is already too wealthy therefore they
don’t have a problem with the enormous costs needed to fund these
services. And they also don’t have a problem with the people who
also refuse to go through the process of becoming an American
citizen.
Perhaps getting a break for tuition for college is one of the most
ludicrous of all of the benefits that illegal aliens partake in. It
is outrageous that a legitimate college student has to pay
substantially more money in tuition than someone who is breaking the
law with their immigration status. That is wrong!
The bottom line is that if you are in this country illegally,
then you should not have access to any of our tax supported
institutions, unless it is an emergency situation. It is as simple
as that. Taxpayer funded institutions, such as universities, should
not allow students who are illegal aliens to even apply for
admission.
Unfortunately, the 1982 Supreme Court decision, Plyler v. Doe,
ruled that immigration status is irrelevant. Any child is entitled
to free primary and secondary education regardless if they are here
illegally.
As a result, many Liberals began to feel that this court decision
should also apply to education beyond high school.
Consequently, populous states with large illegal immigrant
populations like California, Illinois, New York, and Texas and as
well as other less populated states such as Kansas, New Mexico,
Oklahoma, and Utah have already codified legislation that allows
illegal aliens who have graduated high school from their respective
states to attend a public college or university and to use in-state
tuition rates.
Virginia is next in line to give illegal aliens the lower rate
for tuition for college. Republican state senator Emmett Hanger is
pushing hard for legislation to make that happen. And in the last
several years, a few other states have been toying around with the
same idea. It is quite possible that it won’t take very long for
other states in the union to eventually pass similar legislation.
However, the illegal immigrants who are able to go to college
with the lower priced tuition do have a couple of stipulations that
they supposedly have to abide by. They must sign an affidavit
stating that they promise to seek out and obtain legal immigration
status but seeing how fragmented and ineffective our laws already
are, that is a hollow pledge. And there really are not any
consequences applied to them if they fail to obtain legal residency
papers.
Many critics also contend that other states already have
loopholes that allow illegal aliens to get the lower tuition even
though there isn’t specific legislation that allows it.
Liberal supporters of illegal immigrants feel that a college
education is important because it helps these illicit newcomers
realize their full potential in this country. But if getting an
education is so important to an illegal alien, then so should be
following the process of filing the paperwork needed to become an
American citizen or at least for a legal status.
And it should also be important for any foreigner to follow the
rules and to obey the laws of the country that they are moving to.
Aliens would expect Americans to follow the laws of their own
country whenever we visit them.
There are already plenty of foreigners who are playing by rules
by filling out all the necessary forms and doing everything that is
required by the law in order to attend college in the United States.
Almost every university has plenty of “legal aliens” who are doing
the right thing and we as country ought to be grateful for these
legitimate students. However, the people who do not want to follow
the law do not deserve access to institutions of higher learning
especially because there are already so many foreigners who are
adhering to the rules to legally participate in our education
system.
But there is also another consideration. The presence of illegal
aliens in higher education also takes away the available resources
for someone who already is a citizen or a legal resident alien of
this country. That is downright unfair.
State supported colleges and universities ought to draw a line in
the sand. That is that a student can only enroll into an institution
of higher learning if and only if he or she is a citizen or has a
legal immigration status. Continuing to support the lawbreakers who
are already here only encourages more of them to illegally enter our
country, especially if there is no punishment involved.
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