Written by: Ava Wille
Immigration results in many pros as well as a few cons that impact the United States economy.
Based on a report done in 2017, immigrants actually have an overall positive effect on long run growth. It is entirely true that first generation immigrants cost the government more than native born Americans, no one can argue that point. Keeping this in mind, it is important to also consider the fact that second generation immigrants are “among the strongest fiscal and economic contributors in the U.S.”. They contribute more then their parents took, and more than the native borns contribute in a given year. It should be also noted that it is more difficult to say how much undocumented immigrants contribute, as they’re more difficult to survey, but it is suggested that as they are usually younger and do not qualify for public benefits, they also do not have any detrimental effects on the US economy. There are also downsides to immigration however. It is true that there is a limited supply of jobs for people who couldn’t afford to finish high school or college, a demographic which is represented largely by the Hispanic and black communities. Luckily, thanks to new policies that make it easier for immigrants to pursue higher education, more and more immigrants are earning college degrees, which means they are contributing more and more to higher positions.
There are still negatives however. It is much easier to exploit immigrant labor, as they are willing to work for extremely low wages, coming into the country fresh and needing a job. In fact, the Mercury News found in union elections that in at least 50% of campaigns involving a majority of undocumented workforces, threats were made to call immigration over the unionizing activities. This is a despicable practice that is a reason why it is easy to keep wages for the workers. To keep up with the demand for labor, we actually need immigrants who are willing to take jobs that are easy for them to come into without needing to take the time to pursue a formal education. If supply increases while demand remains the same, price falls. While the cheap labor does mean the price falls for consumers, we should be helping those who are truly in need of it. Therefore, the overall current labor laws and the way that employers abuse them is a negative effect at this point.
Overall, there are many different effects of immigration on the economy, too many to fit in one post, but the two main ideas are that immigrants have a positive long run effect on economic growth, but are easier to exploit for cheap labor. Please feel free to comment below if you think that immigrants have an overall more positive or negative effect on the United States economy based on the information given above.
I really like this post since it actually brings about facts and information to the pros and cons of immigrants in the US Economy. Continously you hear about people either for or against immigrants among our economy, yet you never hear reasoning as to why they stand that certain way. The article brings about both factual pros and cons and is eye opening.
ReplyDeleteIt is very unfortunate that undocumented immigrants are treated so poorly in the work force. You're right, they are willing to do anything to make ends meat, yet the government does not support them. Although it is said they are taking jobs away from American citizens, they contribute so much to the economy! I loved how you analyzed both sides of the argument and included helpful graphs and statistics. This article is truly fascinating!
ReplyDeleteI think it was really smart of you to write about such a controversial topic, it really shows your dedication to the subject. I do agree that there are a large list of pros but also there can be a list of cons to having undocumented immigrants in the United States. I think it is causing more and more violence as US citizens are not welcoming in certain situations and therefore, resort to violence to try and help the situation, when really all is does is harm.
ReplyDeleteYou brought up some really interesting and eye opening facts about immigration that I think some people choose to just ignore. I love that you chose a controversial topic and showed both sides of the subject in a very respectful manner. The specific statistics and graphs really added to your post (it's always helpful to have a visual). It's sad to think that people just choose to ignore the basic facts you mentioned. People aren't seeing that not all immigration is detrimental to the US economy and I think that by making it a point of discussion things might actually change.
ReplyDeleteIt was extremely impressive to me that you wrote this article without an overwhelming sense of bias in either direction, instead you laid out facts regarding both pros and cons of immigration and its effects on America's economy. This gave the reader a chance to formulate his/her own opinion regarding this controversial, and prominent topic. Furthermore, in regard to what is being said in the article, I find it heartbreaking that America, a country of freedom, is exploiting that immigrants are undocumented and using that as a threat to keep them in low paying jobs, instead of giving them the opportunity to pursue a higher education that will end up benefiting America's economy. If the roles were reversed and America was a war stricken country and a citizen was fleeing from America to a safer country with a high functioning economy, would that American want to be subjected only to low paying jobs? Probably not. Thus, it seems strange why Americans can't change their perspective and also take into account that second generation immigrants are in fact helping America's economy and restoring what their parents "took". All in all, this article is very well written and causes many thought provoking questions about immigrants and what our economy is like because of them.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very relevant and important topic in the US right now and it is interesting to see both sides of the debate. You hear so many times that immigrants are taking jobs from others who could be getting them, but you bring up the point that these immigrants, are actually helping the economy and not hurting it! This is something that is sometimes misunderstood. I do see the very obvious problem with the illegal activity going on behind the scenes and making undocumented immigrants work for very little money, which is contributing to the economic growth. This is a downside to the way in which this economic growth is being achieved. It is important to look at a topic as big as this one from both sides, before forming an opinion and I think that this could be a good starting point to this debate. The effects of immigration doesn't just stop here, and there are many other pros and cons in this topic.
ReplyDeleteI like how you brought up a well argued topic in politics and put it into economics showing both sides of the argument, do immigrants help or bring down our economy? It really surprised how much immigrants contribute to this country by taking jobs that are easy for them to take while in this new country, and there's also the negative side some undocumented immigrants might still get jobs that most people don't want but take the job but earn less. The visual was also a great and very helpful to add more factual evidence and to help me the reader to better understand.
ReplyDeleteRecently there has been a ton of debate over the immigrant issue and most of it does seem based in economics. I feel like a lot of the stigma surrounding immigrants comes from this specific aspect of the issue, as many US citizens feel like their jobs will be “stolen” by other people coming into the country. However, it was nice to see both sides of the debate, and it was even nicer to see you point out that there is a strong benefit to having immigrants take part in our economy. It is a shame that they are treated so poorly in the workforce, and it would be nice for the government to take up that issue instead. Anyways props for a great post on a relevant topic!
ReplyDeleteImmigration in the United States is an extremely controversial topic lately, and I think it is important to look at the overarching effects without any bias, in which you did a really good job at doing. One thing I feel is that most people approach this debate with personal arguments rather than looking at all sides of the extremely complex issue. This post really opened my eyes to the true facts and relevant statements regarding this topic, and the pictures/graphs added another layer of complexity to the argument in which I would feel more prepared and educated to craft my own opinion.
ReplyDeleteThis was a very well done post. I think you did a phenomenal job relaying the facts alone and not allowing a personal opinion to bias or sway the facts, which is extremely difficult to do with such a controversial topic. I think it was interesting just how you related to economics, as well, as you showed that while initially it puts the government at a disadvantage (as it costs money to house, help, etc.) immigrants, the long term benefits put them ahead of native-born Americans in terms of economic prosperity and contribution.
ReplyDeleteAgastya Asthana,
ReplyDelete9/10 dentist claim that immigration is an important topic to address by any politician. The U.S. serves as a refuge for many whose native countries have brought themselves to extinction. Immigrants value the benefits of living in America and as a result work harder than some of the citizens because the citizens have not seen anything worse than the history of America itself, but the immigrants value anything from the clean water to political stability. Though many claim that immigrants take the jobs of U.S. citizens, the fact is - as mentioned by Ava - that immigrants take cheap menial jobs which most of the time are not in demand by many Americans.