Global Refuge on WYPR: Combatting Misinformation about Immigrants

Krish O'Mara Vignarajah, President and CEO of Global Refuge, joined Midday with Tom Hall on WYPR, Baltimore's local NPR affiliate, for a discussion on the spread of misinformation about immigrants and refugees in America. This concern remains in the spotlight after former President Trump referenced the Haitian community of Springfield, Ohio in the September 10th presidential debate. Vignarajah also dispels other common misconceptions about immigrants, including the false notion that they contribute to higher crime rates and housing prices.

Listen to the full segment above and share our Combatting Disinformation toolkit.

Key excerpts:

Myth: Refugees and immigrants take American jobs.

Fact: With nearly 7.7 million unfilled jobs nationwide and at a time of record-low unemployment, immigrants are essential to filling in the gaps in the American workforce. Immigrants are also more likely to contribute to job creation than displacement, with more than 55% of the country’s billion-dollar startups founded by immigrants.

Myth: Refugees and immigrants don’t pay taxes and are a drain on our nation’s resources.

Fact: Refugees and asylees contribute significantly to U.S. communities at the federal, state, and local level—both economically and culturally. Refugees and asylees contributed an estimated $581 billion in revenue to the U.S. economy from 2005 to 2019, and, in some cases, they pay into Social Security without reaping its benefits. Most importantly, they are our doctors and nurses, our well-known chefs, our favorite musicians, our overnight construction workers, our local shop owners, our neighbors, and so much more.

Myth: Refugees and immigrants commit more crimes and make the country more dangerous.

Fact: Research has proven time and again that there is no link between immigration and increased crime rates and that immigrants are 60% less likely to be incarcerated than their native‐born peers. In fact, some studies show that increased immigration results in lower crime rates—meaning immigrants make the United States safer for all