They Take Our Jobs ! And 20 Other Myths About Immigration By Aviva Chomsky

In the book “They Take Our Jobs!” And 20 Other Myths About Immigration by Aviva Chomsky, the various misconceptions regarding immigrants are revealed. The book centers around confronting myths about how immigrants steal American jobs, are criminals, and destroy the social fabric of society. There are also details of numerous immigrant reasonings for migrating to America. Chomsky answers a multitude of questions regarding the rumors of immigration rumors with research and statistics, leaving the audience with a better understanding of immigrants and illegal immigrants.

The introduction of the story begins with some general background information on the United States immigration policy and the different trends seen throughout the years. The main section of the book has four parts, each part regarding a different section related to immigration and the government. Throughout these sections Chomsky presents her findings to provide reasoning on why each

claim brought against immigrants is false. The concluding chapter or epilogue is Chomsky’s own experience with possible future immigrants while she was visiting a remarkably poor region in Colombia. There, she learned what exactly drives an immigrant to seek out a new home in a foreign place, most being the United States, even if the place is unwelcoming.
Chomsky wants to debunk the rumors that most Americans hold to be about immigration.

Her statement on the cover of the book about immigrants taking American jobs is inaccurate since a “ population growth creates jobs because people consume as well as produce” (Chomsky 8). The greater the immigration rate the lower the unemployment rate. During the Great Depression when the immigration rate was scarcely low the unemployment rate hovered between 4 and 6 percent (Chomsky 9). The immigration laws for those who wish to enter the United States are restrictive and discriminatory. An immigrant must have a family member in the country and could still “have to wait up to twenty years to get permission to come here” (Chomsky 57). Those without a permanent family member in the U.S are denied entry altogether. When immigrants arrive here they find it difficult to learn English due to excessive wait lists for ESL providers (Chomsky 113). Most immigrants view learning English in America essential to become part of American

society.
An ongoing message in this book is that many people hold to be “ not against immigration, but against illegal immigration” (Chomsky 53). Many Americans believe illegal immigrants to be criminals and they should pay for their crimes. In a case study of the Philippines it was shown that a nurse’s salary in the Philippines is around “$2,000 a year, while in the United States it’s around $36,000 a year” (Chomsky 145). Trained professionals are suffering and still denied U.S entry. On the other hand some countries are simply so bad immigrants can't live in the conditions. In Colombia the “largest open-pit coal mine” (Chomsky 195), destroyed farming and those lives whose incomes depended on them. It is guaranteed under the 5th Amendment “everyone in the United States [has] equal protection under the law” (Chomsky xix). Immigrant rapidly enter the United States because they have nowhere else left to go. The 5th Amendment promises them safety and other amendments guarantee them education or property.
Both immigrants and illegal immigrants have reasons for wanting to cross into the U.S and shouldn't be denied because of false accusations. Immigrants build the job circuit, are discriminated against while trying to enter, and are put on long wait lists for ESL classes. Illegal immigrants have nowhere else to go except the United States where they are guaranteed protection and a small set of rights even without citizenship. Immigration is not something weighing down American society, but instead should be embraced and better regulated.