WHAT: On Tuesday, February 20th, Latino Memphis and New American Economy will release “New
Americans in Memphis: A Snapshot of the Demographic and Economic Contributions of Immigrants in
the Metro Area” at a reception with Mayor Jim Strickland celebrating Barrier Free, an art installation
honoring diversity, by Yancy Villa.
“Memphis is a city made better by the diversity of its people and the information in this report shows
that,” said Mayor Jim Strickland.
Immigrants not only contributed $4.2 billion to the area’s GDP in 2015 but contributed 481.8M in taxes
as well. They also contributed $191.0 million to Social Security and 46.9M to Medicare. Despite only
making up 5.2 percent of the area’s overall population, immigrants in Memphis represent 7.1 percent of
the employed labor force and 14.4 percent of its STEM workers in 2015.
“Today, facts matter more than ever, and this report sheds light on the contributions that new and
aspiring Americans bring into our local economy. The report also shows some of our opportunities for
growth, particularly around education. Memphis needs to consider immigrants, refugees and the US
born generations that follow them as part of our smart growth strategy.” said Mauricio Calvo, Executive
Director at Latino Memphis.
Gina John, Advocacy Coordinator at Latino Memphis says, “As we commemorate MLK50 in Memphis,
his words “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere…whatever affects one directly, affects
all indirectly” ring true today. I am hopeful that the information in this report will help honor his legacy by
helping eradicate the injustices that immigrants are facing This brief comes at a time where political
tensions paint immigrants in a certain negative light, but it is clear from this report that as a whole, all
immigrants, regardless of status, are actively contributing to this economy.”
The report by New American Economy finds:
● Immigrants contributed $4.2 billion to the Memphis metro area’s GDP in 2015
● Immigrant households earned $1.6 billion in 2015. Of that, immigrant households
contributed $372.1 million in federal taxes and $109.7 million in state and local taxes, leaving
them with $1.1 billion in spending power.
● Immigrant households support federal social programs. The foreign-born contributed $191
million to Social Security and $46.9 million to Medicare.
● Immigrants in Memphis are more likely to be entrepreneurs. While just over 5 percent of
the population, immigrants make up nearly 9 percent of the metro area’s business owners. They
are 26.7 percent more likely to be entrepreneurs than people born in the United States.
● Immigrants account for more than 14 percent of the metro area’s Science, Technology,
Engineering, and Math (STEM) workers. Despite making up just 5.2 percent of the overall
population, immigrants represented 14.4 percent of the metro area’s STEM workforce. They also
represented nearly a quarter—24.5 percent—of construction workers in Memphis in 2015.
● Immigrants helped to preserve 3,210 local manufacturing jobs in 2015. Because of the
role immigrants play in the workforce helping companies keep jobs local, by 2015 immigrants
living in Memphis had helped create or preserve more than 3,210 manufacturing jobs that would
have otherwise vanished or moved elsewhere.
● Immigrant households own homes. 51.3 percent of immigrant households are homeowners
making their property value $2.4 billion.
● The undocumented population in Memphis contributed $61.5 million in taxes and held
nearly $353.2 million in spending power. In 2015, undocumented immigrant households
earned a total of $414.8 million.
WHO: Latino Memphis in collaboration with the City of Memphis and New American Economy
WHEN: Tuesday, February 20th, 3-4 PM
WHERE: Hall of Mayors, Memphis City Hall, 125 N Main St, Memphis, TN, 38103
VISUALS: Barrier Free art exhibition and reception, spoken word performance by local DACA recipient, Roberto “Boro” Alfaro
ON-SITE MEDIA CONTACT: Gina John, Advocacy Coordinator, Latino Memphis 901.366.5882 x 126 or
gina@latinomemphis.org
###
