Chapter 14
Citizenship and Equal Justice
1
Narrator: They have jobs as varied as the countries they come from but according to
the new study America’s 25 million legal immigrants have one thing in common, they
are great for the economy, Steven Moore is the study’s author.
Steven Moore: I think many Americans think that immigrants take jobs from American
citizens and also that many immigrants are on welfare. We’re finding just the opposite.
Narrator: The Cato Institute makes a distinction between illegal immigrants in low
paying jobs and legal immigrants who pay more taxes then native citizens run
businesses that create jobs and pay heavily into Social Security coffers but have no
elderly parents here spending that money. On the whole the report calls immigrants a
fiscal bargain.
Male Speaker: After 10 to 15 years in the United States the average immigrant is
making more money then the average American.
Alvideo Calea: It’s the greatest country in the world.
Narrator: Its no surprise to Alvideo Calea, he fled Romania 20 years ago with only a
quarter in his pocket, last year he turned nearly a half a million dollars in profits
running a factory that makes Lucite sculptures and a product close to his heart, Statue
of Liberty replicas.
Alvideo Calea: You come in this country you don’t come to wait for somebody to give
you a check from welfare, you come to do something with your own life in this country.
Narrator: Calea employs 35 people, giving them overtime and healthcare but his story
is only one example of how immigrants affect the economy and critics of the Cato
Institute research say it’s not always such a happy picture.
Steven Camarota: If you are low skilled worker in the United States that is your part of
the working poor, immigration is gently bad for you if you are an employer and you like
to access to more cheap labor then immigration is generally good for you.
Narrator: With roughly a million new immigrants coming to America every year their
impact on the economy will continue to be debated. In the meantime, the authors of
the study hope to influence public opinion by showing that our diverse cultural heritage
could be the key to a rich economic future.
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