Illegal Immigration Isn't Immoral

Most of the people who know me know that I know and am friends with many foreigners living in the United States. I'm also good friends with several people in other countries.

As such, I'm well aware of the large illegal immigrant population. Though others are not, I am sympathetic to them. Most people in the US illegally, I believe, are here seeking to improve their lives and the lives of their loved ones. The economic downturn has lessened the disparity, but average salaries in the US are significantly higher than many other countries, including Latin America.

The main criticism of illegal immigrants is that they take 'our' jobs. (If you haven't seen it, I strongly encourage all readers to watch the South Park episode 'Goobacks').

While it is true that immigrants have come to offer their labor in a variety of job fields, the argument ignores one noteworthy component: increased population (legal or other) results in increased sales for a wide variety of goods and services. An estimated 20 million illegal immigrants reside in the US (as of 2008 or so) -- that's roughly 6.5% of the total population.

Another argument made is that the presence of illegal labor results in lower wages for all. The principles of basic economics suggest this to be true, though I have never read of a study confirming the effect. The general notion is that where there are illegal immigrants willing to work, wages for all unskilled laborers is reduced to minimum wage. While this surely has occurred in some cases, many illegal immigrants work at industry average wages and fill jobs that employers have been otherwise unable to fill.

Another concern raised is that illegal immigrants take advantage of public services without paying the taxes that fund such services. This makes two assumptions: illegal immigrants do not pay taxes and illegal immigrants use public services. Certainly there are cases in which both of these assumptions are true. Likewise, there are many legal citizens who do not pay taxes and use public services to a higher extent than society planned.

Truth be told, some illegal workers do pay taxes -- as a matter of fact, the IRS has prepared a system for them to file taxes without a social security number. I suspect that of those who file taxes, a much lower percentage file their tax returns to collect the amount overpaid.

As for public services, I've heard this used in the context of healthcare. To be clear, Medicare and Medicaid are not legally available to illegal immigrants. It would almost certainly be possible for someone to steal someone else's identity and apply for Medicaid, but I have never heard of a documented case of this happening. The same would probably be possible for Medicare as well, though an illegal immigrant cannot simply apply and receive such insurance benefits. Certainly many healthcare organizations grant charity discounts and care to indigent patients. However, this is not a legal requirement.

My point is that most illegal immigrants do not take advantage of what we imply the US has to offer. Consider: aside from higher salary for equal work, what else does the US give illegal immigrants? We don't allow them to vote or participate in government, we don't give them discounts on housing (often they even pay more than a citizen would), we don't give them special treatment (they are frequently discriminated against, actually).

I contend that illegal immigration and habitation is more of a situation and less of a 'problem'. Certainly, I believe the laws in place should be enforced or changed. As long as immigration without permission is illegal, those who do it should be deported immediately (why is that such a complex process, by the way?).

I think the US is too restrictive in allowing foreign workers and granting citizenship to new people. It can take years and hundreds/thousands of dollars to apply for residency, the right to work, and/or citizenship. I think we should be more welcoming to those who wish to participate in our country (with selective criteria, of course). As such, if it were up to me I would allow illegal immigrants living in the US the right to apply and legitimately be considered for legal status (whether that be a visa, work permit, and/or citizenship).

Consider this: what if you lost your job or have a full-time job but don't earn enough to pay the bills. You've got family and expenses but have trouble keeping up with it all. Suppose you could do the same work you currently do, but earn 3-4 times as much by going to Canada illegally. Would you go? It's hard to imagine without actually finding yourself in that position, but I think a surprisingly high number of us would do it as well.