10 Myths about Immigration

1. Most immigrants are here illegally.
- Of the more than 31 million not from here people living in the United States in 2009, about 20 million were either citizens or legal residents

2. It's just as easy to enter the country legally today as it was when my ancestors arrived.
- For about the first 100 years, the United States had an “open immigration system that allowed any able-bodied immigrant in,” explains immigration historian David Reimers

3. There’s a way to enter the country legally for anyone who wants to get in line.
- The simple answer is that there is no “line” for most very poor people with few skills to stand in and gain permanent U.S. residency

4. My ancestors learned English, but today’s immigrants refuse.
-While today’s immigrants may speak their first language at home, two-thirds of those older than 5 speak English “well” or “very well” according to research by the independent, nonpartisan Migration Policy Institute

5. Today’s immigrants don’t want to blend in and become “Americanized.”
-The reality is that the typical pattern of assimilation in the United States has remained steady, says Reimers

6. Immigrants take good jobs from Americans.
-On an economic level, Americans benefit from relatively low prices on food and other goods produced by undocumented immigrant labor.

7. Undocumented immigrants bring crime.
- According to the conservative Americas Majority Foundation, crime rates during the period 1999–2006 were lowest in states with the highest immigration growth rates.

8. Undocumented immigrants don’t pay taxes but still get benefits.
-The Social Security Administration estimates that half to three-quarters of undocumented immigrants pay federal, state and local taxes, including $6 billion to $7 billion in Social Security taxes for benefits they will never get

9. The United States is being overrun by immigrants like never before.
-Many people also accuse immigrants of having “anchor babies”—children who allow the whole family to stay

10. Anyone who enters the country illegally is a criminal
-No they just crossed illegally abd they just came to this country to have a better life