For much of the 19th and 20th centuries, America was the promised land to the oppressed and dispossessed citizens of other nations. But in the 21st century our immigration system has become politicized and bogged down, withholding opportunity from those who need it most and severing family ties.

This is not who we as a nation have been, and it is not who we should be today. Nearly all Americans and all Coloradans are the descendants of people who immigrated to the United States at some point in our history. Now as in the first days of our country’s history, people come to the United States from other parts of the world to seek greater opportunity for themselves and their children – often while fleeing extreme poverty or oppression.

Aurora in particular is a community of immigrants – 133 different languages are spoken by students who attend Aurora Public Schools.

Emma Lazarus’s poem “The New Colossus” on the base of the Statue of Liberty celebrates the “lamp beside the golden door” that was Ellis Island. But until the United States Congress gets serious about fixing our immigration policy, millions of people will unfortunately remain in the shadows.