It’s rare that you will hear a discussion about undocumented immigrants/ refugees without hearing someone refer to them as “illegal immigrants”, or just plain “illegals”. While such descriptors may not be strictly inaccurate, they are certainly skewed.

Yes, anyone who does not follow the letter of the law is technically doing something illegal. But stressing that one element out of all the details in these people’s lives is a way to achieve several misleading objectives: it suggests that refugees are driven by a desire to engage in criminal activity, rather than by desperation; it implies that such criminal activity includes more egregious acts than merely failing to comply with U.S. immigration laws; it ignores the fact that they generally have a desire to comply with such regulations, but said regulations are extremely labyrinthine; and it ignores the whole cultural and historical context of immigration and immigration law.

Implicit in the tapestry of spin that conservatives weave about immigration is that “illegal” border crossings are a relatively new phenomenon, a sign that the U.S. is going to hell in a hand basket. In a way, the first part of that tenet is correct: back in the Golden Past conservatives profess to revere, there was no such thing as illegal immigration — anybody who wanted to enter the USA just showed up. And after residing in the country for 2 years (5 years beginning in 1795), they could declare their loyalty to the U.S. and become citizens, with virtually no other hoops to jump through — whereupon their children also would become citizens.

But beginning around 1850, white Americans started getting creeped out by having too many “furriners” swarming into the territory they stole fair and square, and they started passing laws to keep out Asians, Jews, Catholics and Hispanics. And ultimately America ended up with the Kafkaesque system it has now. Still, it’s a system that many refugees do their best to navigate. But it doesn’t help that white nationalists keep spreading lies about them. Here are the most prevalent:

1. “Trying to cross the border without documentation is illegal“

Crossing the border for the purpose of seeking asylum is perfectly legal. Period.

2. “They raise crime“

“They’re not sending their best… they’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists.” Said no intelligent person ever. Especially not one who grudgingly adds as an afterthought that a handful of them maybe just might be halfway decent people.

This is one of the most pervasive fears expressed about “illegals” — that they pull a tsunami of crime over the border along with them. It’s also one of the biggest lies. Undocumented immigrants, like immigrants in general, are far less likely to commit crimes, especially violent and serious crimes, than U.S. citizens. And the vast majority of illegal drugs that cross the border are brought through legal ports of entry; in fact, nearly 90 percent of it is trafficked by Americans.

3.”They’re voting illegally“

In this post-truth era, Republican accusations of voter fraud have become routine, an article of faith among the faithful flock. And part of this credo is that “millions vote illegally” in every election — all for the Democratic candidates, of course.

While a handful of jurisdictions don’t require confirmation of citizenship to vote in certain local elections, it’s very much against the law for non-citizens to vote in national elections. And contrary to what right-wingers would have you believe, election officials vigorously enforce this and other regulations.

Voter fraud is extremely rare, and illegal voting by an undocumented immigrant is even more rare, if not downright mythical. There have been only a few cases of such immigrants even attempting to vote illegally — and attempting rarely if ever means succeeding.

The facts, of course, will not prevent MAGA cultists from persisting in their claims, which allow them to bundle together two of their top priorities: political power and xenophobia. Sometimes the claims are backed up by vivid anecdotes that turn out to have no substance. In one such case, they reported that a “busload of immigrants” had been trucked in to vote, and it was highly suspicious. Upon investigation, those “immigrants” turned out to be citizens, and perfectly qualified voters. They were just presumed to be immigrants because they had a swarthy complexion.

4. “They don’t pay taxes“

When immigrants buy gas, they pay taxes like anyone else. When they go shopping, they pay taxes like anyone else. People who say “illegals” don’t pay taxes are probably thinking about income tax specifically, but even then they’re mostly wrong. Only about a third of undocumented immigrants work for cash under the table; the other two-thirds have their wages reported and taxed just like anyone else. How? Often by using borrowed or bogus Social Security numbers. (Yes, that’s illegal. And if they get caught, it counts toward their crime tally. Which is still far lower than that of U.S. citizens — who never commit such a crime, but only such acts as robbery, rape and murder.)

That means that most undocumented workers are not only paying income tax, but are funding Social Security and Medicare — as much as13 billion dollars annually by some estimates. And few of them will ever qualify to collect benefits, which means they’re just paying for OUR retirement. Many government officials and politicians fret about the looming insolvency of Social Security, yet at the same time they want to boot out a significant chunk of the labor force that is helping to keep it afloat.

5.”They’re hurting the economy“

One of the questions the anti-immigration crowd frequently asks is “Who’s gonna pay for them”? Because they keep being fed the lie that “illegals” are going to take a big bite out of not only their personal pocketbook, but the pocketbook of the entire nation. But economic experts agree that undocumenteds make a net positive contribution to the U.S. economy. The introduction to a Wikipedia article on the topic sums it up nicely, with links to sources worth pursuing:

Research shows that undocumented immigrants increase the size of the U.S. economy/contribute to economic growth, enhance the welfare of natives, receive more in tax revenue than they contribute,^[1] reduce American firms’ incentives to offshore jobs and import foreign-produced goods, and benefit consumers by reducing the prices of goods and services.^[2][3][4][5]

So, who pays for them? In the long run, they pay for themselves — and for us. And their contribution would be even greater if they were legalized.

6. “They’re moochers“

Another stereotypical (i.e. bigoted) concern about “illegals” is that they live on welfare at the expense of the rest of us. But this is false or, to say the least, very misleading, for several reasons. First, undocumented immigrants generally do not qualify for, and do not receive, federal public assistance. (Some, but not all, states are a bit more generous with their own programs.) Second, most undocumenteds who do receive such limited aid also work at the same time — it’s not an either/ or. Third, that’s the reason they come here: to work and build a better life for themselves, not to go on the dole. And fourth, they contribute more to they system than they take out of it.

7. “They’re taking our jobs“

While they’re also leeching off the welfare system? Ohhhh-kay then. You’ve heard this many times, but it bears repeating: undocumented workers usually fill jobs that Americans simply don’t want to, and won’t, perform. And without their contribution, many industries (including agriculture) would virtually grind to a halt.

But there’s an even more fundamental problem with this claim. Even if we assume that occasionally an immigrant does indeed fill a job that some desperate U.S. citizen might have been willing to have a go at, this narrative illustrates the myopic conservative habit of viewing only one side of an equation — insofar as conservatives consider any equation at all. They see migrants swarming across the border, and start panicking that the U.S. is bursting at the seams and has no more room at the inn. They don’t think about all the people leaving the country. Currently, there are more Americans moving to Mexico than vice versa — and even more doing so illegally than vice versa!

Likewise, immigrants don’t just “take” jobs; they also create jobs — in part by creating an increased demand for goods and services. And the evidence indicates that they create more jobs than they “take”. A study of data for a 20 year period by the National Bureau of Economic Research found that:

Each immigrant creates 1.2 local jobs for local workers, most of them going to native workers, and 62% of these jobs are in non-traded services. Immigrants appear to raise local non-tradables sector wages and to attract native-born workers from elsewhere in the country. Overall, it appears that local workers benefit from the arrival of more immigrants.

One might add — and so one will — that in recent months, as the influx of refugees has surged mightily, the unemployment rate has dropped steadily. That’s the unemployment rate for citizens, folks.

In short, while we can’t return to the old days of just letting anyone and everyone hop across the border, we also shouldn’t get our panties in a twist over “illegal” immigrants. They improve our economy, improve our communities, improve the quality of life for Americans — all Americans — by just about any imaginable measure. There’s absolutely no reason to stigmatize them except ignorance. Or just plain bigotry.