Editorial

In 1958, in his book A Nation of Immigrants, President John F. Kennedy wrote “America is a nation of people who value both tradition and the exploration of new frontiers, people who deserve the freedom to build better lives for themselves in their adopted homeland.”

He also said, “In 1797 a member of Congress argued that, while a liberal immigration policy was fine when the country was new and unsettled, now that America had reached its maturity and was fully populated, immigration should stop–an argument which has been repeated at regular intervals throughout American history.”

It is 2018, and the discussion on immigration continues unchanged. Over the last few decades during different presidential administrations, immigration reform continues to be a part of campaign promises and Congressional debates. Unfortunately, the US congress and US presidents have not been able to pass any significant laws.

Even though there are several burning issues regarding immigration, the two most important issues many Desh-Videsh readers face are H1B and EB-5 investment visas. In this issue, we present articles from two prominent Florida immigration attorneys, Ms. Manjula Kalidindi, Esq. from the Law Office of Manjula Kalidindi and Ms. Madhurima Paturi, Esq. from The Law Offices of Madhurima B. Paturi, LLC.

As we all know and agree, this country is made up of immigrants from all over the world. Immigrants are not the only to benefit from coming to this country, as many in the United States also benefit. Alan Greenspan, ex-Chairman of the US Federal Reserve said, “I’ve always argued that this country has benefited immensely from the fact that we draw people from all over the world.”

Of course the debate changes when we talk about illegal immigrants. According to the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), US taxpayers will pay approximately $134.9 billion to cover the costs incurred by the presence of more than 12.5 million illegal immigrants, and about 4.2 million citizen children of illegal immigrants. The total cost of illegal immigration to U.S. taxpayers is both staggering and crippling. In 2013, FAIR estimated the total cost to be approximately $113 billion.

Even though President Trump has been one of the most controversial presidents in last several decades, personally I am very hopeful that he will address immigration reform issue more aggressively in the same way he has addressed major tax reform and the denuclearization of North Korea.

After reading the article on Yoga in our April issue, many readers have requested more articles on Yoga and its health benefits. In this issue, we are pleased to present an article on “The 8 Limbs of Yoga” by Chahna Tailor, a certified yoga instructor.

Before I end my column, I would like to remind readers that the July issue will be our education issue, in which we focus on our youth – particularly valedictorians, salutatorians, or any high achievers in academics but also across all fields. Please submit information about your own students or any students of friends and relatives via the link on www.deshvidesh.com.

Until then, Happy Summer!

Raj Shah
Managing Editor