U.S. government data backs up former President Donald J. Trump‘s charge that illegal immigrants are impacting job opportunities for black Americans. The America First leader blasted Joe Biden‘s open border policies during the first 2024 presidential debate, stating the “20 million people” people who have entered the country illegally are “taking black jobs, and they’re taking Hispanic jobs.”
Leftist critics in the corporate media, as well as supporters of Joe Biden, claim Trump‘s remarks are racially charged. However, a House committee last year heard testimonies indicating a significant impact on the workforce from an estimated nine million illegal alien workers. The Center for Immigration Studies presented findings that U.S.-born, working-age individuals not in the labor force had risen to 44 million by April 2023, almost 10 million more than in April 2000.
A 2008 report by the United States Commission on Civil Rights supported some of Trump’s assertions, finding illegal immigration increased the low-skilled labor supply, which disproportionately affected black males, many of whom have high school diplomas or less. This led to reduced wages, lower employment rates, and higher incarceration rates among black Americans.
Critics, including MSNBC writer Ja’han Jones, labeled Trump’s phrasing “racist and dehumanizing.” Jones argued that the notion of “black jobs” was offensive and inaccurate. The Washington Post suggested that immigrants stimulate economic demand, leading to job creation rather than displacement. However, the publication acknowledged a decrease in black workers’ presence in lower-wage sectors, such as leisure, hospitality, and retail.
The National Pulse reported in February that Biden‘s so-called jobs recovery had been almost entirely driven by illegal and legal immigrant labor, with native-born Americans still being sidelined post-pandemic.
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