Thread: Report: Georgia leads nation in illegal immigrant growth

Report: Georgia leads nation in illegal immigrant growth

By CARLOS CAMPOS , JIM THARPE
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Published on: 08/18/06

Georgia has the fastest-growing illegal immigrant population in the nation, more than doubling in the last five years, according to a federal report released Friday.

From 2000-2005, Georgia's population of illegal immigrants jumped to an estimated 470,000, an increase of 114 percent, a U.S. Department of Homeland Security report said.

The increase far eclipsed the state with the next-fastest growth — Arizona — which had an increase of 45 percent.

Georgia's growth put it in an elite category, trailing only California, Texas, Florida, New York, Illinois and Arizona in total numbers of illegal immigrants. The report estimates there were almost 11 million illegal immigrants living in the U.S. by January 2006. The majority of the immigrants, about 6 million, are from Mexico. El Salvador, Guatemala, India and China follow with the most, making up about 13 percent of the illegal immigrant population.

Estimating the numbers of illegal immigrants is "challenging," the report by the department's Office of Immigration Statistics notes, due to the lack of concrete data that exists on the population. Estimates of the illegal immigrant population throughout the U.S. vary widely, often according to who's compiling the numbers.

Congress remains in a stalemate over illegal immigration reform, still unable to resolve key differences in House and Senate versions of a bill. As a result, states have been addressing the issue on a local level.

Earlier this week, Gov. Sonny Perdue rolled out a campaign ad touting his role in passing the Georgia Security and Immigration Compliance Act. The measure, passed by the Legislature this year, seeks to prevent illegal immigrants from getting public benefits to which they're not entitled.

"This report confirms what Gov. Perdue already recognizes, that the state of Georgia is heavily impacted by illegal immigrants," said Perdue spokeswoman Heather Hedrick. "This is precisely why this year we enacted bold legislation that will stem the flow of state resources to those who are here illegally."

Advocates for undocumented workers in Georgia said they are concerned the numbers will provide further fodder for elected officials already capitalizing on the issue.

"It's clear the current governor and particularly members of the Senate have decided people who are building our buildings and powering our labor force are a criminal element here," said state Sen. Sam Zamarripa (D-Atlanta), who worked to soften the impact of the legislation. "They [state politicians] grandstanded on it last year and they'll probably grandstand on it this year."

D.A. King of Marietta, an anti-illegal immigration activist, said he was not surprised by Friday's numbers, but believes they are grossly underestimated.

"I believe the number to be well in excess of 20 million [in the U.S]," said King, president of The Dustin Inman Society.

A Zogby International poll conducted for the Journal-Constitution in late December showed that 80 percent of Georgians wanted the state Legislature to tackle illegal immigration.

The figures released Friday could further galvanize public opinion against illegal immigration, said King, who lobbies for tougher anti-illegal immigration laws. "This news will only increase the already high number of people in Georgia who have had enough of illegal immigration in our state."

Tisha Tallman, regional counsel for the Southeastern division of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, said the nation is currently enveloped in an "anti-immigrant" climate.

"That's not unique to Georgia," said Tallman, who worked against passage of the state legislation. "However, Georgia decided to be the most vocal and to be the first to do something on the state level."

Tallman said the current immigration problems fall largely on the back of Congress, which has not dealt with a long-developing situation.

"The issue we need to stay focused on is urging Congress to come to a comprehensive solution on this very important issue," she said.

http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/ ... egals.html

Glad NC was able to give up this dubious distinction but sure feel sorry for all those in GA. At least their state government's trying to stand up for its citizens.