Rosenfield: Deportation laws fuel international cycle of violence

Under the shadow of the Statue of Liberty and in the same year that a record number of illegals were deported, 125 immigrants from 46 countries gathered to commemorate the 125th anniversary of the Statue of Liberty. It was symbolism at its finest: Anyone from anywhere can have access to the American Dream in this nation of opportunity.

The irony of the ceremony nearly outdid its symbolism in a year when 400,000 illegals were deported. Clearly, the American Dream is not for everyone, especially not for immigrants. And this won't change until people take notice. It's politics as usual, and immigration has again failed to enter the discussion.

A record number of illegals were deported this year, but the topic is so under reported that the most recent poll Gallup has done was on June 22, 2011. Alabama recently passed an onerous immigration law, but the effects have been limited to fueling views about Southern prejudice rather than solving the problem. While felony prosecution for immigration crimes increased 42 percent this year, the issue has hardly cracked the presidential debates.

The last time the U.S. changed its deportation laws was in the 1990s following the L.A. Riots. It was time to get tough on crime. Minors were charged as adults. The "three strikes and you're out" law was passed in California, increasing jail sentences terms. Non-citizens sentenced to a year or more in prison were repatriated to their countries of origin upon release. Foreign born Americans who committed felonies were stripped of their citizenship and expelled. The jails held more people for longer periods of time. As a result, more people were eligible for deportation and were deported. Deportation is considered a means to an end, a useful tool for controlling population flow. It's not a topic for debate. But it should be. The US should change its deportation laws to prevent the growth of international crime organizations.

It was a system designed to identify, incarcerate and eject illegal criminals. And it worked, just not as intended. Between 2000 and 2004, 20,000 Central American criminals were deported. Because U.S. immigration law banned officials from disclosing the criminal background of the deportees, the recipient countries had no idea who they were receiving. They were unprepared for the wave of violence that was unleashed.

Unbeknownst to the El Salvadorian government, the country was receiving some of the U.S.'s most violent gang members who went on to form Central America's two most powerful gangs: e Mara Salvatrucha and the Mara 18. Levels of violence outdid those at the peak of the El Salvadorian civil war. The homicide rate circa 2005 (near the peak of the catastrophe) was 55 per 100,000, twice the regional average.

A largely ineffective militaristic crack-down in Central America has put a small damper on the violence, but Mexico is exploding with drug and gang related crimes. And immigrants are crossing the U.S. border to escape the violence. Deportations haven't solved the crisis; they've created it.  

Incarcerating illegal immigrants and then releasing them into their countries of origin is not a sound strategy. Upon release, inmates are more skilled in violence, not reformed. When they return home, they go back into crime. Crime sends more illegals across the border in search of safety and the American Dream. It's a cycle of violence fueled by deportation.     The U.S. is the only country capable of cracking the cycle. To get a grip on illegal immigration, the deportation procedure needs reform. Dropping 400,000 people into Central and South America is not the solution. The U.S. needs to create programs capable of helping our Southern neighbors assimilate these populations. If we do nothing but deport, the current cycle of violence that harms our entire hemisphere will know no end.

Scott Rosenfield is a Medill junior. He can be reached at ScottRosenfield2012@u.northwestern .edu