Mexican immigrants respond to Trump; say they came for work, not crime
It seems that everyone is weighing in on Donald Trump's comments. From Presidential candidates to business executives.
But what about the people Trump is talking about, Mexican immigrants?
Some Mexican immigrants FOX 10 spoke to acknowledge that every nationality has it's criminals, but they say the vast majority of Mexican immigrants are good, hard working people.
Carlos Delgado said since he arrived in Arizona from Mexico four years ago, he starts every day ready and waiting for work.
"I spend 8 hours in the sun, sometimes 10 hours working all day," said Carlos Delgado.
And it was a day much like today, trying to earn money for his family, when he heard Donald Trump's controversial comments about immigrants here illegally from Mexico.
"They are bringing drugs, they are bringing crime, they are rapists," said Donald Trump during an interview.
So what does Delgado think about the comments?
"I think he has a wrong opinion because us immigrants came here to work, not to be a burden on this country," said Luis Cortez, who owns a landscaping business.
Cortez said he too came from Mexico to work in the United States. He's been running a landscaping company in Phoenix for 25 years.
Trump's statements for him, are barely an afterthought.
"I don't know who that guy is, don't have time to look at TV, I work every day and I come to my house tired," he said.
A life of crime, these men say is the last thing they want. A better future they say is the only reason they came.
So does Delgado have a message for Trump?
"I would like if he gave an apology or retract what he said and looked more into our lives so that he could change his opinion," said Delgado.
The data on immigrant-related crime is incomplete. But in a report the Washington Post analyzed several studies and concluded that first-generation legal and illegal immigrants have a lower crime rate across their life course than native-born Americans. Second generation legal and illegal immigrants have similar crime rates as native born Americans.