Hello, Lilac. I know this is an emotive subject and will tread carefully.
The better term for this group of people is "Asylum Seekers", not illegal immigrants. There are laws in place to deal with them. While it would be ideal for them to all turn up at the same place and to nicely get in line with all their certified paperwork, this does not represent the real world. Keep in mind, this isn't a US problem, it is occurring in all of the free world at the moment.
There are indeed holes in the processes today. It is estimated there are 11 million illegal immigrants in the US. Background checks today only go as far as government databases and watch lists for individuals. Checks take time, and money. You're also hoping that information in these databases is up to date. I don't know what you define as a "proper background test". I know I had both criminal and financial background checks to work in the US.
I also think cherry picking a news story and using it to justify your cause is not useful. Crime is crime, and criminals should be held to account. The vast majority of crimes in the US are done by US citizens. Bad people do bad things. Desperate people do desperate things. I could link to news stories of Americans doing horrid crimes, but that kind of tit-for-tat isn't useful, imo.
Which brings me to three points. I lived in Texas for a few years, and illegal immigrants were used for all kinds of jobs, knowingly. Why? Because building houses in the Texas heat is more than most can stand. Mowing lawns is hard work with the heat and humidity, etc. Locals don't want to be waitresses and waiters. Everyone there knew it was happening, but nobody cared because these people were making money for someone else, and no-one wanted those jobs anyway.
Secondly, Mexico is a nation in free fall. This is largely fueled by Cartels. The cartels are supplying drugs across the border to satisfy a never-ending demand in the US. What goes the other way is weapons. For example, the gun trade has grown exponentially since the end of the last century. Those guns are then used to support those that are dealing the drugs. It's a dangerous dynamic that is helping to keep cartels in power in large parts of the country. Where's the uproar about that? Where is the legislation to stop weapons and ammunition being sold into Mexico? Nowhere.
Thirdly, the US is a country of immigrants. In fact, the entire basis of the US is that of interlopers. In modern times the scale is far greater for potential immigration, I get that, but the heart of the nation is one of welcoming others. It's written on the Statue of Liberty: "Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!" What a wonderful message.
Okay - so what can be done then? Personally, I think we should start to concentrate on the disease, and not the symptoms. There is a reason these people are trying to go to other countries. The tale of "it's for the benefits and a free ride" isn't accurate, it's a lazy trope. Many of them are running away from real horrors. These are desperate people. What would you do if you feared for your child's life? What would you be willing to do if the only future you saw for your children was their being sucked up into a life of crime as a cartel member (the average life span of a cartel member is 5 to 10 years)? What would you do to avoid starvation? What would you do to get medical help?
Worse - foreign policies of first world countries, elected by you and me, are responsible for a lot of what has gone wrong elsewhere. Through wars, economic policies, and lack of aid, our representatives have undermined third world nations. I think we'd be far better off dealing with that, making these countries better places to live, than what we have today. No-one is going to convince me that women and men are taking their children and babies, getting into boats and sailing across sea's, in order to get a free meal.
One final thing - in the EU there is free movement of people between countries. There is crime, of course. But it works. It works brilliantly overall. The borders, which still exist, are almost completely open. People come and people go. It's been an economic boon.
But mostly, the thing I dislike the most about all this, is the nastiness of it. There is real hatred against Asylum Seekers. People are suggesting disgraceful policies to counter them. They're all painted as criminals with nothing to offer, as though they're worthless human beings. The rhetoric comes from the darkest side of our souls. This is fostered by some people in politics for votes, pandering to the worst of human nature. All I'd ask is, treat them with human respect. The US purports to be a Christian nation, run on Christian ideals - can we get an ounce of that, please? Because all I seem to come across is anger, hate, and blanket statements to denigrate people who already have nothing.
ps: I am not saying YOU or anyone else here is guilty of the worst of what I'm writing.
