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Just the Facts

Immigration Fact Checks provide up-to-date information on the most current issues involving immigration today.

U.S. Latinos Slammed by Immigration Debate Gone Ugly

A new 2008 National Survey of Latinos by the Pew Hispanic Center reveals disturbing new evidence that Latinos--U.S. citizens as well as legal immigrants and undocumented immigrants--are feeling the effects of the immigration debate gone ugly. Read this fact sheet to find out why, regardless of immigration status, Latinos are feeling anxious and discriminated against amid sanctioned public immigrant-bashing and stepped-up immigration enforcement measures.

Published On: Thu, Oct 09, 2008 | Download File

Fewer Job Openings Equals Fewer Immigrants:Undocumented Immigration Slows Along With the U.S. Economy

According to new estimates from the Pew Hispanic Center, the number of undocumented immigrants in the United States did not increase between 2007 and 2008, and may actually have fallen. These findings should come as no surprise given the current state of the economy.

Published On: Wed, Oct 01, 2008 | Download File

Record-Breaking Number of Immigrants Seek Integration, U.S. Citizenship

Citizenship Day is a day to recognize and celebrate all of the immigrants who have chosen to integrate fully and become U.S. citizens. While some fear that demographic shifts threaten American identity, research and experience have shown that today's immigrants integrate into American society just like generations of immigrants before them. Citizenship Day is a time to celebrate the many immigrants who have taken a step toward full integration and participation in U.S. civic life.

Published On: Tue, Sep 16, 2008 | Download File

From Anecdotes to Evidence: Setting the Record Straight on Immigrants and Crime

Anti-immigrant activists and politicians are fond of relying upon anecdotes to support their oft-repeated claim that immigrants, especially undocumented immigrants, are dangerous criminals. While these kinds of arguments are emotionally powerful, they are intellectually dishonest. Numerous studies by independent researchers and government commissions over the past 100 years have consistently found that immigrants are less likely to commit crimes than the native-born.

Published On: Wed, Sep 10, 2008 | Download File

Recapture of Unused Immigrant Visas: An Idea Whose Time Has Come

Critics of H.R. 5882, a bill that would would allow visas that have gone unused due to bureaucratic delays to be "recaptured" and issued to family- or employment-based legal immigrants, claim it will needlesly create new visas. The fact is that "recapturing" lost visas would not authorize any new green cards; it would allow the government to issue green cards that Congress has already authorized.

Published On: Tue, Sep 09, 2008 | Download File

Separating Fact from Fiction: Refugees, Immigrants and Public Benefits

Anti-immigrant activists like to stir up anger by distorting the facts with dishonest claims.

Published On: Mon, Sep 08, 2008 | Download File

Dangerous Business: Implications of an EEVS for Latinos and the U.S. Workforce

Covers the effects of a national employment eligibility verification system on Latinos and the U.S. workforce more generally.

Published On: Sun, Aug 31, 2008 | Download File

What Happens When Local Cops Become Immigration Agents? Arizona Sheriff

Using the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office case files, interviews with top-ranking officers, and other sources of data, reporters at the East Valley Tribune uncovered startling facts about the enormous price--both financial and social--of Sheriff Arpaio's immigration enforcement activities.

Published On: Wed, Aug 06, 2008 | Download File

Attrition Through Recession: CIS Report Marred by Inaccuracies, Contradictions, and Wishful Thinking

Most researchers agree that undocumented immigration to the United States is driven largely by economics. Yet, in a new report entitled "Homeward Bound: Recent Immigration Enforcement and the Decline in the Illegal Alien Population," CIS

Published On: Wed, Jul 30, 2008 | Download File

Chicken Little in the Voting BoothThe Heritage Foundation Sounds Alarm Over Non-Existent Problem of Non-Citizen

Election experts tend to agree that modern-day voter fraud is a largely rare and irrational occurance in the United States. But lack of evidence is not an obstacle for the Heritage Foundation, which on July 10 issued a rambling legal memorandum claiming that an unknowable yet large number of non-citizens are voting illegally and subverting the electoral process.

Published On: Thu, Jul 24, 2008 | Download File