In response to the ongoing opposition and often hostile response to
the Trump Administration's use of ICE agents in rounding up illegals
in our nation, I submit a letter I wrote in the summer of 2018 to the
editor of a local senior citizen newspaper, The Golden Times.
As I re-read the letter I wrote eight years ago again this morning
I was reminded that there are always two sides to every story.
Image courtesy/Britannica
In response to the recent Murphy's Law column entitled, "Denial Of Kids'
Visas Another Blemish For Maligned U.S. Immigration" (see The Golden Times
August, 2018) did the writer, Barbara Murphy ever consider that these four teens
from Cameroon, who were denied visas to enter the United States, were required
beforehand to receive an officially approved medical examination and vaccinations
prior to the obtainment of a visa?
According to the U.S. State Department's guidelines for travelers from Cameroon:
"All immigrant visa applications, regardless of age, require a medical examination
prior to the issuance of a visa. Only a physician accredited by the U.S. Embassy in
Cameroon can perform this exam. It is the applicant's responsibility to schedule
a medical examination with one of the approved doctors before their visa
interview appointment at the U.S. Embassy. Medical exams performed
by other physicians will not be accepted."
Furthermore, at the time of the applicant's appointment, the person seeking the
visa is required to bring the following documentation with them: 1) A visa
appointment letter; 2) A passport; 3) Four recently taken passport-sized
color photographs; and 4) A copy of immunization records.
Aside from providing an all expense paid trip to a basketball camp in
Philadelphia, were these kids' sponsors aware of these necessary requirements
beforehand? Do they understand that this poor, central African nation is known
for random epidemics of deadly diseases like Typhoid, Yellow Fever, and Malaria?
Although The Philadelphia Inquirer article Ms. Murphy references does mention
that these kids had obtained their passports, it does not delve further into whether
these kids had received the medical requirements needed to obtain a visa in Cameroon.
Instead, Ms. Murphy and Inquirer columnist Ronnie Polaneczky contended that America
has "sucker-punched" these poor African youths by denying them their visas.
The Inquirer article also alludes to an area student exchange program in which
Mexican kids were denied visas to come here, which the writer blames on the
'zero tolerance' immigration policy of President Donald Trump.
What the media fails to see on purpose is that the massive immigration mess in this
nation has been out of control for far too many years now, and that in order to corral
the problem he has inherited due to the extreme laxity of previous administrations,
President Trump has had to resort to some drastic measures in order to enact
reforms in the system, which unfortunately, will not materialize overnight.
Ms. Murphy further contends that there is no immigration law written by
our government which calls for the separation of children from their parents
trying to cross our border illegally. This is not true. There certainly is a law,
which unfortunately has not been properly enforced for many years, which
declares that any person-man, woman, or child-who have come here illegally
are, upon capture, to be arrested and detained until they can be deported back
to their home country. Any American citizen caught harboring an illegal
could also be sent to prison for violating this law.
Furthermore, in more recent times, the FBI has uncovered overwhelming evidence
of jihadist camps in New Mexico and other places across the U.S. which have been
training children to commit acts of terrorism against American citizens. Just where
did these children come from? Perhaps the reason why the more than 200 children
Ms. Murphy mentions that have not been reunited with their parents yet is because
the government wants to make sure that the parents and guardians are who they
claim to be, and not part of some human trafficking ring or recruiters for
terrorist training that have stolen these kids.
Meanwhile, while it may well be true that these kids from Cameroon were
denied visas because they were not aware that they needed medical examinations
and an updated vaccination record for traveling overseas, it could also be true that
there was some kind of error made in the processing of their visa applications.
Government offices are often so overwhelmed with paperwork that errors are
common and to be expected. Again this latter possibility was not even taken
into consideration by Ms. Murphy or The Inquirer.
Instead, it is quite evident to me that the duplicitous mainstream media
will stop at nothing these days, including capitalizing on the bitter disappointment
of four teens from Cameroon, in order to continue their relentless campaign to unfairly
vilify America under President Donald Trump as a bigoted and heartless nation.
