Donald Trump and the GOP are telling the American people that America has a serious immigration problem. They say this problem is causing the loss of jobs and a rising crime rate. So let’s look at the facts because I believe the real problem they have with immigration has more to do with racism, the loss of political power, and losing their majority status than it does with the loss of jobs and/or crime. As I listen to Trump and the GOP give these false claims, I’ve asked myself when did Trump and the GOP begin caring for the people these jobs are supposedly being taken from or the victims of these crimes.
First, let’s look at the crime:
Trump and the GOP are demonizing the entire Mexican race when they talk about undocumented immigrants being criminals and a threat to public safety. Michael Light, a criminologist at the University of Wisconsin, did research over a period of 30 years and found that “Increased undocumented immigration since 1990 has not increased violent crimes.”
In another study by Michael Light, his research found that “the increase in undocumented immigration also did not drive up the rates of drug and alcohol arrest or the number of overdoses and DUI deaths.”
A third study by the Cato Institute found that in 2015 the criminal conviction and arrest rates in Texas for undocumented immigrants were lower than those of people born in America area
A fourth research study, appearing in the current edition of the UK Journal titled “Immigration Letter” found that youthful undocumented immigrants engage in less crime than native youth.
Some minority groups have much higher arrest and incarceration rates than whites. Some assert that this fact may reflect bias in the criminal justice system. This is also something to consider when studying immigrant crime. Immigrants are overwhelmingly minorities; their arrest or incarceration rates may be impacted by biases throughout the criminal justice system. Moreover, even if immigrants do commit a disproportionate share of crime, it is worth considering the role that prejudices may play in the larger society. This could be a function of racism rather than a problem with the immigrants themselves.
Now let’s look at jobs:
Trump and the GOP continue to insist that immigrants are stealing jobs from Americans. However, Kenneth Megan, of the Bipartisan Policy Center, says “contrary to campaign rhetoric there is no clear evidence that immigration has brought forth a decline in American-born employment or labor force.” Those of us who believe foreign workers are stealing jobs are being misled because Megan’s report clearly shows how numerous economists have proven this is a belief not based in fact. Megan’s report also states that blaming immigration for declining employment is based on a flawed belief that economies can only produce a fixed number of jobs and every job occupied by an immigrant means an American goes unemployed. So instead of creating jobs as Trump has promised, Trump and the GOP continue to fan the flames of this untrue belief.
I said earlier I believe this false campaign against immigration has more to do with racism, the loss of political power and they are using jobs and crimes as a smokescreen. As more and more immigrants become American citizens they get the right to vote.
According to a Pew Research Center Executive Summary, if current trends continue, the population of the United States will rise to 438 million in 2050, from 296 million in 2005, and 82% of the increase will be due to immigrants arriving from 2005 to 2050 and their U.S.-born descendants, according to new projections developed by the Pew Research Center.
Of the 117 million people added to the population during this period due to the effect of new immigration, 67 million will be the immigrants themselves and 50 million will be their U.S.-born children or grandchildren.
Among the other key population projections:
- The Latino population, already the nation’s largest minority group, will triple in size and will account for most of the nation’s population growth from 2005 through 2050. Hispanics will make up 29% of the U.S. population in 2050, compared with 14% in 2005.
- Births in the United States will play a major role in Hispanic population growth; as a result, a smaller proportion of this group will be foreign-born in 2050 than is the case now.
- The non-Hispanic white population will increase more slowly than other racial and ethnic groups; whites will become a minority (47%) by 2050.
The Center’s projections are based on detailed assumptions about births, deaths, and immigration levels. All population projections have inherent uncertainties, especially for years further in the future, because they can be affected by changes in behavior, by new immigration policies, or by other events. Nonetheless, projections offer a starting point for understanding and analyzing demographic change.
The Hispanic population, 42 million in 2005, will rise to 128 million in 2050, tripling in size. Latinos will be 29% of the population, compared with 14% in 2005. As the fastest-growing major race or ethnic group, the Hispanic population will account for 60% of the nation’s growth during the 2005–20 periods. New immigrants and their descendants account for most of the projected Latino growth (74%), but the growth is mainly due to births in the United States.
However, the Latino population is relatively young and has a higher than average fertility rate, so its growth would continue to outpace that of other groups even without new immigration. The growth of the current Hispanic population will add 22 million new U.S. residents by 2050, a 52% increase.
A U.S. CENSUS BUREAU report states that from 1900 to 2000, the number of non-Southern states with populations of at least 10 percent races other than White increased from 2 to 26, reflecting the spread of diversity across the country.
In the Northeast, the Midwest, and the South, Blacks constituted the largest share of the population of races other than White in every decade of the 20th century, while in the West each of the races other than White represented the largest share during the century.
Only five states—Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, South Carolina, and West Virginia—had a lower percentage of races other than White in 2000 than in 1950.
From 1980 to 2000, the Hispanic population (of any race) more than doubled. By the end of the century, three states—California, Hawaii, and New Mexico—and the District of Columbia had majority “Minority” populations (including Hispanics).
I truly believe the real reason for the border wall, the ending of DACA, and the false claims made by Trump and the GOP is that Latino registered voters have long said the Democratic Party has more concern for Latinos or Hispanics than the Republican Party. This suggests that Trump, the GOP and their white supremacist followers fear the day when they are no longer in the majority.
Which party has more concern for Latinos?
Today, 54% of Latino registered voters say the Democratic Party has more concern for Latinos than the Republican Party, while 11% say the Republican Party has more concern – a 43-point difference. The Democratic advantage on this measure has remained relatively stable since 2012, when 61% of Latino voters said Democrats had more concern for Hispanics, compared with 10% who said the same of Republicans.
I cannot believe that Trump and the GOP are concerned with the well being of the 99% after all, it is Trump and the GOP who are responsible for 20 million Americans losing their health care and millions of jobs being shipped out of America. Trump has companies in Thailand, Japan, and Mexico, so why won’t he bring those companies back to America so that Americans can work those jobs? If Trump is right about Mexicans being drug dealers, rapist, and murders and that Mexicans are stealing our jobs; then what does that say about us?
Juries