I think we need to make it not so easy to cross with all the open spots. We need to get the fences fixed and make it easy to cross safely, instead of sneaking across, so it’s not as dangerous and people don’t have to risk everything.
Stephanie Hunt, 18
Hattiesburg, Miss.
Pre-communications
Change needs to come from Latin America. There needs to be reformists in Mexico. I think a wall to close the border would not solve it. A lot of people don’t want to leave, but they feel they have no option. The Mexican people are proud of their country and home and many work to send money home.
Carlos Whetten, 21
El Paso, Texas
English
We need to find those who are not citizens and not kick them out, but give them a way to earn their citizenship.
Liz Bennett, 20
Rocklin, Calif.
Exercise Science
In the past I thought the fence was a bad idea, the same as the Berlin Wall. But it’s not the same. We should encourage safe legal immigration and outline the process, showing the simple steps needed to legally enter the country.
Scott Armstrong, 22
Houston, Texas
Recreation Management Youth Leadership
We need to give people the opportunity to be a part of the country. The point of the country is freedom and equality.
Brigida Deleon, 19
New York City, N.Y.
History
I think it has to be an economic solution. With rewards for immigration so high, no fence or wall is going to stop it. We’ve been fighting this for over 20 years with no progress. The best solution would be a guest worker program. It would allow us to know who was in the country. With two nations sharing the same border, who are both so economically different, we’re bound to have immigration. Any solution that ignored the economic realities is bound to fail. Because we rely so much on cheap labor, if we were to shut off the border, it would wreak havoc on our country’s economy.
Kent Hatch
Assistant Professor in Biology Dept.
Orem
