I assume you worked there legally?
therefore had nothing to fear filing a tax return.
Yes, I was.
But this is just more deflection.
Just read the Yale University article. There is a link to a report from the Congressional Budget Office. These are the people who provide reports for US Senators:
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) noted in a 2007 report that between 50-75% of unauthorized immigrants pay some combination of federal income and/or payroll taxes.
What you don't understand is that illegal immigrants have historically been treated with a nod and a wink in the USA. Very different to here. They are encouraged to pay taxes. Until very recently, there was complete isolation between IRS and ICE to enable illegal immigrants to have confidence that their tax information would not be used to track them down and deport them.
