05/27/2007
Law Professor
Carol Swain
, of Vanderbilt University, recently edited the book Debating Immigration and has appeared several times on Lou Dobbs Tonight. In today’s Washington Times opinion piece, she excoriates the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) for ignoring the harm that open borders and immigration permissiveness cause to black and low-skilled Americans. [Illegal Immigration’s Harmful Effects, Washington Times, May 25, 2007]African Americans should expect and demand more from the CBC, because its members have elected to organize as a racial caucus. By doing so, CBC members have placed upon themselves the obligation to represent the interests of the millions of black constituents who have faithfully and repeatedly sent them to Washington.
Instead, CBC members have ignored social-science studies, congressional testimony and census data documenting the harm that high levels of immigration have caused and are continuing to have on low-wage, low-skill workers. Intervention is needed. African Americans and their allies should hold CBC members and other Democrats accountable for failing to represent the interests of their constituents. [ … ]
We need only focus on unemployment to get an idea of how African Americans and other historically disadvantaged groups are adversely affected by high levels of immigration. Consider that black unemployment rates are usually double the rate of whites and are higher than the rates of Hispanics. For example, in April 2007, the national unemployment rate was 4.5 percent. The black unemployment rate was 8.2 percent, with the rate for black males at 9.7 percent. The rate for Hispanics was 5.4 percent. Moreover, the Bureau of Labor statistics has forecast that in the next seven years the Hispanic labor force will be 6.3 million workers greater than the black workforce. As well, by 2014, the black workforce will lag behind the Hispanics, Asians and white non-Hispanics in labor-force participation.
Furthermore, America has the highest percentage of poverty in the developed world: 12.7 percent. Why should we import additional millions of poor foreigners just so business can have slave-cheap labor?
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