VOTER POWER
Immigration
Myth: Americans believe immigrants make up 33% of the population.
Fact: Immigrants as a whole make up only 13% of our population, and undocumented immigrants make up only 3%.
Every American has heard time and again that we are a nation of immigrants, but hard economic times tend to inflame nativist sentiment. Many of us believe that immigrants are overrunning our population and ruining our economy by stealing jobs and unfairly drawing welfare benefits. It’s a common belief that immigrants, particularly undocumented immigrants, are prone to criminal behavior, refuse to assimilate, and mostly come to the US to commit crimes and collect welfare.
But the facts tell a different story. For example, undocumented immigrants are 5% of the workforce, and many pay into our Social Security and Medicare systems, from which they will never draw benefits.
As a nation of immigrants, our strength comes from our diversity.
Reunification Interest Dwindles as Omarosa Gains the Spotlight
Former White House aide Omarosa Manigault-Newman made headlines multiple times this week. But the public really ought to be more focused on the fact that there are still hundreds of migrant children who have yet to be reunited with their families.
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Trump Administration May Place Migrant Children in ‘Tent Cities’
Critics say that placing children in tents would be nothing short of barbaric, and that it would resemble more of an internment camp than a shelter. But those on the other side of the debate believe that it will dissuade immigrants from illegally crossing the border.
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California Woman Forces Border Patrol Off a Bus
It was an ordinary day in Southern California when Tiana Smalls boarded a Greyhound bus to travel from Bakersfield to Las Vegas to visit her family. But all that changed when the driver announced that the bus was being boarded by Customs and Border Patrol.
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Paul Ryan Speaks Out Against Separating Migrant Children From Their Parents
Republican Speaker of the House Paul Ryan says he feels “uncomfortable” with the administration’s current zero-tolerance immigration practices that are breaking up families at the border and is calling for legislation to tighten border security while protecting young Dreamers.
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Sessions: No Asylum for Victims of Domestic Abuse and Gang Violence
In a move many are condemning for cruelly taking women’s rights back to the “Dark Ages,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions has reversed an Obama-era ruling that provided asylum to an El Salvadorian woman who said her husband had abused her physically, emotionally, and sexually.
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This GOP Donor Wants Protections for Young Immigrants
WeatherTech founder David MacNeil donated $1 million to Donald Trump’s January 2017 inauguration, but has since vowed to cut off funding to any Republican candidate who doesn’t back upcoming legislation that would protect immigrants who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children.
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UN Tells US to Stop Taking Migrant Children from Parents
“The U.S. should immediately halt this practice of separating families and stop criminalizing what should at most be an administrative offense—that of irregular entry or stay in the U.S.,” said Ravina Shamdasani, a spokesperson for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
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Child Shelters at the U.S. Border Nearing Capacity
The Trump administration is facing an explosion of scathing criticism over one of the most recent developments in immigration: federal border authorities in Arizona lost nearly 1,500 children who were forcibly separated from their families as part of the Trump administration’s new policy of deterring asylum seekers through intimidation.
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A Short History of Immigration to the U.S.
U.S. immigration policy has remained relatively consistent since the passage of the Immigration Act of 1965, which prioritized immigrants who already had a spouse or family member residing in the U.S. President Trump seeks to change the U.S.’s policy to a merit-based system.
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Border Patrol Union Wants to End Failed Guard Deployment
According Department of Defense spokesman Christopher Sherwood, the National Guard border deployment is expected to cost the federal government between $220–$250 million by the end of 2018. The majority of the funding ($204–$221 million) will go toward pay and support costs for 3,143 troops.
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