# Help me comprehend illegal immigration **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 24, 2019, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-comprehend-illegal-immigration/828307 "2019-01-24T01:55:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Dr.Colossus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.colossus/32/9423_2.png) [@Dr.Colossus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Colossus)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2019, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-comprehend-illegal-immigration/828307/1 "2019-01-24T01:55:06Z")
I’m hoping someone can simplify the numbers and stats on illegal immigration. In my research, I’m finding really conflicting data. For one, the majority of illegal immigrants are coming from Mexico. However, the majority of illegal immigrants are due to work visa overstays or vacation overstays, the majority of those coming from Canada. How does all this work out? If anyone can just post a quick run-down of the ins and outs of illegal immigration, I’d love to understand it better. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2019, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-comprehend-illegal-immigration/828307/2 "2019-01-24T02:19:09Z")
[The Cato Institute: “The Choice: Legal Immigrants or Illegal Immigrants”](https://www.cato.org/blog/choice-legal-immigrants-or-illegal-immigrants) [The Pew Research Center: “5 facts about illegal immigration in the U.S.”](http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/11/28/5-facts-about-illegal-immigration-in-the-u-s/) [FactCheck.org: “Illegal Immigration Statistics”](https://www.factcheck.org/2018/06/illegal-immigration-statistics/) Your post doesn’t reference what sources you are getting information from but I found these in thirty seconds. Cato is a libertarian political think tank which is heavily focused on fiscal conservatism. Pew is a non-partisan public research and polling institution which is highly rated by political data analysis site [FiveThirtyEight.com](http://FiveThirtyEight.com) for the post-hoc accuracy of its polls; [FactCheck.org](http://FactCheck.org) is a non-profit corporation of the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania which provides not-partisan fact checking against publically available information for voters that aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![DinoR](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dinor/32/2821_2.png) [@DinoR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DinoR)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2019, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-comprehend-illegal-immigration/828307/3 "2019-01-24T02:20:39Z")
I think you are running into conflicts based on time. The majority of illegal immigrant used to come from Mexico but not anymore. If you look at total numbers in the US that’s the sum total of everybody who’s come in for a couple of decades that hasn’t died, left, or been deported. Mexican illegal immigrants are more heavily weighted in those totals than if you are just looking at recent years. It’s important to look at whether we’re talkinng about totals or relatively recent flows. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2019, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-comprehend-illegal-immigration/828307/4 "2019-01-24T02:56:56Z")
The one thing to know today, in light of the government shutdown, is there is absolutely NO crisis on the border. It is a wholly manufactured issue by the right. There is nothing happening there that hasn’t been happening there for decades and we are all still here. In fact, [illegal immigration of the run across the Mexican border type is close to the lowest it has been in nearly 20 years](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-44319094) (with a little fluctuation…still near the bottom). That and [most illegal immigration does not happen via the Mexican border](https://www.cnbc.com/2019/01/08/despite-trumps-claims-most-illegal-immigration-is-not-at-the-southern-border.html) anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Bone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bone/32/407_2.png) [@Bone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bone)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2019, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-comprehend-illegal-immigration/828307/5 "2019-01-24T03:57:18Z")
More of I’M HOME material. Moving there from Elections. [/moderating] ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2019, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-comprehend-illegal-immigration/828307/6 "2019-01-24T10:53:05Z")
> [@Bone](#): > > More of I’M HOME material. Moving there from Elections. > > [/moderating] Now that’s a funny autocorrect. I didn’t even know most autocorrect would function on capital letters.