By Layidua Salazar
Rewire.News
Tax Day is here and with it comes the reminder of my status in the United States as an undocumented taxpayer—meaning someone who doesn’t have a legal pathway to citizenship, despite having temporary protection from deportation and a work permit—and where the fight to fund my constitutionally protected reproductive rights truly stands.
I joined the workforce in 2003, when I was 17. Because I was ineligible for grants and financial aid as an undocumented student, I worked a full-time job to put myself through college. Since 2003, I have filed taxes every year, yet I am ineligible to use many of the social services my taxes fund due to my documentation status.
It’s clear to me that taxes are an important part of our nation’s budget—the funds historically have ensured our communities have free K-12 schools, families have access to health-care coverage and food, and other essential programs, such as public transportation and subsidized housing for low-income families. But because of unjust policies, immigrants who are authorized to work in the United States—and contribute more than $220 billion in federal taxes and $100 billion in combined state and local taxes—are not entitled to those same benefits…
Finish reading “I’m an Undocumented Taxpayer. Here’s How My Taxes Are Used Against My Values” on Rewire. News.
