Illegal aliens cost the state of Mississippi $25 million each year.
The figure was released last month in a report by the state auditor’s office and claims health care, education, and prison costs outweigh the revenue illegal immigrants create through taxes. The report estimates that 49,000 undocumented immigrants make their livings in Mississippi.
“Many people are here illegally, and it’s not just Hispanic or Mexican [people]. Many of these people have visas that have run out,” said Ross Aldridge, public relations and media director at the state auditor’s office.
The numbers are a conservative estimate because nobody actually knows how many undocumented immigrants live in Mississippi, he said.
“The underlying theme in the report is that no one is keeping numbers. If they would keep better numbers, we could better serve the people who are here legally,” Aldridge said.
Mississippi Immigrants Rights Alliance president Bill Chandler said he thinks the report is not based on any fact whatsoever.
“The term ‘illegal’ is a racist term in itself. We’re talking about human beings that are here without documents,” Chandler said. “No human being is an illegal. From the beginning of time, people have emigrated from Africa all over the world and will continue to do so.”
The report and its motivations are rooted in racism and political opportunism, Chandler said.
“In fact, many of the citations he has in the [report] are from organizations that are direct descendants from the White Citizens Council,” Chandler said. “It’s sad to me that Phil Bryant has stooped to that kind of political tactic. I’ve known him for many years, and he’s a nice guy. I don’t think he has to do that to get white votes,” he said.
The primary author of the report, Keyla Bradford, disagrees.
“I don’t think they could call me a white racist,” Bradford said.
Bradford, who is African-American, said she believes the immigration issue is a national one.
“I think more states are starting to look at the costs and everything associated with it,” Bradford said.
The report, released two weeks ago, recommends the state collect information regarding a person’s legal status in the country to attain an accurate count. If the Mississippi government knew how many illegal aliens lived within its borders, the state could apply for more federal money to pay for social services.
Report contributor Sam Atkinson said the state agencies cannot plan long term or even short term for this situation because they don’t know what they’re planning for.
“We count every student in this state so we can figure out how much funding education will cost. We count numerous things,” Atkinson said. “Why would we not want to do the same thing for a group of people who may or may not be costing our system and they’re here illegally?”
The report garnered criticism from MIRA and some legislators because the Katrina aftermath was not mentioned in the report.
“You can’t really talk about a situation that’s in progress, because we don’t know the total impact, we don’t know if it will be a positive or negative impact,” Atkinson said.
Chandler said the mention of immigrants’ commitment to work should be mentioned.
“They’re doing jobs down there that the residents don’t want to do. I saw immigrants with those paper masks purchased from a local store; those masks aren’t going to protect against asbestos, but these guys are risking their lives to work,” Chandler said.
Another important issue within the report deals with remittance payments, or payments illegal immigrant workers send back to their families.
“These illegals are making money and taking it, sending it out of the country. This money does not stay within the state. The amounts go into the hundreds of millions of dollars,” Aldridge said. “We’re trying to see what the cost is to Mississippi because every dollar counts.”
Chandler said he thinks immigrants coming into Mississippi from foreign countries are doing so to earn a living, not leach off the system.
“They’re coming from Taiwan, the People’s Republic of China, Vietnam…and they’re trying to support their families. They’re trying to have an opportunity for a better way of life, and that is not a crime,” Chandler said.
Atkinson said she doesn’t make judgements about people on a social or humanity issue.
“This is about the law; it’s about planning, policy and government. Name one other country in the world that has as loose an immigration policy as we do. There’s not one,” Atkinson said.