Sources used in this document:

On the other hand it is very difficult to estimate the numbers of illegal immigrants to come to America. Because they live in the shadows, use a cash economy, and do not usually involve themselves in the census, it is difficult for government statisticians to calculate exactly how many are currently in the U.S. But by using roundabout measures, and some scientific assumptions, the American government does have a pretty good idea of their numbers. According to the same yearbook the estimated number of illegal immigrants actually dropped from 11.6 million in 2010 to 11.5 million in 2011, a decrease of close to one hundred thousand.("2011 Yearbook of Immigration Statistics")

3. In 2011 the United States allowed more than a million immigrants to legally enter the United States from a variety of nations. With this in mind, the greatest number of legal immigrants came from the following ten nations (ranked highest to lowest): Mexico, China, India, Philippines, Dominican Republic, Cuba, Vietnam, Korea, Haiti and Jamaica. While the U.S. may have had a drop in illegal immigration, it doesn't mean that there have been no immigrants entering illegally. What it does mean is that the number of illegal immigrants entering the U.S. is less than the number leaving. And according to the Federation for American Immigration Reform, the nations from where the most illegal immigrants came from were Highest to lowest) Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Philippines, India, Ecuador, Brazil, Korea, and China. ("2011 Yearbook of Immigration Statistics")

4. Because we live in a society where we calculate the intrinsic human worth of a person based on the external characteristics that society deems acceptable or not, immigrants are usually considered to be "out-groups" as they do not possess the external characteristics that society approves of. Because they are considered "out-groups" and usually maintain their original language, customs, religion, etc., they are usually relegated to the lower socio-economic level. In this way immigrants add to the issue of inequality by arriving and starting out at the bottom. In the video where the hosts of the "Smiley and West" radio show are discussing their "Poverty Tour," immigrants are mentioned as one of the largest percentage of people living in poverty. (Smiley and West, 2011) and the PBS news hour video made a point to stress that with the current economy, more Americans than ever are living below the poverty level. (Lehrer, 2010) but if one accepts the Davis and Moore theory on social stratification, the country needs a constant supply of people to fill the lower levels of the strata to replace those who have been here longer move up the levels. (Davis and Moore, 1945) Unfortunately, as the PBS video demonstrated, with the stagnant economy there seems to be little upward mobility at the moment and therefore an increase in immigration could put even more