Section: Events
Immigration debate draws large crowd
Oct 3, 2007

Economist Ben Powell argued that undocumented workers bolster the U.S. economy in several positive ways.

Last week’s immigration debate on campus sparked controversy and often high emotions among the more than 500 attendees, as former Colorado Gov. Richard Lamm and economist Benjamin Powell staked out two very different positions on what President Stephen Jordan called “this important, complex and divisive” issue.

In his introductory remarks to “Immigration: Economic Boom or Bust?” held Thursday, Sept. 27, in the Tivoli Turnhalle Jordan spoke about the importance of “college campuses to serve as a place for civil discourse on controversial issues, which immigration certainly has become.” Jordan cited Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s recent speech at Columbia University as an illustration of the importance of freedom of speech, even in cases where the speaker holds “ideas we may deplore.” Saying that “vigorous political debate, through civil discourse, is a critical pillar of democracy,” Jordan urged those in attendance to listen to both sides with an open mind, to become informed and develop their own opinions.

Former Colorado Gov. Dick Lamm tied national security, global warming and scarce resources such as water to illegal immigration.

The debate was moderated by CBS News4 reporter Anna Alejo, who laid out its guidelines. Each presenter spoke for about 25 minutes, followed by questions from Alejo and then from the audience.

Benjamin Powell, an economist from Suffolk University and the Independent Institute, opened the debate by outlining his basic premise: that immigration is of net benefit to the United States economy and does not depress wages in the U.S. Referring to the laws of supply and demand for labor, Powell argued that the immigrant labor force entering the U. S. is composed largely of people at the high and low ends of the workforce spectrum—that is, a number of highly educated, highly qualified immigrants filling high-tech positions and a number of uneducated, low-wage workers. At the same time, Powell continued, U.S. workers are mostly middle class, with high school or college education levels. Thus, he concluded, immigrants are not displacing U.S. jobs, but filling a gap in the U.S. workforce that would otherwise go unmet.

CBS News 4 reporter Anna Alejo moderated the debate.

Richard Lamm, governor of Colorado from 1975 to 1987, prefaced his remarks by saying that he had “spent most of (his) political life trying to describe where we’re going” as a society if current trends continue. “The world of endless GDP growth is over,” Lamm said, arguing that the growth rate of the United States population and economy is unsustainable. Lamm cited the need to focus on per capita income rather than overall gross domestic product. Saying that limited resources in the U.S. for social programs require borders, to limit the number of people trying to access these programs, Lamm added, “We can’t provide universal health care for all the people in the world.” Lamm also said that tighter borders and limits on immigration into the country were important to ensure national security.

The two arguments sparked emotional responses from the audience, evident as audience members queued up to ask questions of the speakers. Questions included, “If you don’t allow immigrants in and our workforce continues to age, who’s going to pay my social security?” and “Do you think it’s somehow bad that people try to come to the U.S. to have a better life?”

The debate was sponsored by Alumni Relations, School of Business, Department of Economics, College Communications, Office of Student Activities and Political Science Department.

Many in the audience lined up to ask questions of Powell and Lamm.

Thursday's debate was the first in a planned series on the issue of immigration. The next debate on the issue, “Pluralist Perspectives on the Immigration Controversy,” will be held Wednesday, Oct. 17, 10 to 11:15 a.m., in the Tivoli Multicultural Lounge. The three panelists are immigration attorney David Simmons, Consul General of Mexico Eduardo Arnal and Rich Jones, director of policy and research at the Bell Policy Center. The moderator will be Robert Hazan, chair of the Political Science department.Sponsors include the Leadership Connection Club, Political Science Student Association, Department of Political Science, Golda Meir Center and School of Business.