IMMIGRATION MATTERS

A Column by Kimberley A. Chandler, Immigration Attorney
May, 2009

For the debut of this column, I searched for a powerful subject. My words needed to capture the reader and to stimulate thoughts about immigration. And then I got a call from one of my very first immigration clients. His story is my subject.

He first came to the United States from his native country, Nigeria, in the late ‘70s as an exchange student. He graduated from a well-respected university in the Midwest, then received an MBA and a masters in finance and, eventually, a law degree. He started a securities business years ago. He now employs 16 people, but when economic times were better, he employed almost 60. He naturalized and is married to a United States citizen. His two children are excellent students. He sits on several boards and makes large charitable donations.

I came to know him when he was in danger of being deported in the ‘80s. His wife at the time, a United States citizen, threatened to tell the Immigration Service that he perpetrated a fraud, marrying her only to receive immigration benefits. She made this threat several times, always when he wasn’t “behaving.” When he told me that he loved his wife and that her erratic behavior was due to a recently-diagnosed mental illness, I believed him. So did a federal judge, who allowed him to remain in the United States.

Like most of us, he is concerned about the economy but determined to ride out the hard times. Never has he lost faith in the United States, which he always calls “the best country in the world;” and he believes that our country offers opportunity to all who are willing to work hard. He’s an immigrant - positive, hard-working, honest, kind – the type of guy I want as a neighbor and a friend. And he’s not the exception. Although his accomplishments are extraordinary, he epitomizes the attitudes and feelings of my clients. As Congress now considers reforming our immigration system, I ask you: At what expense do we restrict people like this from coming to the United States?