Immigration is not just a problem between the United States and Mexico but a global issue, a panel of ASU professors said at a forum Wednesday.
More than 60 students had a question-and-answer session with five professors, discussing aspects of immigration such as the ethics of handling illegal immigrants.
Nicole George, treasurer of the Graduate Association of Political Science, which organized the forum, said immigration is a big issue, prompting marches nationwide.
"We thought it would be good for students to have questions answered by professors specializing in immigration issues," she said.
Panelist and political science professor Roxanne Doty said France, Russia and Spain, among other countries, are all dealing with immigration issues.
"The U.S. is just a microcosm of what's happening globally," she said.
Adrian Pantoja, also a political science professor, said immigrants will continue to enter industrialized nations because of the huge gap in wages between industrialized and third-world countries.
The panelists also said border patrols are not the best way to curb illegal immigration.
Since the 1980s, the number of illegal immigrants stopped at the United States-Mexico border has been about 1 million per year, despite increased funding for border patrol, Pantoja said.
Other panelists included law professor Evelyn Cruz, professor Lisa Magana from Chicana and Chicano Studies and sociology professor Cecilia Menjivar.
Cruz compared the backlash against Hispanics to what Irish immigrants faced in the 1830s. She said immigration laws are stacked against people with little education who can't enter the United States legally.
"You only have family-based immigration, high-tech college-degree holders or asylum seekers," she said.
One question raised was whether Latinos would become major political players if amnesty were given to the illegal population.
But Pantoja said amnesty wouldn't result in overnight naturalizations.
"It takes nearly 11 years to become a legal permanent resident," he said.
Magana said immigration is highly politicized.
"Politicians want to be tough on illegal immigrants but don't want to alienate the Latino population," she said.
Elvinet Wilson, a doctoral student in the Hugh Downs School of Human Communication, said the discussion was well timed.
"There's enough rhetoric from people who influence public opinion but don't necessarily know enough," she said. "It was good to listen to people who have researched the subject."
Reach the reporter at sonu.munshi@asu.edu.
