We’re All in this Together
It’s one of the most common arguments against immigration: “immigrants are stealing our jobs.”
For a long time now, and amongst many people, there has been a perception that immigrants in the U.S. are stealing employment opportunities from natural-born citizens. This narrative, as false as it is, has painted the wrong picture about people immigrating for better opportunities.
“Go back to your country” is said with so much malice to those who would love to go back to the place and customs they’re familiar with, but don’t have the choice. This can be because of social, economic, or political factors.
The other side of this conversation is that immigrants actually create more job opportunities in the nations they relocate to. Being known for the American dream, the U.S. is a melting pot that is full of great opportunities for anyone who has the determination and is willing to put in the hard work. In order to create a more welcoming environment for immigrants and collectively lead our country towards success, it is crucial to change this narrative.
Multiple studies, including those by the Council of Economic Advisors and the National Research Council, show that immigrants do not have a negative effect on the employment opportunities of native-born Americans.
In fact, immigrants have the exact opposite effect on the U.S. economy by paying billions in annual taxes, filling low-wage jobs, and generating employment opportunities through job-creation.
Dropping the fallacy that immigrants steal jobs is long overdue, and it’s time for us to shift our focus on how immigration shapes the economy positively.
There is power and courage that comes with packing your things and moving to another country where everything may be unknown to you. These are the kinds of people who take risks and prioritize their own destinies, which shows us how immigrants’ characteristics go hand-in-hand with their work ethic.
Immigrants bolster innovation and entrepreneurship, and they raise productivity in physically-demanding jobs that most people wouldn’t take on.
Immigrants aren’t stealing jobs, and we know this because there is no empirical evidence to back the opinion. They are helping stimulate economic growth and promoting development, proving that immigration is beneficial to the economy.
This animosity towards a flow of workers into the country only reflects our collective psyche. Until we let go of this storm of anger and blame towards immigrants, we will be in a nonsense competition with people who are on our team.
