Immigration reform is important to South Carolinians

I love America and everything it stands for. I am a recent graduate at Charleston Southern University. My family and I immigrated to the United States in search of opportunities that wouldn’t have been possible in the small town of Tipperary, Ireland. Having lived the American Dream, I’d like candidates for president to hear my story so they can understand the importance of immigration reform and come up with solutions to fix our broken system.

We left Ireland when I was 8 years old. My dad became a minister in the Calvary Chapel movement in California, and we embraced everything American. My brothers and I played baseball and football, and participated in reenactments of American history. As a family, we watched the entire Ken Burns series on the Civil War, and the 4th of July became one of our favorite holidays.

I love our life in America and the transition to the American way of life was seamless. The process of becoming a legal citizen of the United States and the bureaucracy involved, however, is another story. Unless you have personally experienced the immigration process, it is hard to appreciate the inefficiency of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. Dealing with USCIS is like dealing with the Department of Motor Vehicles: endless paperwork, long lines, and an automated phone system with no option to talk to a live person.

I’ll never forget the time my mother and I went to get a work authorization at the immigration office in Santa Ana, Calif. Despite scheduling an appointment for that morning, we were told to come back in two weeks. As I was supposed to start a job that week, we couldn’t wait. My mother was persistent - she even called our Congressman - and we were finally seen. But the experience was typical.

The current immigration system is a glaring example of government inefficiency and waste. It dissuades people from trying to come to America legally, and that is a shame. I believe we need to have a fair, efficient system to become a legal citizen. We need to reform the system and structure it in a way that cuts red tape and saves money for taxpayers, but also makes it easier to come here legally.

My family and I immigrated the right way. My parents became citizens in 2014, and this month, I take the citizenship test in Charleston. It is a test I have waited to take my entire life. Indeed, it will be the proudest day of my life when I am sworn in as a citizen and I get to wave the American flag like my mom and dad did last September.

I urge each candidate for president to consider my story and think about how we can reform a system that does not represent the greatness of America. In the 2016 presidential campaign, it is imperative that we challenge the candidates to come up with solutions that reform immigration in a way that restores the honor and dignity of legal immigration. When candidates visit South Carolina, let’s remind them that immigration reform is important to South Carolinians.

This story was originally published November 9, 2015 at 11:08 AM with the headline "Immigration reform is important to South Carolinians."