IMMIGRANT CONTRIBUTIONS

Evidence of the many ways that immigrants are not a threat to, but rather a mainstay of, the U.S. economy.

Backing up the subtitle’s claim from the start, Sheen begins with two easily read pages of infographics on areas including taxes and spending, entrepreneurs, occupations, and the wage distribution of immigrants and native-born workers. Although she provides many relevant examples of documented immigrants’ contributions to U.S. productivity and prosperity, she also cites research showing that undocumented immigrants pay far more into the system than they extract from it: “over $30 billion in federal, state, and local taxes annually” that support public benefits they can’t utilize. Immigrants often perform “messy, physically demanding jobs” that otherwise would go unfilled by native-born workers. A brief history of immigration—and anti-immigrant abuses past and present—precedes an overview of immigrants’ contributions to building, revitalizing, and maintaining strong communities. The third chapter explores immigrants’ cultural contributions, explaining how they’ve both enriched the culture and stimulated the economy, for example, through celebrations like St. Patrick’s Day and Lunar New Year, as well as through ethnic food industries and pop culture. In the chapter entitled “Shaping the Future,” Sheen cites the examples of Jan Koum, the Ukrainian-born founder of WhatsApp, and Eric Yuan, the Chinese-born creator of Zoom, among others. Abundant color photos show diversity in race, gender, and religion.

A well-written, thoroughly supported, and accessible presentation of immigrants’ essential economic role.