Don’t Got A Greencard? Don’t Get A Toy

Christmas has always been about providing children with presents under the Christmas tree beside the warm, lit fireplace. Recently, however, Santa Clause has been considering immigration status and birth certificates to the list of qualifications concerning the distribution of his presents instead of just being naughty or nice. Several programs that receive donations and distribute them to families now require at least one member of the family to be a U.S. citizen in order to be eligible to apply to be recipients of those donations.

Discriminatory acts such as this truly taint the true essence of giving that comes with Christmas. Programs such as the Salvation Army and the firefighters of Houston, along with the Outreach program have required some sort of documentation proving residential status such as photo identification, birth certificates, and/or Social Security cards. Lorugene Young, the director of Outreach Inc., states that “it's not [their] desire to turn anyone down” and that “[the] kids are not responsible if they are here illegally…it is the parents' responsibility.” This statement indicates that their intention is not to harm the children but their parents for being irresponsible, non-citizens. Despite their round-about justification, in the end they are still denying children that do not have the proper documentation and the kids are still the ones that suffer the consequences.

In my opinion background checks are just too much trouble and they are just creating a pandemonium that they don’t need. They are fusing the issue of immigration with Christmas and the children of the impoverished. Organizations such as Blue Santa do not discriminate when it comes to the distribution of gifts to children by stating that “when you distribute toys to 10,000 to 12,000 kids, it's impossible to background [check] every child” realizing the problem with the proposed new code of conduct.

I always thought that this country was based on equality and strongly enforces the act of brotherhood on which we were built upon. So where is the equality in this discriminatory act that strips equality and opportunity for impoverished children and their family? I believe that if America has tainted any traditions and beliefs that we have placed upon ourselves, this would definitely be decorating the cake. This act just shows that just like everything else that we’ve ever believed is nothing now but history, and that America is down a road unrecognizable even to itself.