VOA标准英语2012--Illegal Immigration Not an Issue for Legal Immigrants in New York

Illegal Immigration Not an Issue for Legal Immigrants in New York

Mudassa Khan came to the United States from Pakistan as a teenager and now owns an electronics store in New York City. He said his family waited 12 years for legal permission to immigrate¹, but he sympathizes with those who immigrate illegally. 

“There has to be some desperation there in order for them to do something like that," she said.

Khan said illegal immigration is not an issue among South Asian immigrants in the neighborhood where his store is located, but he recognizes the dilemma² posed by illegal immigrants. 

“I’m not even for giving them a legal status over here, but there has to be something in between in order for us to keep it a fair game,” he said.

But defining fairness is controversial. Critics say illegal aliens violate the law, take jobs away from Americans and must be deported⁴. Filipino-American immigration attorney J.T. Mallonga disagrees.

“You can’t deport³ all 12 million, nor can you jail all 12 million. But at this point in time, there is no avenue for them to address their legal residency issues," said Mallonga.

A bill before the U.S. Senate called the DREAM Act proposes a path to citizenship⁵ for young illegal immigrants who finish high school or serve in the military. But many Republicans oppose it, including presidential contender Romney.

“I like people coming here legally. And so I will secure the border with a fence, make sure we have enough border patrol agents to secure that fence, and I will also crack down on employers that hire people who are here illegally,” said Romney.

The Obama administration has deported a record number of illegal aliens, about 400,000 per year. A new study by the Pew Hispanic Center indicates that the number of illegal Mexican immigrants in the United States is declining. Even if immigration remains⁶ a volatile⁷ issue in an election year, though, Khan doesn't expect much to change. 

“I’ve seen that in a lot of elections. They make a topic of it. When it comes down to doing something about it, nothing has been done. I think they’ll use this to get some votes, again, and when the election is over, they’ll probably forget about it and nothing major will happen,” he said.

And in New York, it's not likely to affect who wins the presidential race. Even Republicans concede that the state's millions of legal immigrants likely will vote for Obama’s reelection.

1 immigrate   

v.（从外国）移来，移居入境

参考例句：

• 10,000 people are expected to immigrate in the next two years.接下来的两年里预计有10，000人会移民至此。
• Only few plants can immigrate to the island.只有很少的植物能够移植到这座岛上。

2 dilemma   

n.困境，进退两难的局面

参考例句：

• I am on the horns of a dilemma about the matter.这件事使我进退两难。
• He was thrown into a dilemma.他陷入困境。

3 deport   

vt.驱逐出境

参考例句：

• We deport aliens who slip across our borders.我们把偷渡入境的外国人驱逐出境。
• More than 240 England football fans are being deported from Italy following riots last night.昨晚的骚乱发生后有240多名英格兰球迷被驱逐出意大利。

4 deported   

v.将…驱逐出境( deport的过去式和过去分词 )；举止

参考例句：

• They stripped me of my citizenship and deported me. 他们剥夺我的公民资格，将我驱逐出境。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The convicts were deported to a deserted island. 罪犯们被流放到一个荒岛。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。

6 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

7 volatile   

adj.反复无常的，挥发性的，稍纵即逝的，脾气火爆的；n.挥发性物质

参考例句：

• With the markets being so volatile,investments are at great risk.由于市场那么变化不定，投资冒着很大的风险。
• His character was weak and volatile.他这个人意志薄弱，喜怒无常。