What Is Illegal Immigration Doing to Our Country?

What is Illegal Immigration Doing to Our Country?

Illegal immigration is a controversial topic discussed in our country everyday. An illegal immigrant is anyone who has illegally crossed some kind of border whether it is by land, water, or air. These people are undocumented, unauthorized and unnaturalized people. In America’s case, these immigrants usually come from the south where the neighboring countries such as Cuba and Mexico reside. Some also come from Canada, but it is not too common. Should illegal immigrants be allowed to live in our country? Is there something that one can do to be legally allowed in the states after being illegal? These illegal immigrants are both beneficial and harmful our country. Whether it is with the economy or with other people, illegal immigrants are both beneficial and detrimental to our country.

Immigrants have been crossing borders illegally ever since the American boarders were created. It was only recently that illegal immigration has affected our country as greatly as it has. These immigrants have affected our country and its economy tremendously.

Illegal aliens cross our borders and come to our country for many different reasons. The main reasons are that these people either want to live a better life with a better job, emerge out of poverty (Simon), or to be reunited with their families (Vital) or even both. There is a big problem with legal citizens marrying, or trying to marry, illegal immigrants. Many people travel back to their homeland to never be able to return to the United States for 10 years (Vital). Furthermore, Lance Corporal Gutierrez left the underprivileged streets of Guatemala to illegally come to the United States and enlist in the Military in search of a better life (Vital). He gave his life up for a country he was unwanted in. He died for a country that frowns upon people like him. These people are in quest of a life that many Americans take for granted, a life that will allow them to live comfortably.

Another idea that comes to mind is the work that these people do. Yes, of course they do the jobs that most Americans would not do, but it does not mean they are doing it legally. A New Jersey landscaper brought in hundreds of workers from Mexico and Poland to do jobs that most American workers would not desire (Seid). With that, at least these jobs are getting done. Without these people, it would be hard to find workers to complete the tasks at hand.

Many people believe that undocumented illegal immigrants do not pay taxes. Although it is difficult to determine how much they pay, they are still fulfilling their dues and paying money to the government (Associated Press). “[…] illegal immigrants contributed $428 billion dollars to the nation's $13.6 trillion gross domestic product in 2006.” (Associated Press). Although these immigrants are undocumented, they are still paying either partially, fully, or exceeding the amount they owe.

On average native born Americans benefit from immigration. Immigrants help natives raise revenue and productivity. “Immigrants are a critical part of the U.S. workforce and contribute to productivity growth and technological advancement.” (Council of Economic Advisers). These people make up a considerable sized group of workers. Many of these people work in construction, food services and healthcare (Council of Economic Advisers). These immigrants increase the size of the work force and bring unskilled and skilled labor to America.

In addition, immigrants generally have a lower crime rate than natives, which is extremely positive to our country. Males aged 18 to 40 are not as likely to be imprisoned as native-born Americans are (Council of Economic Advisers).

On the contrary to the benefits and positives of illegal immigration, there are also a tremendous amount of damages and negatives that illegal immigration causes. Figures from 2007 show an 88 percent increase from 2000 (FAIR).