Illegal immigrants should receive social services because of the following reasons; first of all, the majority of them pay their taxes, so denying them social services is both unethical and illogical; second of all, their access to social benefits, such as health services, limits the risk of spreading infectious diseases.
America is a land of opportunity meaning that if one works hard and is determined, he or she can become the person he or she wants; this is the main reason for the country to be the most popular destination for immigrants. They come to America looking for opportunities and are determined to live the American dream, but their chances of living a normal life are getting increasingly low because some Americans regard them as parasites mooching off the country’s social security system and dragging down its economy. However, this is far from the truth as shown in the research and statistics on issues of illegal immigrants.
First, it must be stressed that the majority of illegal immigrants pay their taxes. Most Americans assume that illegal immigrants do not pay their taxes, and this is why they protest when they see the immigrants enjoying benefits they have not earned. Shikha Dalmia, a senior analyst at Reason Foundation, claims that “A stunning two-thirds of illegal immigrants pay Medicare, Social Security, and personal income taxes.” (Porter).
This shows that most of the immigrants come to America willing to become model citizens and earn their living in a legal way. Eduardo Porter states that “…the estimated seven million or so illegal immigrant workers in the United States are now providing the system with a subsidy of as much as $7 billion a year..” So, it is not quite clear why to deny them social services if immigrants not only enrich the country’s economy, but they are also eager to abide by the country’s laws and pay taxes.
Denying illegal immigrants social services is illogical and unethical. It would be impractical to deny illegal immigrants public services used widely by almost everyone in the country (ProCon.org). Keeping tabs on everyone using services such as water and public transport is time-consuming, expensive and most of all next to impossible.
All citizens have the right to be protected by the police, but illegal immigrants do not; however, it would be unethical for a policeman to leave someone suffering right in front of him/her. That action would affect the policeman and the community who would feel that the immigrant deserved better protection and that the policeman should have taken action against the offender.
Lastly, offering social services to illegal immigrants, such as health care, reduces their chances of spreading infectious diseases. According to Jeff T. Kullgren, “…limiting undocumented immigrants’ access to health services weakens efforts to fight the spread of communicable diseases among the general population… conditions such as tuberculosis are not always easily detected as communicable diseases”(ProCon.org). By not giving illegal immigrants the health care services they need, Americans might be jeopardizing their health because of the risk of catching these communicable diseases. This is a problem that can be solved easily by allowing illegal immigrants to access social services.
In conclusion, it may be highlighted that illegal immigrants have caused a number of problems such as the senior citizens not receiving their full amount of money, overcrowding, and an increase in crime rates. However, looking at the benefits immigrants have brought to the country, it is reasonable to state that the benefits outweigh the problems.
Works Cited
Dalmia, Shikla. “Illegal Immigrants are Paying A Lot More Taxes Than You Think.” 1 May 2006. Reason.org.
Porter, Eduardo. Illegal Immigrants Are Bolstering Social Security With Billions. New York, 5 April 2005.The New York Times.
ProCon.org. “Illegal Immigration.” n.d. ProCon.