Illegal Aliens – Cost Us Dearly
Most Maryland politicians who serve in our Federal, State and local government actively work for policies that encourage foreign nationals to enter the U.S. illegally and to live and work in Prince George’s County. Rather than helping the hard working, taxpaying citizens of our communities, these politicians instead spend our tax dollars on programs and services for individuals who have no legal right to be in our country.
Those who suffer most from these policies are the many Maryland citizens who have lost jobs or are unable to find work because businesses have hired illegal aliens at lower wages. Even our teenagers, who used to enjoy Summer employment in restaurants, now cannot find jobs because employers such as McDonalds hire illegal aliens. Moreover, job applicants are told they are ineligible because they cannot speak fluent Spanish. And honest businesses are severely disadvantaged (or go bankrupt) because dishonest competitors slash payroll expenses by intentionally hiring illegal aliens.
But even if you or your family has not suffered direct losses, we still pay dearly for the presence of so many illegal aliens in Prince George’s County. All the major problems afflicting Prince George’s County – poor public education, high crime, gang violence, inadequate minority economic opportunity, high taxes, and degraded services – are intensified by the growing number of illegal immigrants in our communities.
Education: Federal law requires that all children, whether legally here or not, have access to public education. The high number of illegal aliens who are minors place a huge burden on the County’s public education system. Typically, these children speak very little English and have little interest in academics. They often drop out of school and join gangs. Those who stay in school are often poor students who lower the performance of their entire class. Scarce educational resources are drained to provide illegal aliens with special remedial instruction while education for legal residents worsens. What do our elected officials do? They try to provide in-state college tuition to illegal alien students and take away opportunities for citizens’ children to attend colleges and universities.
Healthcare: Federal law also requires that all hospitals treat anyone in need of medical care. Illegal aliens take advantage of this loophole and use hospital emergency rooms for routine as well as emergency medical care while citizens must wait longer for assistance. The bankruptcy of the Dimensions Healthcare System, the largest public healthcare provider in the County, is due in large part to the many patients who are uninsured, illegal aliens. Taxpayers end up paying the bills, bailing out bankrupt hospitals, losing community medical care, and then losing their jobs to illegal aliens.
Poverty: When an illegal alien is employed, a Maryland citizen, returning veteran, or legal resident stays unemployed. And when illegal immigrants work for less than the wage typically associated with that job, wages for others doing that same work trend down. Consequently, illegal aliens force more citizens and their families into unemployment and poverty. Unemployed or underemployed citizens do not pay taxes, cannot afford to save for college, pay mortgages, and they overwhelm public welfare services. What do our elected officials do? They setup day laborer centers in Hyattsville and Langley Park to help illegal aliens find jobs. Our elected officials are creating poverty in our communities!
Crime and gang violence: More poverty also increases crime by desperate people who are jobless or poverty stricken. The bad economy has only aggravated the situation and pushed the unemployed into violent gangs such as Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) and Latin Kings, which are largely made up of illegal aliens. In response, our elected officials provide these gangs with sanctuary and services. And let us not forget that the politicians who are encouraging aliens to violate Federal immigration laws are also fostering general corruption and disrespect for the rule-of-law.
Minority Economic Opportunity: Bringing illegal aliens into Prince George’s County takes away fair and equal opportunities for citizens. Instead of having workplaces that mirror the racial diversity of the surrounding community, criminal businesses use illegal aliens to take business away from honest minority businesses.
Taxes and Public Services: As outlined above, politicians who help illegal aliens live and work in our communities aggravate already serious problems in our county and increase the cost of dealing with them. As a result, our taxes go up and businesses are driven elsewhere. Critical public service agencies such as law enforcement, schools and libraries are forced to make cutbacks, layoffs and furloughs. Communities cannot afford quality schools, effective law enforcement, healthcare, and other essential government services because elected officials would rather support illegal aliens.
