I don't know much about Illegal immigration in the U.S...Could you please explain both sides of the issue?
Answer:
I will throw my hat in this ring as a LEGAL immigrant even though there are some good answers already.
From my standpoint the following are more cons not covered:
(1) Gives the LEGAL immigrant community a bad name, especially those that make it a point to learn and speak the native tongue, english, if it was never their first language
(2) People who shouldn't have to learn spanish to get a job are discriminated against (although I believe more Americans should make an effort to learn a econd language)
(3) The relative success of illegals in getting into and staying in the US vs. the harder legal process will drive more people to try the illegal way - leading to more illegal immigration which then strains the citizens even more (their taxes pay for healthcare etc.)
(4) To curb the overall population of immigrants, the number of people allowed residency or citizenship will decrease dramatically
(5) The rich get richer and the middle-class get poorer (they lose jobs because they are too "expensive")
(6) Anti-immigrant sentiments rare their head and the immigrants who have been here longer (only the native americans are not immigrants) revolt
(7) Social services and prison systems crack under pressure and major problems erupt
Pros (but for who?)
(1) Did I say the rich get richer? Although some will argue that is capitalism
(2) Countries like Mexico get the US to subsidize their poor and they can open their prisons and allow them to get out of their country
(3) Mexican compaines benefit from the money sent back to mexico, both in transfer fees and banking services. The money then gets into their economy - money that was obtained illegally
(4) Western Union, a US company makes TONS of profit
As you can see, there are Pros, just not many for the majority of the US population
It comes down to money. Allot of people are worried that immigrant are taking there jobs but the flip side says they take the jobs legals don't want anyway. Some argue this was the same excuse for slavery. Its very complicated.
The short answer is most of them don't make enough money to pay for the education and other services their children use, out of taxes. The cost of those services is taken from our own children's education funds, and health care funds for our sick. Our schools are failing and hospital emergency rooms are closing in places where illegal immigrants concentrate. Since education IS upwards mobility, substandard education is jeapardizing our own children's futures, as program after program is cut.
There are reasons every country in the world limits how many poor can immigrate.
The more services like universal education that a country subsidizes for its own poor, the more poor want to come, and the more expensive it is for the host country.
Then there is the double whammy of our own working class having its own wages reduces by mass influx of unskilled immigrants, driving our own workers to poverty. Then they too will need services, the difference being that they are the ones the services were funded for. The middle class pays for this while suffering reduced services itself like education for its own children. That is a huge sore spot. Education is our OWN children's future, and it is being ruined.
Employers profit from depressed wages. However, a glance at the recent Fed reports about how little of this is being shared with anyone under the top 2% shows that the most of the people paying for the services and using them are subsidizing below poverty level wages for employers.
The employers send their kids to private school.
Crime is crime, and coming here illegally is - well, what part of "illegally" don't they get? Just by coming in that way they become CRIMINALS by definition. They do not pay taxes or support the system, yet they leech off us for the free medical care (which we are stupid enough to give them) and those who don't come in for farm labor work are here for drugs and other crime. It is not our fault they were born in a sucky place, and taking them in is not our responsibility!
We don't need to secure the borders. People should be able to travel freely without visas and having to be checked. And everyone should get to live where they want.
A good example of a negative is Dalton, Ga. Dalton is the carpet capital of the world. Mexicans work cheap so many carpet mills have put signs in Mexico giving directions to come work in the Dalton mills. Many of the mills and sample companies hire illegal mexicans by the truck loads. This takes jobs away from the people originally from here. Employers would much rather hire illegals cause they work for less and will take more abuse. The result is Dalton is now overran by illegal mexicans. Its hard to order food in a resteraunt because the people taking the order can barely speak english. To get an office job you have to speak both english and spanish. Many nurses at the hospital recently lost their jobs because they wouldn't learn spanish. Its hard period to do anything when so many people speak spanish instead of english. Many people who have rented homes to illegals have learned a hard lesson. The illegals tear them apart and leave them. Some refuse to use bathrooms and use other means in the houses. I've personally witnessed them using the bathroom outside the house at all times of the day in plain view of everyone. They come out, do their business then go back in. Many have the overall attitude that they have more of a right to be here and anybody else and we should bow before them. When you go to the grocery store many times you see them with two shopping carts. The first one is stuff that they can get with food stamps, the second is full of beer and stuff not covered. They take it out and put it in a fancy truck or car and drive off. They can afford to do this because they don't pay taxes and the tax payers are helping pay for their necessities. I could go on all day. If you think I'm exaggerating them visit Dalton. I have nothing against anyone who comes here legal and pays their taxes and does what they need to do.
Pro-illegals feel that these criminals have a right to be here and that these people are just trying to get a better life. Some claim that the southwest is still Mexico, even though the US bought long ago.
Anti-illegals are sick and tired of people breaking the law, taxpayer money is used to provide for the illegals, the illegal alien criminals are stealing identities and jobs from citizens, the illegal destroy our economy and our health care system, they don't pay taxes, they bring disease with them since they were never immunized, The bring in crime and drugs, etc.....
I think the reasons against the illegal alien criminals are stronger! Sure I understand their point of view but it is wrong!!!! The illegal alien criminals don't care about the law
Bottom line is, what part of ILLEGAL is so hard to understand?
Maybe this will help you make up your mind. I know it's a lot to read but if you really want to know the facts then by all means read on.
Facts On Illegal Immigration
* 10-20 million illegal criminal aliens presently roam the U.S. The number of illegal criminal aliens doubled in the 1990's.
* Illegal aliens constitute over 40% of the federal prison population. Most are from Mexico.
* In Los Angeles alone, 95% of all outstanding warrants for homicide ( which total approximately 1,200-1,500) target illegal aliens. Up to 2/3 of all fugitive felony warrants (approximately 17,000) are for illegal aliens.
* In fiscal year 1999, incarceration expenses for incarcerating illegal aliens in state & local jails in Pennsylvania alone cost taxpayers $13.3 million. It has been established that the nationwide costs to states and localities for housing illegal criminal aliens in jails and prisons is about $2 – 3 billion per year.
* Approximately 400,000 illegal aliens who have committed crimes (many were violent crimes and many were against children) and have been given a deportation order are at large in the U.S. and their whereabouts are unknown.
* In May 2002, federal agents arrested 2 Mexican citizens for trying to smuggle illegal Middle Eastern immigrants associated with terrorist groups, into the U.S. via Mexico
* Mexico is NOT a poor country. Mexico has more resources per square mile than the U.S. and plenty of money to take care of its own people. Why should the taxpayers of this country subsidize Mexico's corruption?
* Illegal aliens are NOT necessarily coming here to work. Lou Dobbs recently reported that around 40 percent of our prison population is now comprised of non-citizens. Plus, 36 to 42 percent of illegal aliens are on welfare. So, for a good proportion of these people, the American dream is crime and welfare, not coming here to work.
* Illegal aliens are NOT doing work Americans won't do. What jobs won't Americans do? In most states, Americans still clean their own houses, do their own landscaping, clean hotel rooms, work in restaurants and fast food places, paint houses, DO CONSTRUCTION WORK, work in airports, etc. - just like we have the past 230 years before "our" government allowed these people to invade our country. There are 18 million Americans who cannot find a job, so illegal aliens who are coming here to work do so at peril to American workers.
* The economy does NOT depend on illegal aliens. Sure, greedy CEOs (making $50 to $150 MILLION a year) and business owners depend on illegal aliens, but due to #3, and #4 above, the only thing illegal aliens are contributing to is the collapse of our economy and making the rich richer.
* Without illegal aliens, the price of agricultural products and other goods and services will NOT soar. The definitive study on this subject is the University of Iowa's "How Much Is That Tomato?" The study concludes that 'since labor is such a small component of the end-price of agricultural products (which includes price to the growers, transportation costs, processing /storage costs, grocers' profit, etc.), using minimum wage workers instead of illegal aliens would increase prices of agricultural products by approximately 3 percent in the summer and 4 percent in the winter ... hardly the making of $10 heads of lettuce, $25 hamburgers, $1,000 per night Days Inn hotel rooms like the pro-illegal alien lobby claims.
* Consumers are NOT benefiting from lower labor costs. Again, it's CEOs and business owners who benefit from taxpayer subsidies for their illegal alien workers. The Big Three automakers say they moved so many jobs to Mexico because their labor costs are 80 percent less than in America. Anybody notice the price of new cars spiraling downward under NAFTA?
* 40% of all workers in L.A. country (L.A. county has over ten million people) are working and NOT paying taxes!! This is because they are predominately illegal without a green card!!
* OVER two-thirds of births in L.A. are from ILLEGALS in Medi-Cal, who’s births were paid for by the taxpayers!!
* The FBI reports that over half of all gang members in L.A. are from Mexico.
* Over 60% of all occupants of HUD housing are illegal; again that’s your tax dollars at work.
* LESS THAN 2% of ILLEGALS are picking our crops, but 29% are on WELFARE.
* The total cost to U.S. taxpayers to house, pay medical and schooling expenses, etc… was over 70 billion dollars in 1997, it is somewhat higher in 2007
* Illegal Immigration is a crime. Under Title 8 Section 1325 of the U.S. Code, “Improper Entry by Alien,” any citizen of any country other than the U.S. who:
Enters or attempts to enter the United States at any time or place other than as designated by immigration officers; or eludes examination or inspection by immigration officers; or attempts to enter or obtain entry to the United States by a willfully false or misleading representation, or has committed a federal crime.
Since when did it become acceptable for Americans to be so accepting of criminals?
* Illegal immigrants currently in the nations public school system cost taxpayers 9.6 billion dollars every year in an attempt to educate them (despite the illegal communities epidemic drop out rates). The millions of children of illegal aliens in America referred to as “anchor babies” which ensure that the parents can stay in the U.S. add an additional 20 billion dollars to that tab.
* Illegal aliens are allowed to claim children living in Mexico and qualify for the earned-income tax credit.
long story short.
Pro-illegal: They should come over here to improve their lives and help their families.
Anti-Illegal: They should get visas and abide by the law like everyone else.
Note: in Mexico, they have very strict immigration laws. Not only that, they treat illegal immigrants (central America) in Mexico terribly
Sorry but illegal immigration isn't immigration at all, immigration is a LEGAL process. Mexican nationals entering this country illegally are just criminals streaming across the border. There are no pro's to this, they are a burden on American society.
I can just tell you; if you're an immigrant come here legally; if not then don't even think about it.
I'm an immigrant myself and I came here legally and I'd never ever would come here if I didn't have my green card. Now I'm a citizen and have dual citizenship. I'll go back to my country soon.
Illegals should get deported, if they don't pay taxes, are part of gangs, scams, or any other bad things they must get in jail and deported.
Otherwise, If they work hard (legally), pay taxes, and behave properly then they should stay here, and get an opportunity to get their visas.
The immigration information post by website user , MyTend.com not guarantee correctness