1 story told in the deep South is that many of the illegals found work in the construction trades in/around Atlanta when Atlanta was building to host the 1996 Summer Olympics.
Somehow, it still surprises me to hear about illegals in places like Georgia or up in New England. We sort of take it for granted here (in a grumbling way) because we’re so close to the border & have the whole “Holy Week” influx (shoppers) every year, anyway.
Its not just Atlanta anymore. Illegal Mexicans have virtually taken over the entire construction industry all over rural Georgia. The contractor is usually a white feller but the labor is all Mexican. They are not just working in the fields or raking straw anymore.