An outcry has come for the courts and Congress to curb the administration’s actions on undocumented immigrants, with arguments stressing that these actions are unconstitutional or immoral. I am tired of exhorting others to act when We the People can solve the problem right now! These actions are simple, immediate and based on data estimates. All we have to do is:
STOP eating fruits and vegetables: 50 percent of agricultural workers in California are undocumented.
STOP eating chicken, beef and pork: more than 23 percent of meatpacking/processing workers are undocumented.
STOP buying homes: 23 percent of construction laborers are undocumented workers.
STOP eating out (or wash your own dishes): 10-40 percent of kitchen laborers are undocumented.
STOP going to hotels or bring your own sheets and clean your own toilets: more than 7 percent of cleaning staff are undocumented (the number is higher in budget hotels).
START doing the care yourself for your loved ones in nursing homes or in need of home health care: est. 8-15 percent of home health aides and nursing assistants are undocumented. This number does not include many home health aides hired privately, and there is a huge shortage of health-care aides as baby boomers age.
START paying more taxes to cover losses: In 2022, undocumented immigrant households paid close to $90 billion in federal, state, and local taxes and held $299 billion in spending power. They also paid $25.7 billion in Social Security taxes, $6.4 billion in Medicare taxes, and $1.8 billion in unemployment insurances in 2022, programs for which they are ineligible.
START saving for the rising costs you will pay for food, housing, health care, and more in losing undocumented workers. (https://www.jec.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/democrats/2024/12/mass-deportations-would-deliver-a-catastrophic-blow-to-the-u-s-economy)
So, the Power Is in Our Hands! We can take the actions above or, as a wise saying suggests:
“Don’t bite the hand the feeds you”
