The Republicans would have us believe that illegal immigrants are pouring into our country, stealing our jobs, lowering our wages, getting a free ride, and hurting our economy. But those accusations aren’t backed up by any research, and when you look at the actual data, it’s obvious that this is merely shameful fear-mongering “fake news” propaganda to distract us from far greater issues.

According to the non-partisan Pew Research Center, there has been a zero net increase of undocumented immigrants for nearly a decade; steadily hovering around 11 million (3.4% of the U.S. population); and 80% of them work!

The National Academy of Sciences assembled 18 economists, sociologists and demographers who published a 600 page report on undocumented Immigration. It concluded that the influxes of immigrants to regional areas across the country actually create jobs, not diminish them! When more people need places to live, food, clothes and gas, the economy grows.

The report also concluded that when undocumented workers in high numbers move into a particular town or county, they did NOT cause any significant influence on wage reduction either. So blame corporations for lowering wages, not immigrants. Corporations were cutting wages of the Working Class for decades before the 1990’s immigration influx. Even if every immigrant were immediately deported, corporations would still have a strangle hold on their employees and their puppet politicians (such as Fred Upton, who raises millions from corporate donors).

The non-profit, non-partisan Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy recently reported that undocumented immigrants contribute $11.6 Billion annually to the economy by paying property and sales taxes. The Social Security administration estimates undocumented workers contribute over $13 Billion to the SS trust fund (while receiving only one billion back)!

So there is no dire immigration problem. This is why Democrats are calling out “racism” and “xenophobia”; because when you strip away all of the their reasoning for mass deportation and vindictive policies toward immigrants, there is nothing left but fear.

Damon Wold

Benton Harbor