One aspect of the letter “Patriotism is remembering there is only us” (Nov. 4) is puzzling. Calling immigrants “illegal aliens” is dehumanizing? A point in fact is forgotten. These immigrants have crossed the border by way of forced entry into America. So, the immigrants are foreign (alien) to our country. These unlawful immigrants are not U.S. citizens and ICE is using justifiable federal law to make illegal entry regrettable.

President Biden refused to use existing immigration laws to regulate lawful immigration. Today, ICE simply applies the existing immigration laws to restore order at the border. There is nothing “unjust” about controlling the rate of lawful immigration into America and holding to account all who attempt to cross our border.

My Catholic catechism projects legal entry only and assimilation into the American way of life. In part, Paragraph No. 2241 reads: “Immigrants are obliged to respect with gratitude the material and spiritual heritage of the country that receives them, to obey its laws and to assist in carrying civic burdens.”

In retrospect, forced entry into America is unpatriotic, while following the legal channels to become American citizens is the patriotic way. Illegal immigrants should not be in control of the flow across the border but instead should abide by the American rule of immigration law.

Dan Pryor
Gorham