The Truth About Undocumented Immigrants

Our writer, producer, and lead actor in DISPLACED, Tiffany Hodges, volunteered for People Power with the ACLU and created this video in 2017 to bust the myths about undocumented immigrants. Though we have a different president today, the situation is still very much the same for those seeking asylum.

• Immigrants do not take American jobs. They CREATE American jobs by starting businesses at twice the rate of the American born. (CNN & ACLU)

• Most undocumented Immigrants pay federal, local, and state income taxes. Over the last decade, they have paid $100 billion dollars into Social Security without ever being able to receive those benefits. (CNN & The Social Security Administration)

• Undocumented immigrants do not qualify for welfare, food stamps, or Medicaid.

• DOCUMENTED Immigrants are about 25% less likely to be signed up for Medicaid than the American-born and 37% less likely to receive food stamps. (Cato Institute)

• American born citizens are incarcerated at nearly TWICE the rate of illegal immigrants, and more than THREE times the rate of legal ones. (NY Times)

• The rate of delinquency and criminal activity among teens is considerably higher for those born in America than that of their immigrant peers. (NY Times)

• When ICE rounds up undocumented immigrants in public spaces like schools and courts, they become too scared to talk to the police when they witness a crime. And THAT makes us all unsafe!