Unlike many American workers, undocumented immigrants can’t count on the social safety net if they lose their jobs or get sick. “A lot of undocumented immigrants will be hit first — and worst — by this recession,” said Orson Aguilar, director of economic policy at UnidosUS. Some have begun cobbling together funds to help undocumented workers pay rent and buy food. Both Lydia and her husband, Jerry, are undocumented immigrants from Uganda who have raised their children — ages 13, 12 and 8 — in the United States. Perhaps when this is all over, he said, the American public will recognize how undocumented immigrants risked their lives to help during a time of crisis.

Source: Washington Post April 04, 2020 20:20 UTC