Washington, DC — At a Capitol Hill press conference today and in a series of national and local columns, op-eds and Letters to the Editor (LTE), elected officials and local voices alike have been highlighting the economic and civic importance of immigrants and calling out the misleading and dangerous efforts to demonize migrants and divide Americans over fear and misinformation. Below are examples and excerpts of the voices highlighting why immigrants strengthen America:
- Representative Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), an immigrant who chairs the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said at a press conference today that “immigrants power this economy.” She was joined by a range of other Members of Congress, business owners, advocates and demographers. Rep. Jayapal’s bottom line:
“While extremists and far-right commentators might have you believe that immigrants are a drain on the economy, the numbers, the data, the facts refute that point. It does not matter if we are talking about undocumented immigrants, family-based immigration or employment-based immigration immigrants are driving our economy.”
- In a Colorado Newsline op-ed, Kathy White of the Colorado Fiscal Institute and David Dyssegaard Kallick of the Immigration Research Initiative write, “Today’s immigration challenges lead to Colorado’s future vitality”: “New immigrants from more parts of the world means more businesses, more workers and more opportunities for cultural enrichment like new restaurants, music and art. Cultural and economic expansion go hand in hand. New immigrants can improve Colorado’s economy by filling jobs that a growing number of older workers are leaving, bolstering the workforce in key Colorado industries, and creating new jobs as they bring their talents and a little of their home countries to our state.”
- American voters understand the positive contributions of immigrants, as columnist Catherine Rampell of the Washington Post observes: “Americans generally have positive views of ‘legal immigrants,’ and most favor making it easier to immigrate (73 percent overall, including 59 percent among Republicans, according to a Fox News poll). A recent Pew Research Center poll likewise found most Americans believe that creating more opportunities to legally immigrate would improve the border situation…Yet as president, Trump did much more to slash legal immigration than illegal immigration.”
- In a South Florida Sun-Sentinel LTE, Tracey Dare writes: “The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates the U.S. economy will grow by an extra $7 trillion over the next ten years, thanks in part to immigration. We do not have to wait for the future to see how immigrants are strengthening the U.S. economy. In 2021 immigrants paid $525 billion in taxes, money that helps support our nation’s schools, Medicaid and Social Security programs. Immigrants support our communities as consumers and taxpayers.”
- In a Chattanooga Times Free Press LTE, Rory May writes:“Donald Trump’s appointed Federal Reserve chair, Jerome H. Powell, recognized the massive contributions immigrants make in a recent national interview, saying, “a big part of the story of the labor market coming back into better balance is immigration returning to levels that were more typical of the pre-pandemic era.”
- In a Press Democrat (Santa Rosa, California) LTE, Laura Elizares writes: “So let’s give credit where credit is due, stop the anti-immigrant rhetoric and end the zero-sum mindset. Immigration truly is essential for our economic growth and our communities’ prosperity.”
According to Vanessa Cárdenas, Executive Director of America’s Voice:
“Immigration is a strength—not a threat— to America and immigrants help drive American success, growth, and vitality, both now and throughout our history. Yes, we need to reform a broken system to address the challenges and opportunities of 21st-century migration. But we don’t have to choose between maintaining an orderly border and living up to our country’s proud immigration history— we can do both. And as we work toward that reform, we all need to speak out and call out those who seek to divide us using immigration lies, fear, and misinformation.”
