A new advocacy group is pushing for policies that recognize the critical role immigrants play in Michigan’s population growth and economic success.
The Businesses and People for Immigration campaign launched on Jan. 15 and has drawn support from more than 240 signatories, including the Detroit and Grand Rapids chambers of commerce, business leaders, and economic development organizations. With Michigan’s declining birth rate and population stagnation, supporters argue that immigration is essential to fueling key industries such as technology, health sciences, and manufacturing.
“Immigration is an absolutely critical component to our regional, state, and national economies,” Sandy Baruah, president and CEO of the Detroit Regional Chamber, said. “Nations and regions that are not growing in population shrink in their economic prosperity and competitiveness. Michigan, in particular, faces a population challenge and … we must rely upon immigration — from both other parts of the nation and other parts of the world — to fuel our key industries.”
The campaign calls for a “smart immigration policy” that would create “a strong, effective, and welcoming federal and state immigration system that offers freedom, opportunity, and security to immigrants whose talent, hard work, and entrepreneurship help us build a more prosperous America, and stronger Michigan.”
Global Detroit, an economic development group that advocates for immigrant inclusion, is leading the effort. Its executive director, Steve Tobocman, said immigration policy has been impacted by misinformation, leading to harmful policies.
“There are too many false narratives about immigrants and immigration that are clouding the facts and leading to harmful public policies and business decisions,” Tobocman said. “We can’t afford to get this issue wrong.”
The campaign highlights statistics showing that immigration has driven all of Michigan’s population growth over the past 25 years.
Without immigration, the state’s population would be about 100,000 lower than it was in 2020, according to the campaign.
Rich Baker, president and CEO of the Grand Rapids Chamber, said immigration is essential to Michigan’s business community.
“Talent and population growth are top issues for business, and simply put, the numbers don’t lie,” Baker said. “Immigration is a critical source to our state’s economic prosperity and our future growth.”
The campaign comes at a time when President Donald Trump is pledging to carry out mass deportations and immigrants are coming under attack by divisive, misleading Republican rhetoric. Fears of ICE crackdowns are paralyzing immigrant communities in metro Detroit and beyond, prompting many undocumented adults to stay home from work and keep their children from school.
Since launching, the campaign has drawn support from chambers of commerce across the state, economic development organizations in the Upper Peninsula, and businesses such as Canine to Five, Good Cakes and Bakes, and J.C. Beal Construction.
Fred Beal, president of J.C. Beal Construction, said immigrants have long played a crucial role in Michigan’s construction industry.
“Our country should be open to accept immigrants from other countries for all of the benefits they bring and should encourage the creation of legal means to accept far more individuals than now accepted,” Beal said. “As Michigan’s downtowns are rejuvenated and we seek to build more housing to address our housing crisis, ensuring a robust immigration system that accommodates legal migration is critical.”
Immigrants make up 6.9% of Michigan’s population but 8.4% of its working-age population. They are also disproportionately represented in high-demand industries. In 2022, immigrants held 18.6% of Michigan’s STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) jobs and accounted for more than 46,000 entrepreneurs whose businesses generated $1.4 billion in income.
The campaign also highlights immigrants’ broader economic contributions. In 2022, immigrants in Michigan earned $31.3 billion, contributed $67.8 billion in the state’s gross domestic product (about 9.9% of the total), and paid $5.5 billion in federal taxes and $2.6 billion in state and local taxes.
Michigan is also home to more than 38,000 international students, the eighth-highest total among U.S. states. Their spending on tuition, housing, and other expenses contributes $1.5 billion annually to the state’s economy.
“Immigrants are a critical component of any entrepreneurial talent recruitment and retention initiative,” said Jim Baker, senior associate vice president for research and innovation at Michigan Technological University. “They are proven leaders in the entrepreneurial community and essential team members of high-growth companies throughout the country.”
The campaign, backed by Global Detroit as its founding sponsor, is seeking more supporters. Individuals and businesses can sign the pledge at forimmigration.biz.
