"They Take Our Jobs!"

Colonization creates cultural ties.

Colonization creates cultural ties. It brings people from the metropolis (the colonizing power) to the colony and places them in positions of power while destroying local institutions. Global inequality drives migration. The wealth of industrialized nations like the United States was built in part through the exploitation of resources and labor from colonized regions. This created enduring economic disparities between countries, as well as cultural and linguistic connections. As a result, migration tends to flow from former colonies to their former colonizers. Historical relationships structure migration patterns. For example, Puerto Rico has sent a greater proportion of its population to the mainland U.S. than any other place, due to its status as a U.S. territory. Similarly, the Philippines has been a major source of immigrants due to its history as a U.S. colony. These longstanding ties, combined with economic motivations, help explain why certain countries become major sources of immigration while others do not.

According to the New York Times, "illegal immigrant workers in the United States are now providing the system with a subsidy of as much as $7 billion a year." Immigrants pay various taxes. Regardless of legal status, immigrants pay sales taxes, property taxes (through rent or home ownership), and gasoline taxes. Many also pay income and Social Security taxes, even if they are undocumented and using false Social Security numbers. In fact, the Social Security Administration receives billions in payments from unauthorized workers who will never be able to claim benefits. Economic contributions outweigh costs. Multiple studies have found that immigrants generally pay more in taxes than they receive in public services. This is partly because many public benefits are restricted for non-citizens, and partly because immigrants tend to be of prime working age. While there can be short-term costs at the local level for services like education, over time immigrants and their descendants tend to be net economic contributors.

Between 1995, when "Operation Gatekeeper" went into effect, and the end of 2004, some three thousand died crossing the border, most in the deserts of Arizona, as the crossing points have been pushed farther and farther east. Deadly consequences of enforcement. Increased border militarization since the 1990s has not significantly reduced unauthorized crossings. Instead, it has pushed migrants to attempt more dangerous desert crossings, resulting in thousands of deaths. The main impact has been to make border crossing more lethal and expensive, benefiting smuggling operations. Unintended effects on migration patterns. Paradoxically, harsher border enforcement has led many undocumented immigrants to stay longer in the U.S. and bring their families, rather than engaging in circular migration. The average stay of undocumented Mexican immigrants rose from 40 weeks in 1993 to 70 weeks by…