Immigration reform seems to be on the brink of happening now, and illegal immigrants who have lived under fear of deportatiion for decades can finally come out of the shadows and stand up and be counted. America should do this, not because Republicans got a beating in the elections, but because it's the right thing to do. Millions of illegal immigrants have come here in search of a better life. They have endured abuse, discrimination and loneliness, because no matter what, they were still better off here than in their own countries. They have left families, ties and countries in search of the American Dream. For this they have paid a hefty emotional price, living like furtive pariahs most of the time, and afraid, always afraid that any infraction, however small, can get them deported making their sacrifice null and void. They have sacrificed for their families, for their souls, for the thing most humans treasure above all else, freedom, freedom from want, freedom from brutal poverty, freedom from hopelessness. America is still the sort of country where one can dream, one can achieve, once can overcome. Let's not disappointment them now, it would be too crushing, too cruel. Others, unable to pay the price have gone back voluntarily after living here many years. They too should be included, for they were as desperate as the ones who got deported, but they lacked vision and fortitude. They thought they would be condemned never to see their families again. They didn't think America was capable of greateness anymore when it came to them. They were afraid they would always be marginalized, unable to vote, to have an input in the country they had come to love, and always pressing their noses against the glass, never really belonging. Let's do the right thing for them too. Let's show them they were wrong, that we do recognize their sacrifice, their contribution to this great country of ours.
