CORPUS CHRISTI (Kiii News) -
The tragedy of the latest accident involving undocumented immigrants has immigration reform proponents calling for action.
Local immigration attorney Debra Rodriguez said the current immigration law is outdated. She said this tragedy serves as a horrible reminder that immigration reform is badly needed in this country.
"Unfortunately, this I think in the last two or three months is the second one in our area," Rodriguez said. "It's not an uncommon story. People coming in and taking risks like this to build a better life for themselves here."
Rodriguez said the current unrest in Mexico and the gang violence fuel the massive influx of illegal immigration. Immigrants from other nations south of the border come here seeking a better life in the United States, and they're willing to risk their lives.
But Rodriguez said perhaps the biggest factor in this ongoing problem is the US immigration process itself.
"People are trying to do it the right way oftentimes, and the world has changed," Rodriguez said. "It is much smaller these days."
Rodriguez said President Obama's recent deferred action plan for students who came to this country under the age of 16, and who are in school or have graduated from school, is a start; but more needs to be done. She said comprehensive immigration reform, whereby those here illegally would have to pay taxes and fees in order to stay in this country while they apply for legal status, is not amnesty, but a way that might curb the number of lives lost by immigrants trying to get in.
