Debunking the Myths of Immigration

Immigration is truly one of my passions that I really want to share with those around me. It is an issue that I believe the Lord has placed on my heart. I think that it is an issue that the youth of America should keep close to their heart, particularly because many of our parents or grandparents were immigrants. The following excerpt is from an Op-ed that I wrote for a writing workshop:

The Free World is best exemplified through the movement of people. Not the unmitigated free movement of people, but the free exchange of goods, products, ideas and people. Unfortunately, America’s broken immigration system is impeding its ability to experience the full benefits of this exchange.

Since I was young, I have felt called to deal with America’s broken immigration system. As I researched and debated many of the issues facing the American immigration system in 2007, I recognized that the time for change was fast approaching. In fact, many of the problems we were experiencing in 2007 are the same we face in 2011.

As I debated in front of countless people all across the nation, I saw a pattern of myths that had become deeply ingrained in the American citizenry. Failure to reform our immigration system is, in fact, a result of a lack of understanding of the immigrants themselves. The motives, benefits and people who make up our immigrant population are not to be feared as many may think, but rather are to be valued.

The first misconception is that immigrants take American jobs. This is not true. Immigration responds to the laws of supply and demand. This is proved by the decrease in immigration since the economic downturn. When there aren’t jobs available in America, immigrants won’t come, but when there are, we should welcome them with open arms because, in reality, they aren’t stealing American jobs.

Studies show that for every one job taken by a high-skilled immigrant, five additional American jobs are created. In fact, immigrants are the founders of many profitable companies like Sun Microsystems, Google and Yahoo. Through their innovation, immigrants actually help fuel the economy.

However, it is not just the high-skilled immigrants that benefit America. In fact, low-skilled immigrants contribute to the economy through their consumer purchases.

Additionally, many lower-skilled immigrants come only temporarily. According to a study conducted by the Pew Hispanic Research Center, 72 percent of Mexican migrant workers plan to come temporarily. This means that rather than leaching off our economy, they are here in America only when the country is in need of them.

The second misconception is that immigrants are a drain on our economy. On the contrary, roughly three-fourths of undocumented immigrants pay payroll taxes. There is even a special tax code established for undocumented immigrants. Beyond that, immigrants pay $7 billion per year into the Social Security system, but cannot and do not collect benefits.

Beyond paying taxes, immigrants shop at the grocery store, the mall, purchase cars and household items, just like you and I. This, in and of itself, contributes millions to the American economy. According to the Drum Major Institute for Public Policy, “Immigration is a significant contributor to the rapid growth of the Hispanic and Asian-American consumer markets, which together accounted for an estimated $1.46 trillion in buying power in 2008.”

The third misconception is that immigrants are a threat to national security. Most immigrants come to America in search of a better life, complete with a job, and a safe home to raise their children. They are in search of the American dream, not desiring to destroy it. Many cite the example of 9/11, a rare occurrence where legal immigrants, or immigrants who passed through all our background checks, circumvented the system. Let me be clear: Regardless of their legal status, radical people will seek to harm America. But the majority of immigrants do not have malicious intent.

At the end of the day, the national security concerns that stem from the 9/11 attacks are more a failure of a broken immigration system than it is a sign that immigrants are bad.

The final misconception is the worst of all. It is the misconception that apathy will fix the immigration system. Our country has sadly failed to realize to that the very fiber of our nation is made up of immigrant’s blood, sweat and tears.

It is time to provide legal routes that allow our nation to reap the benefits of a solid, safe, concrete and comprehensive immigration system. It is time to allow for the exchange of ideas, innovation and goods. But most important, it’s time to allow for the free movement of people.