Today’s Youth Cannot Even Learn About the ‘American Dream’ - Thanks to illegal immigration

By Dave Gibson
Volume 24, Number 2 (Winter 2014)
Issue theme: "Whatever happened to the American Dream?"


As of October 2013, the unemployment rate among teens, ages 16-19 was 22.2 percent, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

That figure represents an increase of nearly a full percentage point from September 2013.

That same BLS report, lists the unemployment rate for black teens, ages 16-19 was a rather astounding 36 percent. Again, that number rose nearly a full percentage point from only a month earlier.

On August 20, 2013, the BLS released its annual Employment and Unemployment Among Youth Summary.

The report stated that for the period of April through July 2013, unemployment among 16-24 year- olds “rose by 692,000.”

During the same period in 2012, an astonishing 836,000 16-24 year-olds joined the ranks of the unemployed.

In 2012, the Employment Policies Institute (EPI), released a report on the unemployment rate among teens, citing dismal regional numbers, which seemed to correspond with states with large illegal alien populations.

For instance, California was listed as the state with the highest rate of teen unemployment, with 36.2 percent of its teens unable to find a job.

In the Nation’s Capital, the employment prospects were even worse for young people, as the jobless rate among Washington, D.C.’s teens reached 51.7 percent, according to the report.

Of course, under the Obama administration, the D.C. council voted to become an official “sanctuary city” for illegal aliens.

EPI listed the following states with the highest rates of teen unemployment:

1. California —36.2 percent
2. South Carolina — 31.2 percent
3. Rhode Island — 29.8 percent
4. Washington — 29.0 percent
5. Arizona — 29.0 percent
6. Nevada — 28.8 percent
7. Idaho — 28.4 percent
8. North Carolina — 28.2 percent
9. Missouri — 27.7 percent
10. Louisiana — 27.6 percent
** District of Columbia — 51.7 percent

While the study concluded that between April 2011 and April 2012, teen unemployment rose in 17 states as well as in the District of Columbia, the news is actually much worse.

EPI research fellow, Michael Saltsman, stated:

Missing out on summer jobs deprives teens of the opportunity to learn responsibility and important skills not taught in the classroom.

The problems associated with high unemployment among teenagers go far beyond a lack of spending money for high school students.

In fact, the Northern California newspaper, The Union, reported that a study published in the Journal of Labor Economics found those who held a part-time job while in high school “had a greater likelihood of higher wages and better benefits in future employment, as compared to their classmates that didn’t have a job.”

An industry where teenagers have traditionally learned work ethics which would help them later in life is fast food. However, in recent years, that too, has become dominated by illegal alien labor.

In November 2011, Eva Ramos, 36, a former McDonald’s restaurant manager, was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 32 months in federal prison for her role in an ID theft scheme.

Ramos pleaded guilty to selling the identities of U.S. citizens to illegal aliens employed in McDonald’s restaurants throughout the Savannah, Georgia area.

In April 2011, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents raided two McDonald’s restaurants in Savannah and arrested several illegal aliens. The operation was the result of a nine-month investigation.

According to ICE officials, the McDonald’s managers stole the identities of U.S. citizens, and sold them to their illegal alien employees.

In all, fourteen arrests were made, with five suspects facing federal identity theft charges and the rest charged with immigration violations.

• In October 2010, Beth Van Loon, director of human resources for McDonald’s Atlanta Region, told Fox News:

McDonald’s does not permit the employment of individuals without completing the appropriate procedures, including reviewing documentation and completing Form I-9s. Any individuals unable to meet the legal requirements for authorization to work are not employed by McDonald’s. If we subsequently determine that someone is not authorized to work, we take the appropriate action.

Though McDonald’s Corp. always denies any culpability when their franchisees are found with illegal alien employees in their hire, there does seem to be a pattern emerging across the U.S.

McDonald’s restaurants in several states have been raided by immigration officials. Illegal aliens are often caught using stolen IDs and Social Security numbers.

• In July 2008, two executives and the owner of Mack Associates Inc., which operates 11 McDonald’s franchises in Nevada, pleaded guilty to federal conspiracy charges and aiding and abetting, after investigators determined that illegal aliens were not only working at the fast-food restaurants, but had been given names and Social Security numbers belonging to others by restaurant managers.

According to U.S. Attorney Gregory Brower, ICE raids at restaurants in Reno, Sparks, and Fernley resulted in the detainment of 56 illegal aliens.

• In March 2010, sheriff’s deputies in Maricopa County, Arizona, executed search warrants at four McDonald’s restaurants, turning up 50 illegal alien workers in all. Most were charged with identity theft and fraud.

The franchises are owned by Richard Coulston and operated by his company, R & L Management.

After the raids, Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said: “It’s a shame that Friday’s arrests had to happen at the fast-food restaurant, which is more than just a business…It’s an American institution, a place that my kids and yours could always count on for their first job ever. That these McDonald’s restaurants targeted in today’s investigation are giving jobs away to people using false IDs or perhaps working here illegally is a shame.”

The issue of illegal immigration is now a fight for the survival of the American family.

Remember…For every illegal alien with a job, there is an American without one.

About the author

Dave Gibson, a former legislative aide to a Virginia state senator, has been working as a freelance writer for many years. His work has been published in many newspapers and magazines, including the Washington Times.