Conversation With Professor Doran

In this interview, an economist, Kirk Doran, explains that immigration—especially undocumented immigration—generally benefits the U.S. economy and does not, on average, take jobs from native-born workers. Research on the Secure Communities enforcement program shows that aggressive deportation policies actually reduced employment and wages for U.S.-born workers because undocumented immigrants often complement rather than substitute native labor: their lower wages allow businesses to expand, creating more supervisory and middle-skill jobs and increasing overall labor demand. Deportations raise labor costs, shrink firms’ operations, and reduce local consumption, while fear of enforcement further suppresses economic activity as immigrants avoid work, travel, and public institutions. These effects hurt cities through labor shortages, higher prices, reduced female labor force participation (due to higher childcare costs), and broader economic contraction, while claims linking immigrants t