A friend recently forwarded me a ridiculously inaccurate e-mail that is being forwarded across the country. The e-mail fuels anti-immigrant hysteria by claiming that immigrants and refugees are enjoying better access to public benefits than U.S. citizens.  Here is the text of the e-mail:
If an immigrant is over 65 they can apply for SSI and [...]

One can rarely enter into a discussion about immigration without hearing the term “illegal alien,” or references to undocumented immigrants as simply “illegals.” Our basic discourse has come to accept these terms, despite the fact that they are highly inaccurate and pejorative. Of course, not everyone who uses these terms intends to color undocumented immigrants with the stigma that these terms carry with them. Therefore, the purpose of this post is to explain why these terms should be eliminated from our discourse.