In 2017, immigration is as big an issue today as it was when the country was founded. Over the past 400 years there have been many reasons why people immigrated to America. Some not only practice the religion of their choice, but flee war and impoverished lands. Today there is a common debate about whether or not we should open our borders and allow immigrants in our country to live the life they have dreamed of. Living in America, “the land of the free, the home of the brave.” However, from the alternative perspective, the harsher Republican political parties would say that having open borders exposes us to threats that infringe on our freedom and endanger the families we love so much. The question remains: How much is too much, and is there anything we can do to find a middle ground? Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get Original Essay America has always seen an increasing number of immigrants when times in their countries have become too great. This dates back to the 1840s, when much of Ireland emigrated to the United States due to the potato famine. We welcomed Chinese immigrants due to hunger and drought, and with the industrial revolution we accepted more than 20 million immigrants thanks to our technological advances. In 1882, when the government began to pay more attention to those emigrating to the United States, it actually began to be proactive about entry. Ports such as Ellis Island and Angel Island served as gateways to our country. The most current debate is about the Muslim faith and how their belief system honestly coincides with many terrorist activities by extremists. The current president, Donald J. Trump, will have you believe that our borders will be more secure if we continue to follow his “Muslim Ban.” The polls seem to be a good mix, the telephone ones say they are against, while the web ones say they are in support. What makes us unique is that our country has relied on cultural diversity, on a unique blend of individuals who bring our unique attributes. Those unique individuals are among you today and have created some of the best inventions. The prime example of this is Steve Jobs, when his mother emigrated from Syria in 1954. Without that, we may never have known what an iPhone was. According to the most recent statistics from 2015, there were 43.2 million immigrants living on U.S. soil (13.3%) and arriving in this country. If you took a poll today to gauge whether people were against immigration, the chances of them saying they were totally against immigration are slim. If you reverse the same question and ask if they are against Syrian refugees, the numbers explode. The reason is due to the threat of ISIS and daily fear. The bottom line is that our country is built on the foundation of immigrants who have gone on to do great things. President Obama stated that “99.9% of Muslims are seeking peace” and pose no threat to our society. However, if you just think about the numbers, 8 radicalized Muslim terrorists carried out the recent Paris attacks in 2016. If you take into account what President Obama says, that leaves 0.1% (10 people) out of 10,000 refugees who can cause substantial harm. Some would say that homegrown terrorism is our greatest concern, and they are certainly not wrong. But are we closing the borders with the threat based solely on Syrian refugees and ISIS or are we doing it because we truly fear all walks of life? Please note: this is just an example. Get a personalized document now!”.