The Vineyard Makes The Wall Street Journal

Wednesday's Journal featured the Souza family of Oak Bluffs to illustrate some of the problems surrounding immigration. The Souzas are but one of a considerable number of Brazilians who have come to the Vineyard in the past 15 - 20 years. No one really knows how many Brazilians live here, but estimates range from 2500 - 5000. Many of them have come here illegally. Many have not. The Souza family is one of those who came here legally. The problem is they came here on a tourist visa. But that's only part of the story.

Zandro Souza came here in 2000 and started working in restaurants. He's a talented guy and quickly rose from dishwasher to demonstrating his skills at the chi-chi Tribeca Grill in NYC. He brought his wife and son here in 2001. His son is another part of the story. Igor was born blind and with mental deficiencies. He needs a heck of a lot of care, which the Souzas have given him and paid for on their own dime.

His family's arrival coincided with a change in the immigration laws which provided a temporary 'pardon' allowing employers to sponsor their employees for the green card process even if the immigrant had overstayed his visa or entered the country illegally. In 2002 the Souzas were notified that their application was being processed. In 2004 they received Social Security numbers and work permits.

In 2005 they were interviewed by an immigration officer as part of the last steps. Here was where the first real hurdle appeared - if Mr. Souza and his wife died, who would take care of Igor. They had 12 weeks to prove that Igor would not be a public charge should they die. This request by INS could be deemed excessive in that Souza's sponsor, his employer, was also a financial guarantor. However, the Souzas supplied evidence that his father's house would be sold should both of them die and the funds would be used for Igor.

At the start of this year the Souzas were denied their green cards and ordered to appear in court to begin deportation hearings. This time the reason was that they came on a tourist visa although they had intended to become permanent residents. Yet, the law under which they started this specifically included those who had come here illegally. The Souzas entered the US legally as tourists; they did not sneak in, like some of their compatriots. They have paid their own money to care for their son. They are willing to sell their house should they no longer be on earth. It would seem that they are the kinds of people this country should welcome.