One of my favorite quotes is “if you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem.” I think about this anytime I get frustrated with something in my life, both professionally and personally. To me, it says that I need to do something to fix a problem instead of just waiting for it to fix itself. If I do nothing, it’s just as bad as if I created the problem in the first place. In this moment of the intense immigration reform debate, we must all be part of the solution. Otherwise, we’re part of the broken system problem we currently have.
For the past two years, I have gone to Washington, D.C. to talk with our elected officials about the countless problems in immigration. Not just reform, but smaller issues that could be fixed with a change in the wording of a law or a different approach in official policy. I’ll admit it – I’ve been underwhelmed by these trips. More often than not, I met with staffers – college kids who work for our elected officials. They have all been nice and have listened to my complaints and ideas for improvement, but who knows if those words ever got back to their bosses. Out of the ten elected officials I’ve had appointments with – I’ve only met two face to face.
On Wednesday, August 28th, this number will go up to three. My Representative, Mr. Tom Price, is hosting a town hall meeting in Milton, Georgia. I’ve never been to a meeting like this before, but I’m excited to hear what he has to say about his goals and ideas for the remainder of his term. I’m also curious to see what types of people come out to talk with Representative Price. Regardless, I plan to ask him about his plan to fix our broken immigration system. While it’s a legitimate debate to discuss comprehensive versus piecemeal immigration form, I think everyone can agree that the system we currently have is broken. I anticipate that his answer will focus on border security. I understand this is a legitimate concern, but increasing border security does nothing to help us get more nurses into our hospitals, professors into our colleges, or entrepreneurs opening shops on our neighborhood corners. Let’s focus on fixing our legal immigration system. Hopefully, Rep. Price will engage us in a conversation about his ideas for solutions on Wednesday night. If he doesn’t…well, I guess that means he is part of the problem.
Rep. Price will be at Cambridge High School in Milton, from 6:30 until 8:00 on Wednesday, August 28th. http://tomprice.house.
Hope to see you there!
– Tracie