Eight million Undocumented immigrants pay Social Security, Medicare and income taxes. Denying public services to people who pay their taxes is an affront to America's bedrock belief in fairness. But many "pull-up-the-drawbridge" politicians want to do just that when it comes to Undocumented immigrants.

The fact that Undocumented immigrants pay taxes at all will come as news to many Americans. A stunning two thirds of Undocumented immigrants pay Medicare, Social Security and personal income taxes.

Yet, nativists like Congressman Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., have popularized the notion that illegal aliens are a colossal drain on the nation's hospitals, schools and welfare programs -- consuming services that they don't pay for.

In reality, the 1996 welfare reform bill disqualified Undocumented immigrants from nearly all means tested government programs including food stamps, housing assistance, Medicaid and Medicare-funded hospitalization.

The only services that illegals can still get are emergency medical care and K-12 education. Nevertheless, Tancredo and his ilk pushed a bill through the House criminalizing all aid to illegal aliens -- even private acts of charity by priests, nurses and social workers.

Potentially, any soup kitchen that offers so much as a free lunch to an illegal could face up to five years in prison and seizure of assets. The Senate bill that recently collapsed would have tempered these draconian measures against private aid.

But no one -- Democrat or Republican -- seems to oppose the idea of withholding public services. Earlier this year, Congress passed a law that requires everyone who gets Medicaid -- the government-funded health care program for the poor -- to offer proof of U.S. citizenship so we can avoid "theft of these benefits by illegal aliens," as Rep. Charlie Norwood, R-Ga., puts it. But, immigrants aren't flocking to the United States to mooch off the government.

According to a study by the Urban Institute, the 1996 welfare reform effort dramatically reduced the use of welfare by undocumented immigrant households, exactly as intended. And another vital thing happened in 1996: the Internal Revenue Service began issuing identification numbers to enable illegal immigrants who don't have Social Security numbers to file taxes.

One might have imagined that those fearing deportation or confronting the prospect of paying for their safety net through their own meager wages would take a pass on the IRS' scheme. Not so. Close to 8 million of the 12 million or so illegal aliens in the country today file personal income taxes using these numbers, contributing billions to federal coffers.

No doubt they hope that this will one day help them acquire legal status -- a plaintive expression of their desire to play by the rules and come out of the shadows. What's more, aliens who are not self-employed have Social Security and Medicare taxes automatically withheld from their paychecks.

Since undocumented workers have only fake numbers, they'll never be able to collect the benefits these taxes are meant to pay for. Last year, the revenues from these fake numbers -- that the Social Security administration stashes in the "earnings suspense file" -- added up to 10 percent of the Social Security surplus.

The file is growing, on average, by more than $50 billion a year. Beyond federal taxes, all illegals automatically pay state sales taxes that contribute toward the upkeep of public facilities such as roads that they use, and property taxes through their rent that contribute toward the schooling of their children.

The non-partisan National Research Council found that when the taxes paid by the children of low-skilled immigrant families -- most of whom are illegal -- are factored in, they contribute on average $80,000 more to federal coffers than they consume. Yes, many illegal migrants impose a strain on border communities on whose doorstep they first arrive, broke and unemployed.

To solve this problem equitably, these communities ought to receive the surplus taxes that federal government collects from immigrants. But the real reason border communities are strained is the lack of a guest worker program.

Such a program would match willing workers with willing employers in advance so that they wouldn't be stuck for long periods where they disembark while searching for jobs. The cost of undocumented aliens is an issue that immigrant bashers have created to whip up indignation against people they don't want here in the first place.

With the Senate having just returned from yet another vacation and promising to revisit the stalled immigration bill, politicians ought to set the record straight: Illegals are not milking the government. If anything, it is the other way around.

The Undocumented Immigrants pay the exact same amount of taxes like you and me when they buy Things, rent a house, fill up gas, drink a beer or wine, buy appliances, play the states lottery and mega millions . Below are the links to just a few sites that will show you exactly how much tax you or the Undocumented Immigrant pays , so you see they are NOT FREELOADERS, THEY PAY TAXES AND TOLLS Exactly the same as you, Now if you take out 10% from your states /city Budget what will your city/state look like financially ?

Stop your folly thinking , you are wise USE YOUR WISDOM to see the reality. They pay more taxes than you think, Including FEDERAL INCOME TAX using a ITN Number that is given to them by the IRS, Social Security Taxes and State taxes that are withheld form their paychecks automatically.

I don't feel that a decision should be based solely on appeasing one ethnic group in exchange for their support. On the other hand, something needs to be done. We're talking 12 MILLION people! I live in the largest city in my state. For the last 4 years, my neighborhood has seen a rise in day laborers (undocumented men seeking work). Every day but Christmas, we deal with, up to 30, men littering, loitering, yelling, trespassing and urinating right in front of our doorsteps. How else are these men going to provide for themselves and their families? Whose looking out for their safety when asbestos removal company vans are pulling up to the curb? What about my quality of life? Do I give up and sell my house like one of my neighbors? Should my mayor follow the other large-city mayors and give them I.D. cards or create a 'no-hassle'zone? It's one heck of a slippery slope.

I wish the newspapers wouldn't quote the anti-immigration far right, like NumbersUSA and FAIR, so much. The mainstream think tanks, like the Urban and Brookings Institutes, offer much more objective analyses, but they don't get as much press. The far-right seems to get too much of it.

The debate is particularly slanted when it comes to skilled workers (bachelor's degree and above). The mainstream think tanks don't seem willing to touch the subject, leaving all the press to the far-right.

All I have to say is KUDOS to the response from "Native American" posted 4/10/09. This response is exactly how I feel, no more needs to be said!

If the 20 million illegal invaders are given amnesty, they will then be able to bring in millions more of their family members through chain migration.

There are milions of US citizens without jobs...........Illegals do NOT deserve any US jobs. And, those illegals that cannot get jobs...........They will just collect welfare, foodstamps, etc----all on the US tax payers' dime!!

Then once Obama gives the 40 million illegals amnesty------(the original illegals that are here AND the millions of their family members brought here through chain migration)----------they will immediately get them registered to vote.

Then, they take over our politics/elections!!

What is going to be left for you?? Your kids??? Your grandkids???

Once they take over our politics/elections, do you "REALLY" think that they are going to protect YOUR rights/opportunities in this country?? What about those of your children and grandchildren??

Join millions of US citizens and get involved NOW!!!! No Amnesty, no Dream Act------NO REWARDS of any kind for the illegals!!

Join millions of US citizens throughout the country and join these free sites/forums NOW!!!!

Groups and citizens opposed to illegal immigration are not "anti-immigrant" -- rather they are opposed to ILLEGAL immigration. And we all know that "comprehensive immigration reform" is code language for mass amnesty. We tried this with the supposed one-time 1986 IRCA amnesty which failed and led to more illegal immigration. NO more -- especially now with 13 million Americans desperately looking for work. Plus amnesty schemes are very detrimental to vulnerable working class Americans, such as African-Americans who are overlooked in this debate by cheap labor and ethnocentric special interests.

Los Angeles Times

1. 40% of all workers in L.A. County (L.A. County has 10 million people) are working for cash and not paying taxes. This was because they are predominantly illegal immigrants, working without a green card.

2. 95% of warrants for murder in Los Angeles are for illegal aliens.

3. 75% of people on the most wanted list in Los Angeles are illegal aliens.

4. Over 2/3's of all births in Los Angeles County are to illegal alien Mexicans on Medi-Cal whose births were paid for by taxpayers.

5. Nearly 25% of all inmates in California detention centers are Mexican nationals here illegally.

6. Over 300,000 illegal aliens in Los Angeles County are living in garages.

7. The FBI reports half of all gang members in Los Angeles are most likely illegal aliens from south of the border.

8. Nearly 60% of all occupants of HUD properties are illegal.

9. 21 radio stations in L.A. are Spanish speaking.

10. In L.A.County 5.1 million people speak English. 3.9 million speak Spanish

80& of Americans are opposed to amnesty,which is what Obama will propose. The border should be tightened, and immigration laws enforced.

I too am Native American; however, Native American is WRONG, WRONG, WRONG. This is a country of laws, you cannot steal persons SS and expect to have the taxes you are paying count towards anything. It is against the law to steal! It is against the law to come into this country illegally! America is the most generous nation in the world! THE WORLD! How generous do you want us to be? We gave amnesty in 1986, none of our laws have been enforced, and the left wing liberals are destroying this country.

The Right tried to destroy this country but have come to their senses! We, American citizens who fought for this country, have had enough. We have fought this war with Mexico; we have been patient and kind, now we are being taken advantage of.

American citizens have had enough of this government and the last, not listening to the people, doing what they want to do, to appease their special interest groups, lobbyist and corrupt friends. All Democrats who are not listening to the American citizens need to go. Trust me; the Latino population has not taken over yet!

Once we get the word out, and from the grassroots level we will (ask Obama how that works) it will be on! We have tried not to have an us v. them mentality, but American citizens are being pushed to the limit. All wealth that was created by the middle class has now been lost.

Not through our actions but that of greed and dishonesty. Do you really think Native American that we are going to let our own government rape us as well? Clearly you do not know nor care what this country was founded on.

I am sorry that we don't agree on this issue, but American citizens have spent trillions of dollars trying to be good neighbors and feeding the world. Our children have died in countries that we were trying to protect and for what? Just to lose the rights in their own country? I think not Native American.

Fair is fair, our leaders will soon find out, you cannot lead this nation from behind. You too, should be on the side of America, or perhaps it is time for you too to go.

Thank you for the post written by Native American on 4/10/09. It was wise, knowledgeable, and backed up by legit examples. I definitely understand better know and agree with Native American's post.

I am disappointed at the other posts that insult undocumented immigrants, post inaccurate statements, perpetuate incorrect myths... and further contribute to the unnecessary negativity and hatred. Are we not Diversity and Inclusion professionals? I expect more understanding and open-mindedness from the readers of DiversityInc Magazine.

Please critically think and gather all your facts before you speak. And above all, please be respectful.

The social psychologist, Eliot Aronson, developed the scapegoat theory of prejudice, also called the displaced aggression theory. According to Aronson's theory, people who find themselves in adverse situations may be inclined to lash out at the source of their problems. However, it is often difficult for people to retaliate against the direct cause of their frustrations. Therefore, these individuals or groups will project their frustrations onto others, particularly those who are hated, visible, and powerless. An important example of this phenomenon is the persecution and attempted total annihilation of Jews during the Nazi regime in Germany in the 1930s and 1940s.

Clearly, scapegoats are the victims of a highly psychological process. However, psychology alone does not adequately explain the forces at play. Indeed, scapegoating involves political and economic factors as well. Under the economic and political competition model, when resources are relatively scarce, the dominant group in society will try to exploit a minority for material gain. Discrimination and prejudice are heightened during times of tension and increased competition over limited resources.

For example, Carl Hovland and Robert Sears determined that in a given year between 1882 and 1930, there was a direct relationship between the price of cotton and the number of lynchings of Blacks. As the price of cotton decreased, the number of lynchings increased. Implicit, is the assumption that during depressed economic conditions, a society experiences heightened frustrations.

Further, in the aftermath of the Tokyo Earthquake of 1923, which claimed the lives of 100,000 people, several thousand Koreans were brutally massacred. Apparently, there were rumors that Koreans were attacking and killing Japanese, plundering, and setting fires. More important was the existence of racial hatred stemming from the influx of Korean labor.

The group in power is able to maintain its dominance, to a degree, through the process of "divide and conquer," that is, forming false alliances with other oppressed and marginalized groups. Through this process, Southern aristocracy was able to convince poor whites to fight and die for the Confederacy, in an effort to perpetuate a system of slavery that rendered the labor of poor whites superfluous and kept them in poverty. And in Civil War-era New York City, the Irish -- who competed with African Americans for the bottom rung of the socio-economic ladder -- lynched Blacks out of anger over the military draft enacted by Congress.

In the modern-day American context, Blacks, Latinos, Asian-Americans, Muslims and people of Arab descent (or perceived Muslims and Arabs), gays and lesbians and other groups rotate for the title of scapegoat du jour. As people in power keep the populace focused on one or more of these groups at any given time, crimes are committed in high places and go unnoticed. That's by design. Now, the issue of so-called illegal immigration is in the spotlight.

It is far easier to blame your unemployment or low wages on the person who picks the fruit, buses the tables, delivers the pizza or mows the lawn, than to focus on the systemic problems in society. Rather than make unsubstantiated claims about undocumented workers, let us focus on what actually matters: the United States is experiencing the largest transfer of wealth in its history. As a result of regressive conservative economic policies, pro-corporate tax breaks and globalization, the gap between rich and poor is expanding.

Median household income has declined over the past thirty years, and the present generation is worse off than the generation that preceded it. Between 1972 and 2001, the income of people in the top 1 percent grew by 87 percent. For people at the very top - the 99.99th percentile - the income gain was 181 percent. By contrast, the bottom 20 percent grew by only 3 percent.

The top 1 percent of households owns almost twice as much of the nation's corporate wealth as they did 15 years ago. Between 1978 and 2005, CEO pay increased from 35 times an average worker's pay to 262 times, making more in an hour than a worker makes in a month.

Building a wall on the Mexico border, making English the official language and denying legal and social services to undocumented immigrants will not cure these ills. The wall idea was tried and failed in Berlin, Belfast and other places.

During this time of discontent in the land, it is convenient to scapegoat Latinos, now the largest "minority" group, in a nation in which 100 million people, one-third of the population and growing, are of color. Society will be able to tackle social injustice and economic inequality only when we ignore the smokescreens and diversions. Only when we resist the temptation to scapegoat will we begin to address the myriad crises plaguing the nation. When they have all of us fighting over the crumbs, the loaf is much more easily stolen.

I am againist undocunment immigrants, the person that said they pay taxes, if they do it is in another person name. They come over here and demand things, they have theirchilden here sol they can become US CITIZENS, which to me is wrong, your parent is illegal so are the children.. They drain our system dry, getting food stamps, vouchers for furniture, food at the stores , free rent and medical care. I am tired of the hand out to these people. The come over here and raise hell because they don't get what they want. I hae a suggest for them, go home and raise hell, go home and protest and then trying raiseing the level of awareness in your own country and see the result. Leave us alone and stop dumping all your trouble on the United States. They say they come over here for a better life, how in the world yo want a better life when all you do is have baby after baby, if you can not take care of one baby and yourself, how in the world are you going to take care of 4 or 5.

Leave the baby making alone as well the alcohol. stop the foolishness and go home and try to make a change, we have enough problems here, by the way we did not send for you, you came on your own, if you are not happy go home, the same way you came here.

To all those who are speaking against immigrants this country was built by hard working immigrants. they came here for a better life and they work multiple jobs. jobs that americans refuse to do and they do not look for hand outs. The Americans are jealous of the immigrants success.