1005_Group_P1

Name: Matt Provenzale

In the world today, America is a major force. It has one of the most powerful economies, the strongest military, and a lot of people. But all of these people are not only “Americans,” they come from all over. America is so diverse it is known as the cultural melting pot of the world. All of these factors make America a desirable place to live and work. As it becomes more and more desirable, more people start coming in. Some to visit, some to live. But one cannot just come into America, there is a specific path to gain citizenship. It is not always an easy path, yet it must be followed. But with this increased demand for immigration, there are more people who do not want to follow the path to American citizenship. They want the benefits now, without following the system. They enter America illegally and avoid detection on the border. Once in America, they get jobs and somewhere to live. Many of these times, they get fake social security numbers to disguise themselves. But the main problem is that these people are taking jobs from real citizens, and they are hurting them even more by not paying taxes while still using the system. They act like normal citizens and receive the benefits of citizenship, but do not pay for those benefits like everyone else has to.

Citizens of towns and communities receive special benefits, such as access to hospitals and schools. They pay for these benefits in taxes. But when illegal immigrants come to live in the US, they do not pay these taxes. By not paying taxes, they are putting a strain on these hospitals and schools. If a town has 20,000 citizens, a hospital in that town will be collecting taxes from those citizens. With this money they can budget and plan that these people will be using the hospital. But when illegal immigrants are added into the question, it throws off the balance. The hospital has to treat more people with the same amount of money. The school has to teach more kids with the same amount of money. The money stays the same, but people using these resources increases. This means that things have to be cut to make up for the new added strains. In schools, class sizes might increase while special programs are cut. For example, many towns in New Jersey are feeling this strain. There is an estimated one million illegal immigrants currently living in New Jersey, and this has caused there to be a shortage of funds for hospitals and schools. Even though this is a serious problem, it is not the only problem illegal immigrants are causing.

When many immigrants come to the US, their main short and long-term goal is to find a job. Whenever they do find these jobs, they are taking away jobs from real US citizens. In 2008 alone, there were an estimated 12 million undocumented workers. These 12 million people have to have jobs to survive, and all of these jobs are coming right from the US. So every job is an opportunity taken away from real American citizens. If the number of illegals would lower, the number of jobs available to American citizens would increase and unemployment would drop.

There is nothing wrong with diversity, it enhances a country and its people greatly. But when people illegally immigrate, they are causing major problems for that country. They are hurting the economy by taking jobs from citizens, and are not paying taxes. Something has to change, the problem will not fix itself on its own.