Congressional Event Perpetuates Myth of Immigrant Criminality

Washington, DC - Yesterday morning, Republican members of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration regrettably perpetuated the persistent myth of immigrant criminality with their forum on "The Toll of Illegal Alien Criminals on American Families." Lamar Smith (R-Texas) and Steve King (R-Iowa) spearheaded yesterday's conversation.

Numerous studies by independent researchers and government commissions over the past 100 years have consistently found that immigrants are less likely to commit crimes than the native-born. This holds true for both legal immigrants and the undocumented, regardless of their country of origin or level of education.

It's not likely a coincidence that Smith and King's forum happened during the same week that the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) is lobbying Congress, demanding an impractical and hateful agenda of mass deportations, worksite raids, and other expensive and ultimately ineffective approaches as part of their "Hold Their Feet to the Fire" gathering. The Republican forum even featured some of the same witnesses who participated in FAIR's rally earlier in the week.