Over the past 5 years, the Civil War in Syria has caused displacement of thousands of Syrian people all around the world. The spread of ISIS into Syria has caused the country to be a fierce battle ground where civilians simply cannot live. You may ask where do there people go? And how does that affect the economy in which they are now living?
The Economic impact of these refugees in America could be both positive and negative. In some areas, for example in Utica, NY these refugees could do a good job of stimulating the economy. When the economy was in a steady decline the additional educated workers helped halt the decline of the economy. Where this becomes a problem is when the additional workers increase the job competition causing wages for unskilled workers to decrease. Also, it hurts the rest of the economy if refugees receive social benefits but do not pay taxes.
When the conflict began in 2011 through November of 2015 there were a total of 2,174 Syrian Refugees in the United States. This amount represented fewer than 0.0007 percent of the population. Even when the numbers increased in 2016 to about 14,761 refugees they still accounted for 0.0046 percent of the US population.
This is why I believe Trumps idea to completely close the door on Syrian refugees is hurting him rather than helping him. These refugees are such a small part of the population of the country and even help the economy in some cases. And in turn gives the impression that he does not care about helping innocent people in need around the world.
By: Johnny Coughlin
http://www.newsweek.com/syrian-refugees-modest-impact-americans-554842
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/making-sense/whats-the-economic-impact-of-refugees-in-america/
letitgoeverythingisawesome 
Great post Johnny! I am in agreement with your opinion on President Trump’s recent actions against Syrian refugees. Just because people live in a terrorist filled area, does not mean that they agree with those beliefs at all, so to refuse them safe haven in the United States is very wrong. This makes Trump seem indifferent towards people who need help and that is definitely not a strategy that will help him get re-elected in 4 years or to make it through his whole presidency.
I agree with Nick, I really enjoyed your post. I think its important that Trump recognises the U.S.’s humanitarian duty to open it’s doors to Syrian refugees, and its additional potential to bolster the country’s wealth in the he long run.
I agree with everything said here and I do believe that overall, accepting Syrian refugees will have a positive overall effect on the U.S. economy. The same negative things were said when Irish immigrants came to America, the same with Italians, the same with immigrants from Mexico. The same pessimistic comments will continue to be made, as unfortunate as that is, whenever new groups of people come to America.
While the morality behind the issue of accepting refugees is very complex and controversial, I think you underestimate the cultural and language barriers that refugees will face in the U.S. While younger or better educated refugees might be able to adapt better to American culture and eventually be able to help the economy, the majority will not be able to effectively assimilate into the country. While I think action needs to be taken to protect Syrian refugees from the spread of ISIS, I do not think that forcing them into a culture that they are unfamiliar with will give them a good chance at success. In the long run, accepting mass refugees will not provide them with a positive future, and will cost the U.S. a lot of money. While the U.S. is not foreign to giving aid to other countries, I think the government needs to develop a specific plan to pay for the resettlement process and to assist the refugees with cultural assimilation. In other words, getting them here is not sufficient; they need to be actually prepared to live and function in U.S. culture.
I agree that the refugee issue is troubling and the United States should strongly consider various ways to improve our vetting process in letting in immigrants no matter where they are from. One thing that could be done is to do a case study and determine the true economic benefits and costs in regions where many of these immigrants relocate to. Along with the economics, we must try to make sure that they want to and are capable of assimilating into the United States culture.
This was an interesting take on the refugee crisis out of Syria. I think anti-immigrant rhetoric stems from irrational fear. While every death is tragic, deaths from terrorism pose a very insignificant threat. People are much more likely to be killed in a car accident than from a terrorist task. Culturally, I think it is important to stress the benefits refugees can bring (especially economic) rather than the fear of being attacked by a terrorist.
-Kevin Lynch
Remember, every immigrant also become a new consumer. I have made lots of money in my lifetime selling my services to immigrant from all across the world. As a soccer referee, many of these immigrants have taught to me say “Go screw yourself, ref!” in dozens of foreign languages.