Recent U.S. government data supports former President Donald J. Trump’s assertion that illegal immigration impacts job opportunities for Black Americans. During the first 2024 presidential debate, Trump criticized President Joe Biden’s open border policies, arguing that the influx of illegal immigrants is “taking Black jobs, and they’re taking Hispanic jobs.” Critics from the corporate media and Biden’s supporters labeled Trump’s remarks as racially charged.

However, testimonies presented to a House committee last year indicated a significant impact on the workforce from an estimated nine million illegal alien workers. The Center for Immigration Studies reported that the number of U.S.-born, working-age individuals not in the labor force rose to 44 million by April 2023, an increase of almost 10 million from April 2000.

A 2008 report by the United States Commission on Civil Rights supported some of Trump’s claims, finding that illegal immigration increased the supply of low-skilled labor, disproportionately affecting Black males, many of whom have high school diplomas or less. This led to reduced wages, lower employment rates, and higher incarceration rates among Black Americans.

Critics, including MSNBC writer Ja’han Jones, called Trump’s phrasing “racist and dehumanizing,” arguing that the notion of “Black jobs” is offensive and inaccurate. The Washington Post suggested that immigrants stimulate economic demand, leading to job creation rather than displacement. However, the publication acknowledged a decline in Black workers’ presence in lower-wage sectors, such as leisure, hospitality, and retail.

The National Pulse reported in February that Biden’s so-called jobs recovery had been driven almost entirely by immigrant labor, both legal and illegal, with native-born Americans still sidelined post-pandemic. T