I am writing about undocumented people living in our Country, the facts and possible solutions.

I want to begin by making it crystal clear I am not in favor of open borders. I support immigration laws and their enforcement. I know our immigration system is broken and is in need of repair. Our constitution makes it quite clear “Congress holds the power to create and modify immigration laws, including setting rules for who can enter, stay, or become a U.S. citizen.”

Yet we have seen Congress under both political parties ignore their responsibility. We came close to a bipartisan immigration bill last year which although did not address all the issues, would have been a good start to fixing the broken system.

It would have added many more judges so the wait time for an asylum case to be heard would be reduced from years to weeks. The bill “represents a serious attempt to acknowledge, and solve, some of the key problems with current border and asylum policy, and to address the federal government’s failure to manage migration in a way that supports American communities and respects humanitarian needs.”

The “big beautiful bill” adds $11 billion to ICE, yet still no immigration bill. So once again Congress ignores their responsibility to give us an immigration bill, kicking it again down the road for next Congress. Instead, the bill reflects a continuation of the chaos, fears and intimidation that ICE raids have caused across our country.

Many believe undocumented people commit more crimes than citizens, get benefits that we as citizens must pay for, and do not contribute much to our country. All of these are false. This false narrative is what is driving all the ICE raids chaos.

The act of being present in the United States in violation of the immigration laws is not, standing alone, a crime.

“In the United States, being undocumented generally constitutes a civil offense, not a criminal one. While unlawful presence is a civil violation, illegal entry or re-entry after deportation can be a misdemeanor or felony under federal law. Most undocumented immigrants arrive legally and overstay their visas, which is a civil violation resulting in deportation.”

In fact many enter legally but overstay, work without authorization, drop out of school or violate the conditions of their visas in some other way. Current estimates are that approximately 45% of undocumented immigrants did not enter illegally. Rather they entered our country legally … but overstayed their visas.

Much of the public has come to believe that undocumented individuals commit more crimes than citizens, and that many of those crimes are violent. This myth is reinforced by many in the media and by many elected officials, including our own representative. However empirical data indicates just the opposite.

Undocumented individuals commit less crime than legal citizens. Study after study has indicated that “the U.S.-born residents were more than two times more likely to commit violent crime and nearly two and a half times more likely to violate a drug law. U.S.-born residents were four times more likely to engage in property crime than immigrants were, and 2.5 times more likely to commit a homicide, according to the figures.”

Many believe that undocumented persons are draining our resources and benefits as they collect SNAP, Medicaid, medicare etc. However, once again this is a made up myth created to invoke anger from citizens not wanting to support undocumented persons.

Fact is “undocumented immigrants are generally ineligible for federal programs like SNAP, Medicaid (except for emergencies), and Medicare due to their immigration status. Some states offer limited coverage through state-funded programs or specific provisions like Emergency Medicaid or CHIP options for children and pregnant women.”

For anyone who disputes this claim I suggest you call the department of social services and ask how many undocumented persons receive any benefits paid for by us the taxpayer. Answer — None.

While on the subject of money, we make money, lots of it, from undocumented people in our country. The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, found the undocumented population in 2022 paid almost $97 billion in taxes, with over $54 billion in payments to the federal government and more than $37 billion paid out to states and localities.

They pay sales and excise taxes on goods and services such as groceries, gas and utilities. They pay property tax regardless of whether they own a home or rent (since landlords pass on a portion of the tax on to renters). They pay payroll taxes via automatic withholdings from paychecks and income taxes in various ways, like by filing with what the IRS calls an ITIN, or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number. In fact, reports have found undocumented immigrants in 40 states actually paid higher effective state and local tax rates than the top 1% of households.

While ICE conducts raids wearing masks and refusing to identify themselves I wonder where have our American values gone? We are a country of laws, rights and protections. Due Process is guaranteed by the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments of the Constitution. Undocumented immigrants have the right to be informed of the charges against them, the right to an attorney, and the right to present evidence in their defense. Yet this right seems to be ignored by the current administration. They insist the need to expedite removal outweighs constitutional protections.

Outweigh our constitution? The document elected officials including the president have sworn to uphold and protect. Yet, now they insist they do not have to follow.

We need to address the issue of immigration. Congress needs to give us a bipartisan bill on immigration. It is their job. Instead of all these heartless cruel at times ICE raids we need a comprehensive immigration bill that can be passed in both houses and signed into law by the president. Each of us who are concerned about immigration rather than perpetuating myths, call your congress members and insist on a bill.

In the meantime we must never put aside our values, rights and protections guaranteed under our Constitution for any reason. It is the document that is the foundation of our government and the source for our individual rights and protections.

We must all as patriots of our great country defend and protect our Constitution from those who may find it too difficult and burdensome to follow.

Judi Lutz Woods is a Fredonia resident.