Sean Lengell writes in the Washington Times, Landscape changes for illegal alien jobs:
Illegal aliens, long a vital component of the nation’s agricultural work force, are swapping hoes and spades for jackhammers and feather dusters.
Most of the article covers familiar ground — illegals these days are working more in construction and the service sector than in agriculture — but I take note of the following numbers:
Jeff Passel of the nonprofit Pew Hispanic Center in Washington … estimates that 300,000 illegal aliens live in the area — an increase of about 100,000 since 2000.
Most illegals in the area live in the suburbs, with only about 15,000 to 30,000 in the District.
About 40 percent of all foreigners living unlawfully in the U.S. initially arrived legally with a valid work, tourist, student or other visa, but stayed once the document expired, Mr. Passel said.
Doing the math, this suggests that, for the past six to seven years (I don’t know if “since 2000″ includes 2000, although I expect it means “beyond the number counted in the 2000 census”), the illegal population of the DC area has been growing at a rate of around 300 per week. And, assuming that they are not counting anchor babies in those numbers, this would be net migration into the area, rather than natural population growth.
