Illegal Immigration Essays (Examples)

For example a study in 1982-83 had found that illegal aliens were contributing more to the economy than the state was spending on them. (Cited in LeMay, ed. 1989, 10)

There is much confusion in connection with the economic impact. Some studies feel that illegal aliens contribute very little considering the fact that they are usually employed in low paying jobs.

Economists have consistently argued back and forth as to whether or not illegal immigrants are actually driving down wages and making working conditions even worse. Some economist saw it from a different angle. They felt that some employers need to fill the low wage niche as they need to make some profit too and this niche can only be filled by illegal aliens who are willing to work at very low wages. If it had not been for those immigrants, some small firms would go out of business. This…

References

Muller and Espanshade 1985, 11-12; LeMay 1987, 73-102; and Stanley Lieberson, a Piece of the Pie (Berkeley, Calif.: University of California Press, 1980).

LeMay Michael. 1985. The Struggle for Influence. Lanham, Md.: University Press of America.

Immigration

Nation of Immigrants

America is sometimes referred to as a "nation of immigrants" because of our largely open-door policy toward accepting foreigners who pursuing their vision of the American Dream. Recently, there has been a clamor by some politicians and citizens toward creating predominantly closed-door policy on immigration, arguing that immigrants threaten American life by creating unemployment, taking jobs from American workers, using much-needed social security services, and encroaching on the American way of life. hile these statements seem valid for many, they are almost overwhelmingly false, and more than likely confused with the subject of illegal immigration. Immigrants actually enhance American life by creating, not taking jobs, bolster social service funds through tax payment, and bringing valuable technical knowledge and skills to our country.

Discussion

Illegal Immigration

Illegal immigration is defined as the trespassing across the national borders in a way that violates the immigration laws of the…

Works Cited

Farrell, Chris. "Imigration Can Fuel U.S. Innovation -- and Job Growth." Bloomberg Businessweek. July 19, 2010. 30 July 2011

Masters, B. "The Pros and Cons of Illegal Immigrants." National Public Radio. March 29, 2006. 30 July 2011.

Messerli, Joe. "Should America Maintain/Increase the Level of Legal Immigration?" BalancedPolitics.org. May, 18 2011. 30 July 2011.

"Pros And Cons Of Illegal Immigration." Iloveindia.com. (NDI). 30 July 2011.

Immigration in America: The Benefits and Costs of a Polarizing Problem

Introduction

As Suarez-Orozco, Rhodes and Milburn (2009) point out, immigrants need “supportive relationships” in order to succeed in the foreign country that they move to (p. 151). However, when that foreign country is determined to address immigration issues—not only illegal immigration but also legal immigration—it can become a difficult problem for both sides of the political aisle. For a nation like the United States, that is especially true. After all, America was founded by immigrants. The early Spanish and French missionaries came in the 16th century seeking converts to Christianity. The Puritans and English followed. The Germans and Italians and Irish and Polish all came to America in the wake of Industrialization. Over time, America was host to so many different populations and groups of people that it was referred to as the melting pot in 1909 (Higgins). However,…

Immigration Fallacy

The Existential Fallacy Behind Arizona's Immigration Policy

Few issues currently featured in American public debate are clouded by as much emotional bias, invective and distortion as that of immigration reform. Particularly as this concerns America's shared border with Mexico, immigration is a discussion which carries significant political ramification, clear racial overtones and distinctions in ideology where American openness is concerned. As a result, many political figures have been moved to comment or drive policy on the issue-based less on the support of fact than on the employment of inflammatory rhetoric. And quite frequently, this rhetoric is presented with little concern for the logical fallacies which may underlie is basic formative claims. Rarely has this been evidenced with more vitriol or determination than in the state of Arizona over the last several years. In the context of our discussion, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer is particularly noted for her steady…

Works Cited:

Biggers, J. (2011). How Arizona wrote the GOP's immigration platform. Salon.com.

hile some eventually returned to their homelands, the vast majority settled throughout the United States, forming ethnic communities in urban areas, and homesteading farmlands in the west and mid-west rural areas. They fled their homelands due to economic depressions, and/or religious and political persecutions for the opportunity to establish a better life in the New orld, and in the process endured many hardships and often discrimination. Today, more than 43 million Americans claim German ancestry, and another 34 million claim Irish roots.

orks Cited

Cohn, Raymond L. "Immigration to the United States." Illinois State University.

Retrieved November 13, 2006 at http:/ / the.net/encyclopedia/article/cohn.immigration.us

Hansen, Lawrence Douglas Taylor. "The Chinese Six Companies of San Francisco and the smuggling of Chinese immigrants across the U.S.-Mexico border, 1882-1930." Journal of the Southwest. March 22, 2006. Retrieved November 13, 2006 from HighBeam Research Library.

Hardwick, Susan . "Galveston: Ellis Island of Texas." Journal of…

Works Cited

Cohn, Raymond L. "Immigration to the United States." Illinois State University.

Retrieved November 13, 2006 at http:/ / the.net/encyclopedia/article/cohn.immigration.us

Hansen, Lawrence Douglas Taylor. "The Chinese Six Companies of San Francisco and the smuggling of Chinese immigrants across the U.S.-Mexico border, 1882-1930." Journal of the Southwest. March 22, 2006. Retrieved November 13, 2006 from HighBeam Research Library.

Hardwick, Susan W. "Galveston: Ellis Island of Texas." Journal of Cultural Geography.

Scores of illegal Latin Americans work in the hospitality industry, construction, meatpacking, agriculture, and landscaping sectors. In fact, in some of the states it is said that almost half of the construction workers are from Latin America. There are arguments that if all these illegal immigrants were removed these jobs would improve the unemployment situation for the American citizens. It is also generally argued that the pay scale for low skilled jobs would also increase. Also, most of the illegal aliens utilize healthcare, education and other services without paying taxes causing significant drain for the government.

The above points are clearly valid but there are both positive and negative effects of illegal immigration. Economists feel that totally eliminating illegal workers would only marginally improve the pay scale for high school dropouts and would not have any significant impact for workers with higher qualifications. Furthermore, illegal immigration contributes positively as Americans…

Bibliography

1) Michael Barone, 'Living with Illegals', U.S. News and World Report, April 3rd 2006.

To put a price tag on the problem for reader, Indiana University economist Eric Rasmusen claims in figures from a 2005 GAO report on foreigners that were incarcerated in Federal and state prisons calculated that illegal immigrants commit 21% of crime in America. This cost America more than $84 billion (Kingsbury).

Claim Three:

Illegal immigration from Mexico is a major funnel for terrorist groups such as Al-Qaeda. This is stated in the groups own words. In a 2009 video, an al Qaeda recruiter threatened to smuggle a biological weapon into the United States. He claimed that the organization would do this via tunnels under the Mexico border. The video aired on Al Jazeera and was later posted to several web sites. These show Kuwaiti dissident Abdullah al-Nafisi telling supporters in Bahrain that terrorists in al Qaeda were observing the U.S. border with Mexico to figure out how to send terrorists…

Works Cited

"Al Qaeda eyes bio attack from Mexico." Washington Times 3 June 2009: Web.

24 Oct 2010. .

"Al-Qaida Operative Nabbed Near Mexican Border." News Max.com. News Max.com,

20 Nov. 2005. Web. 24 Oct 2010. .

There is no question, however, that immigration issues will remain in the forefront of our national policy debates.

Deportation Factors and Crimes Involving Moral Turpitude

Research indicates that since the late 1980s, Congress had been tightening the substantive provisions of the immigration laws, to make it far less likely that a convicted criminal alien can find a way to be relieved of expulsion. For many years the basic statutory pattern was that a crime involving moral turpitude rendered a person deportable, if it was committed less than five years after the person's entry and resulted in a sentence of one year or more confinement. A later-committed crime or one that drew a lighter sentence did not result in deportation. If the person committed two such crimes that were not part of a single criminal scheme, they could render the person deportable no matter when they were committed. A drug offense…

Bibliography

Calavita, Kitty. Immigration, law and marginalization in a global economy: Notes from Spain. Law and Society Review (1998).

Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882.  http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/chinex.html  (26 Apr. 2005).

Immigration Act of 1907.  http://www.multied.com/documents/immigrationact.html  (26 Apr. 2005).

Levinson, Peter. The facade of Quasi-Judicial Independence in Immigration Appellate Adjudications. http://www.rightsworkinggroup.org/files/peter_article.pdf.(26 Apr. 2005).

These measures included laws, which denied services to undocumented residents, alerted police to assume ICE functions, penalized for employers who hired the aliens, and made English the official language. In Arizona, ordinary citizens were encouraged to report businesses, which hired suspicious foreign-looking persons. Hispanics were the major targets of this xenophobia because they were believed to be the major law violators. Statistics showed that there were approximately 12 million undocumented immigrants, most of them Latinos or Hispanics, in the U.S. The national bias against them showed up in studies, which considered only them in determining how much they were costing the country in services. ut did they really drain the economy? A spokesman for the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission did not think so. A 2004 study on "foreign-born" citizens of Virginia alone concluded that Asians outnumbered Hispanics. The Commission found that these "foreign-born" citizens were not a huge…

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Galuszka, P. (2008). Hispanics bearing the brunt of xenophobia. Diverse Issues in Higher

Education: Cox, Matthews & Associates. Retrieved on March 24, 2009 from  http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_mWMX/is_1_25/ai_n2491956?tag=content;col1 

ICE (2008). About ICE. Immigration and Customs Enforcement: U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Retrieved on March 24, 2009 from http://www.ice.gov/about/index.htm

Marcucci, M.R. (2007). Marchers call for immigration reform. Oakland Tribune: ANG

Pastor categorizes the last century (ending in the 1980s) as falling into several categories, with regard to immigration policy, which he also notes is open for debate, as it is usually done in public debates in Congress and between the executive branch and congress.

While policy during this period may be categorized in many ways, a Latin American perspective suggests four useful divisions...: Defining Limits, 1875-1921; the Classical Special elationship, 1921-1964; From Special elationship to Global Policy, 1965-1978; and the Special Case -- Illegal Migration.

1984, p. 37)

The shift associated with immigration from, European sources to Latin America, and namely Mexico is well documented and determinant of many social issues, including those designated with the legal immigration sphere as well as those designated illegal, by virtue of the manner in which immigration is done. This was also a shift, in that there had been significant movements during and following…

References

Borjas, G.J. (2001). Does Immigration Grease the Wheels of the Labor Market. 69.

Briggs, V.M. (1995). Mass Immigration, Free Trade and the Forgotten American Worker. Challenge, 38(3), 37.

Briggs, V.M. (1996). Immigration Policy and the U.S. Economy: An Institutional Perspective. Journal of Economic Issues, 30(2), 371.

DeSipio, L., & De la Garza, R.O. (1998). Making Americans, Remaking America: Immigration and Immigrant Policy. Boulder, CO: Westview Press.

In the most extensive study till date including nearly 3,000 people, Prof Vega has revealed that acculturation to U.S. customs has a damaging impact in the U.S. He found double the rate of mental disturbance in U.S. compared to the latest happenings of immigration or Mexicans who stayed in their country. Prof Vega along with his team of associates found that U.S. born Mexican-American, the lifetime threat of being detected with any mental disorder was analogous to that for non-Hispanic whites which is 48.1% that roughly one in two people. However, in case of new immigrants and Mexican citizen, the rate dropped down to 24.9%. Besides, they found out that the rate of psychological effect went up progressively after immigration in such a measure that Mexicans who had stayed in the country for more than 13 years had roughly identical rate as who were born in U.S. (as Mexican Immigrants…

References

Causes and Consequences of California's Latin American Origin Immigration" Retrieved at http://clnet.ucla.edu/challenge/ccorigin.htm. Accessed on 4 May, 2005

Chac n, Oscar; Rodr'guez, Aide; Shannon, Amy. (June, 2004) "Latino Immigrant Leaders Push for Immigration Reform: Background on Immigrant-Led, Community-Based Organization." Citizen Action in the Americas, No. 10; Americas Program, Interhemispheric Resource Center (IRC) Retrieved at  http://www.americaspolicy.org/citizen-action/series/10enlaces_body.html 

Huntington, Samuel P. "The Special Case of Mexican Immigration" the America Enterprise online. Retrieved at http://www.taemag.com/issues/articleid.12114/article_detail.asp. Accessed on 4 May, 2005

Marti, Dinerstein. (September, 2004) "Social Security 'Totalization' - Examining a Lopsided Agreement with Mexico" Retrieved at  http://www.cis.org/articles/2004/back904.html . Accessed on 4 May, 2005

Immigration

Ethics and Social esponsibility:

Immigration and Amnesty in the United States

The question of immigration, especially in this country, is ever-present. From our past, and well into our future, the United States will be a nation of immigrants. However, as political candidates raise a number of questions relating to immigrants south of the border, one must wonder about how immigration has grown into such a hotly debated issue, and how it is separating this country. Though it is true that the United States needs immigration reform, one must also look at the traditions of the country, and how they can protect the less fortunate, especially in the area of immigration. The reason this must happen is because most come here with notions of a better place, where they can live safely and freely, and prosper as individuals. This nation ought to offer that to all individuals, for that is…

References

Amnesty International. "USA must fight anti-immigration sentiments in nine states" (2010). Amnesty International. <  http://www.amnestyusa.org/news/press-releases/usa-must-fight-anti-immigrant-sentiment-in-nine-states >.

Baier, K. (1990). "Egoism" in A companion to ethics, Ed., Peter Singer. Blackwell: Oxford.

Cox, A., & Posner, A. (2007). The second-order structure of immigration law. 809,

822-23.

e can see that minority status has far less to do with population size, and instead seems very much to be inclined by race, ethnicity and political power instead. This label of minority status is in many ways used as a tag by which certain groups are detained from political unity or effectiveness.

To a large degree, this is a condition which relates to the nature of the Hispanic demographic, which in spite of its cultural diversity, is typically perceived by the larger American public as a single unified entity. This is both untrue and reflects the ethnocentric qualities of the white American political body that have tended to relegate the Hispanic population to representation that is not proportional to its true presence here. Indeed, "although Mexican-Americans continue to be the largest group within the Latino population, increasing immigration from other Latin American means they are perhaps the most culturally…

Works Cited:

Agencia EFE. (2009). Hispanics ask Obama for More Key Government Posts. Hispanic Business. Ret. Feb. 13, 2010 at http://www.hispanicbusiness.com/politics/2009/4/30/hispanics_ask_obama_for_more_key.htm

Auerbach, a.J. & Oreopoulos, P. (1999). Analyzing the Fiscal Impact of U.S. Immigration. The American Economic Review, 89(2).

Bernstein, R. (2008). U.S. Hispanic population surpasses 45 million now 15% of total. U.S. Census Bureau News.

Borjas, G. (1995). The Economic Benefits from Immigration. The Journal of Economic Perspectives, 9(2).

Conclusion

The population concerns, and the amount of finance drained towards the social welfare of the immigrants pose threat to the U.S. economy. It is therefore important for the government to focus more towards the employment of the local population, and the immigration to the applicants should be granted on the basis of available job opportunities. The government has so far failed to deliver the economic grievances of the local population, therefore the amount sanctioned for the social welfare of the immigrants can be diverted towards the well-being of the local population the allocation of the funds towards security along the borders is justified because in many of the cases the immigrants have been associated with practices that are responsible for unethical and terrorist activities.

eferences

Gordon Howard Hanson. Why Does Immigration Divide America? Public Finance and Political Opposition to Open Borders Peterson Institute. 2005. pp. 51

Gary Scott Smith.…

References

Gordon Howard Hanson. Why Does Immigration Divide America? Public Finance and Political Opposition to Open Borders Peterson Institute. 2005. pp. 51

Gary Scott Smith. Faith and the Presidency: From George Washington to George W. Bush. Oxford University Press U.S.. 2006. pp. 425

Reed Ueda. A Companion to American Immigration. Blackwell Publishing. 2005. pp. 142

U.S Department of Homeland Security. Office of Management and Budget. 2006

Immigration

The author of this report is asked to watch, summarize and assess the implications and points made by the documentary titled The Other Side of Immigration by Roy Germano. In addition to that, the author is asked to offer opinions and analysis of whether or how reform in the United States should be structured, how the a guest worker program should be structured, what is slowing down immigration reform in ashington and whether there is a negative impact caused by illegal immigration in the United States. Lastly, the author will point to the portrayal of the immigrants in the movie and whether there is a bias involved with the documentary.

Review of Film

In watching the film, the basic premise and summary of the film is that the illegal or even legal immigrants from Mexico and the struggle they face as well as the reasons why the keep trying…

Works Cited

Foley, Elise. "Buck McKeon: Terrorists May 'Mingle In' With Latinos To Cross Border." Breaking News and Opinion on The Huffington Post.  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/09/buck-mckeon-border_n_3733082.html  (accessed October 8, 2013).

Murray, Shailagh, and Lori Montgomery. "House passes health-care reform bill without Republican votes." The Washington Post: National, World & D.C. Area News and Headlines - The Washington Post.  http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/21/AR2010032100943.html  (accessed October 8, 2013).

NPR. "A Reagan Legacy: Amnesty For Illegal Immigrants: NPR." NPR: National Public Radio: News & Analysis, World, U.S., Music & Arts: NPR.  http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128303672  (accessed October 8, 2013).

NPR. "A Reagan Legacy: Amnesty For Illegal Immigrants: NPR." NPR: National Public Radio: News & Analysis, World, U.S., Music & Arts: NPR.

Immigration and its Policies:

One of the major recent controversial topics that have attracted huge debates in the United States is illegal immigration into America. The heated debate in the Congress involved two main political parties i.e. epublicans and Democrats prompting various immigrant supporters to hold peaceful demonstrations in the entire nation. The controversy was exacerbated by the calls for a comprehensive immigration reform approach by the president. The main reason behind the controversy in this topic is the significance of increased immigration for the spiritual and economic health of the United States. With the large number of immigrants in the United States, there is need for comprehensive reforms of the current immigration policies.

The immigration topic has become a subject of huge debate because 1 out of every 9 U.S. residents is an immigrant. In areas where the number of immigrants is growing or high, this debate has attracted…

References:

Gabaccia, D.R. (2006, November). Today's Immigration Policy Debates: Do We Need a Little

History? Retrieved November 23, 2011, from  http://www.migrationinformation.org/usfocus/display.cfm?ID=488 

Modarres, A. & Kitson, J. (2006, June). Toward an Immigration Policy Debate. Retrieved November 23, 2011, from  http://www.patbrowninstitute.org/documents/publications/PolicyBrief-3.pdf 

"The Immigration Debate: It's Impact on Workers, Wages and Employers." (2006, May 17).

Many of these jobs are therefore filled with illegal immigrants, who are more than willing to work for the low wage of the current minimum wage because it is still better than what they would be paid in their home country.

Now, if the reason for the need for minimum wage workers is because these jobs do not pay enough, it would be reasonable to argue that by increasing the pay of these positions there will be more of an incentive for legal citizens and/or residents to take the jobs. Although most people are not willing to work for the current minimum wage, many will be willing to work for the $7.25 proposed rate. This will fill the vacancy of minimum wage jobs that have been hired out to illegal immigrants. If these jobs are filled by legal workers, then there will be less work opportunities for illegal immigrants. If…

Even then, most of them will be back in the U.S. within a few days or weeks, so this is not solving the problem of immigration. The reason people come here is for opportunity, and so, a better investment than walls and border guards, would be improving the opportunities in Mexico and Central America, so they have more choices and more opportunities to live a better life in their own country.

For example, many U.S. companies have located factories in Mexico, especially along the border with the United States, but these factories pay low wages and many could be seen as little more than sweatshops. If major U.S. companies invested more money in Mexican outlets that paid decent wages, they would offer jobs to more Mexican citizens, keeping them in their country instead of entering ours illegally. Even more important, however, are the social services and government services that are…

Opening Paragraph:

In this Immigration essay, we will offer some sample titles, topics, an outline, and structure that you can use to improve your writing. The start of any good essay is an interesting topic statement followed by a succinct and descriptive thesis statement. The Thesis statement acts as the direction from which a reader takes when examining the body and conclusion. Body paragraphs should include a background on the topic and sub topics addressing each part of the thesis statement. The conclusion is a brief recap of what was covered.

Titles:

Immigration in the United States
Past and Present Immigration Patterns in the United States
Lost and Found: Immigration in the United States
Selected Title: The Birth of a Nation: Immigration

Topics:

History of Immigration
Immigration Patterns in the United States
Contemporary Immigration
Effects of Immigration

Outline:

I.  Introduction
II.  Body
     1. Background  
     2. Immigration…

Windrush Generation
Introduction
After the end of WWII, the British were faced with a severe labor shortage. There were simply not enough workers to tend to the work needed in England. The war had wrought considerable destruction and the solution, it seemed at the time, was to import labor. Immigrants from the Caribbean countries, such as Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados were invited to the UK between the years of 1948 and 1971 to help fill the labor shortage. They arrived at the ship the MV Empire Windrush, which is where the name “Windrush Generation” comes from.[footnoteRef:2] As a result of the 1971 Immigration Act, people living in the UK were given the right to stay. However, in recent years, immigration laws have become more restrictive, and it is now estimated that nearly 50,000 long-term residents in the UK are at risk of being deported—many of them elderly. This…

Immigration to U.S.

Immigration into the United States is a topic that many Americans, from politicians to the ordinary man-on-the-street, have strong ideas about. Illegal immigration is a strongly controversial subject, but even legal immigration can cause debate. America views itself as a country of immigrants, and many Americans support the idea that the United States is the land of freedom and opportunity for the oppressed masses from around the world. Immigration is especially controversial during a tough economy like the United States has been experiencing since 2008. Many Americans feel that their jobs and income are threatened by immigrants who may arrive in the United States willing to labor in poor working conditions for low wages. Yet, immigrants, even illegal immigrants, don't come to the United States simply to "steal" jobs from Americans. The reasons that immigrants want to live in the United States are more complex than many…

Works Cited

Center for Immigration Studies. (November, 2007.) "Immigrants in the United States, 2007." Retrieved on April 30, 2011 from  http://www.cis.org/articles/2007/back1007.html 

Hatch, Patricia. "What Motivates Immigration to America?" League of Women Voters. . Retrieved on April 30, 2011 from  http://www.lwv.org/Content/ContentGroups/Projects/ImmigrationStudy/BackgroundPapers1/ImmigrationStudy_Motivations_Hatch.pdf 

McKay, Ramah. (May 2003.) "Family Reunifications." Migration Information Source. . Retrieved on April 30, 2011 from  http://www.migrationinformation.org/feature/display.cfm?ID=122 

Skinner, Curtis. (March 2011.) "SNAP Take-up Among Immigrant Families with Children." National Center for Children in Poverty. . Retrieved on April 30, 2011 from  http://www.nccp.org/publications/pdf/text_1002.pdf

Immigration contributes to U.S. Economy

How immigration contributes to U.S. economy

Popular Press

Giovanni Peri

30, August, 2010

The Effect of Immigrants on U.S. Employment and Productivity

The article by Peri narrates the effects of immigration over the total population of the country. He says that the statistical analysis proved that the economy expanded and became more productive after the immigration and the investment also went up. He narrates another opinion that the foreign born U.S. citizens are decreasing the job opportunities for the U.S. born citizens yet there is a consent that output actually increased. He discussed that there is no significant evidence that the jobs grew or dropped for U.S. born workers because of the immigrants. Thus, this means that U.S. workers did not lose jobs because of the immigrants rather new jobs were created for the immigrants that were great for the overall economy.

Peri stated that…

References

Aguilar, L.A. "The Important Role of Immigrants in Our Economy," (2013), Retrieved from:

 http://www.sec.gov/News/Speech/Detail/Speech/1365171515736#.UnfZSWzTmYE 

Borjas, G.J. "Native Internal Migration and the Labor Market Impact of Immigration."

Journal of Human Resources 41(2), pp. 221 -- 258. (2006)

Immigration to America

An Introduction and Claim

Over the years, the issue of immigration in America United States has raised complex demographic issues. Elements of population increase and cultural change on the native societies in the United States are evident characteristics of immigration. The social, political, and economic components of immigration cause controversies on issues of employment, settlement patterns, ethnicity, and economic benefits for non-immigrants. The government works on developing social mobility, reducing crime, and controlling voting behavior. This paper intends to outline the negative issues surrounding immigration in the U.S. The United States has fewer immigrants on per capita consideration comparable to half the OECD countries. Policies had developed before 1965 focused on establishing a working formula for limiting naturalization and immigration opportunities for persons without native claim.

Background

The exceptional economic status of America makes it a haven for immigrants (David & Okazaki 887). However, globalization is fast…

Works Cited

David, Richards, and Okazaki Stephens. Activation and automaticity of colonial mentality. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 40.4(2010), 850 -- 887. Print

Mossakowski, Kilchenmann. Are immigrants healthier? The case of depression among Filipino Americans. Social Psychology Quarterly, 70.3(2007), 290 -- 304. Print

Picot, George. Hou, Farou., & Coulombe, Silva. Poverty dynamics among recent immigrants to Canada. The International Migration Review, 42.2(2008), 393 -- 424. Print

Stickels, Jackie. The Victim Satisfaction Model of the Criminal Justice System, Criminology and Criminal Justice Research and Education, 2.1 (2008), 1-19. Print

Immigration issues have been hot in the media ever since the Obama administration proposed to change the immigration rules in the U.S. earlier this year. The current rule states that illegal immigrants need first to leave the country before they can request a waiver on the 3-10-year ban on coming back to the U.S. legally. The ban is placed based on how long the immigrants have lived illegally in the country. With the proposed rule, the children and spouses of legal U.S. citizens can request the government to make a decision on the waiver without them having to first leave the country. After the waiver has been given, they can then head back to their countries to apply for their visas. Associated Press, 2012()

The director of U.S. citizenship and immigration services, Alejandro Mayorkas, stated that this new rule would cut down the amount of time an illegal immigrant would…

References

Associated Press. (2012). Obama Administration Proposes Immigration Rule Change for Family of Citizens Retrieved February 5th, 2012, from  http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/01/06/obama-administration-plans-immigration-rule-change-for-family-citizens/ 

Fox News Latino. (2012). Romney Grabs Florida Latino Vote, Immigration Not Major Issue Retrieved February 5th, 2012, from  http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/politics/2012/01/31/romney-grabs-florida-latino-vote-immigration-not-major-issue/ 

Madison, L. (2012). Romney on immigration: I'm for "self-deportation" Retrieved February 5th, 2012, from  http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-57364444-503544/romney-on-immigration-im-for-self-deportation/

Immigration: Mexico and Impact on Women

Like many of the issues discussed in this course it is difficult to see a clear path to equal rights for female immigrants. This issue is particularly troubling because of the fact that there are layers of complex individual issues involved. A woman, whether in the country legally or illegally, may have challenges and struggles with regard to being treated fairly when compared to men as well as naturalized citizens. This inequality is compounded by the complex issue of immigration; those who are here illegally are highly marginalized and are not able to receive the protection that a citizen would. On top of all of those difficulties are the issues that affect illegal immigrants crossing the border from Mexico into the U.S.A. These people risk rape, murder, death by heat stroke, dehydration, and hyperthermia which have all been increasing in recent years.

There is…

Immigration Myths

Some of the myths surrounding immigration are based on misinformation, others on simple ignorance, still others on incorrect interpretations from the media. Based on the text and popular sources, it seems that there are four major myths -- despite the fact that the United States is, in fact, a nation of immigrants:

Immigrants steal jobs from American citizens -- Immigrants count for 12% of the population, but 15% of the workforce; a result of the aging American population. What people really mean is that illegal immigrants are stealing American jobs. This is not true, since immigrants tend to be concentrated in low-skilled or agricultural jobs that most Americans do not want.

Immigration is mostly illegal and at an all-time high -- The high-point of American immigration came in the late 19th century. In the 21st century, about 2/3 of all immigrants are here legally as naturalized citizens or…

Illegal and often even legal immigrants are all too often looked upon in the these days as parasites with dark skin, too many children and no desire to learn English, as people who will come and take away jobs from "real" Americans. Such stereotypes about immigrants have been responsible for anti-immigration passed recently, such as the passage in California of Proposition 187, which was based on the assumption that illegal immigrants are an overall drawn on the economy, not only taking away jobs from U.S. citizens gut drawing from the public coffers more in social services than they return in the form of taxes paid. However, this has been found not to be the case (Scheer, 2000, p. B5). However, even if immigrants did cost the country a substantial amount in terms of social services, which they do not, they would still make immeasurable contributions to our culture, giving a…

Alien Nation is organized onto fifteen chapters, divided into three parts:

(1) Introduction;

Part I: Truth: (2) the View from the Tenth Circle; (3) the Pincers; (4) How Did it Happen? (5) Why Did it Happen? (6) So What?

Part II: Consequences: (7) Immigration Has Consequences: Economics; (8) Immigration Has (More) Consequences: Economics II; (9) Immigration Has Consequences: Cultural, Social, Environmental...; (10) Immigration Has Consequences: Political Power; (11) Immigration Has Consequences: A Less Perfect Union; (12) Immigration Has Consequences: The War against the Nation-State; (13) Doing the ight Thing? The Morality of Immigration;

Part III: Shipwreck and Salvage: (14) What, Then, Is to Be Done? (15) Conclusion: The Bowels of Christ?

Brimelow commences his book by seeking the genesis of the immigration problem and finds that it is linked to the massacres conducted by totalitarian regimes. To better explain, the author of Alien Nation… believes that the rulers of the…

References:

Brimelow, P., 1995, Alien Nation: Common Sense about America's Immigration Disaster, Random House

Lind, M., 1995, the Next American Nation: The New Nationalism and the Fourth American Revolution, Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing Group

Reilly, J.J., the Next American Nation: The New Nationalism and the Forth American Republic,  http://www.johnreilly.info/tna.htm  last accessed on September 1, 2009

1995, Alien Nation: Common Sense about America's Immigration Disaster, National Vanguard Magazine, Edition of November-December, No. 115

Even European immigrants experienced discrimination in the 19th century. As Vellos (1997) points out, "American society did not accept the Irish Catholics and Germans, and movements to limit immigration began to form." The Chinese Exclusion Act established anti-Asian sentiments and was not repealed until as late as 1943. For the first time in American history, immigration was "seen as a threat to the United States economy, and Congress began expanding the list of 'undesirable classes' hoping to upgrade the quality of immigrants and to limit overall entry," (Vellos 1997).

In spite of having to live in squalid inner city tenement buildings, new waves of immigrants relished the idea of the American Dream. The American Dream provides the ideological and psychological incentive for new immigrants to a pursue a path of upward social mobility. Upward social mobility was most likely unavailable in the home country, whereas the United States has been…

Reference

"A Historical Look at U.S. Immigration Policy." (1995). Retrieved online: http://web.missouri.edu/~brente/immigr.htm

Center for Immigration Studies (n.d.). Immigration history. Retrieved online:  http://www.cis.org/ImmigrationHistory 

Colorado Alliance for Immigration Reform (2010). U.S. Population and Immigration Data, Projections and Graphs. Retrieved online:  http://www.cairco.org/data/data_us.html 

Diner, H. (2008). Immigration and U.S. History. America.gov. Retrieved online:  http://www.america.gov/st/peopleplace-english/2008/February/20080307112004ebyessedo0.1716272.html

Advocacy groups, whether private or government-sponsored, ease transition from home to America but being uprooted poses severe psychological and sociological problems that are not easy to fix.

The United States remains one of the only nations to openly welcome immigrants as a national policy; Canada is another. For centuries the United States has relied on immigrant labor to fuel industry and add nuance to the nation's cultural fabric. The United States is no longer viewed as a melting pot because of the increased pride among immigrants in their native cultures and languages. Balancing assimilation with preservation of culture is still the most difficult task for immigrants, many of whom hope for a more stable life in the new world while still retaining the values and lifestyles of their ancestors.

Refugees continue to hold a unique social, economic and political status in the United States. As Tumulty notes, the Hmong assimilated…

Works Cited

Branigin, William. "Immigrants Shunning Idea of Assimilation." The Myth of the Melting Pot. Washington Post. May 25, 1998. Retrieved Jun 14, 2008 at  http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/meltingpot/melt0525a.htm 

Clemetson, Lynette. "Bosnians in America: A Two-Sided Saga." The New York Times. April 29, 2007. Retrieved Jun 15, 2008 at  http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/29/us/29youth.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&adxnnlx=1213585920-/U4w96yxQS4h7/bEHNl%20Ug 

Federation for American Immigration Reform. "How Mass Immigration Impedes Assimilation." Retrieved Jun 15, 2008 at  http://www.fairus.org/site/PageServer?pagename=iic_immigrationissuecenters641a 

The Great Immigration Panic." The New York Times. June 3, 2008. Retrieved June 15, 2008 at  http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/03/opinion/03tue1.html

hen economic conditions plummet, as they did in 2008, anti-immigrant sentiment may increase even more. Blaming immigrants is a popular pastime but it doesn't change the facts.

Conclusion

As America braces for a bruising round of political debate on the immigration issue, having a sense of which facts are accurate and which are myths will help both citizens and policy-makers. elfare reform and immigration reform policies can change the process for obtaining public benefits and obtaining legal status, respectively. But these differences will impact the economic sector only in minor ways. The bottom line is clear. Immigrants benefit the American economy in many ways, both obvious and subtle, both long-term and immediate, both as workers and as consumers. Those who favor a strong economic engine in the U.S. would do well to welcome our neighbors from around the world.

orks Cited

American Civil Liberties Union. 2002. Immigrants Rights: Immigrants and…

Works Cited

American Civil Liberties Union. 2002. Immigrants Rights: Immigrants and the Economy.

Available at:  http://www.aclu.org/immigrants-rights/immigrants-and-economy 

Anrig, Greg and Tova Wang. 2004. Immigration, Jobs, and the American Economy. The Century Foundation. Available at:

 http://www.tcf.org/list.asp?type=PB&pubid=491

Pro-Immigration Policies

The illegal immigration issue is one of the most divisive in the nation. Generally, those who oppose relaxed immigration rules express concerns that it contributes to the vulnerability of the nation to terrorists and drug merchants and that large numbers of immigrants absorb disproportionate amounts of public resources without paying taxes on undocumented employment. They also argue that large numbers of immigrant workers compete with Americans for unskilled labor positions thereby keeping salaries low, and that they cause harm to their native countries by contributing their labor and talents to the United tates instead of to their nations of origin.

On examination, the argument against increased immigration flexibility does not support its conclusion. In the most general sense, restricting immigration violates the fundamental principle engraved on the tatue of Liberty, according to which the U.. has always prided herself as a bastion of safety, security, and opportunity for…

Sources Consulted

Davidson, A. (2006). "Is illegal immigration an economic burden to America?"

(March 30). ACLU-ProCon.org. Retrieved from:

 http://aclu.procon.org/view.answers.php?question  ID=000713

Grillo, J. (2010). "The Immigration Dilemma." Retrieved from:

Identifying Optimal Immigration Policies

In 1870, the United States had a population of about 39 million people with virtually no immigration laws in place (U.S. historic population, 2017). In fact, it was not until several individual states began passing various types of immigration laws after the Civil War that the federal government enacted any limitations on immigration to the United States at all (Early American immigration policies, 2017). Although the situation in America is far different today, these early immigration policies were based on the same exclusionary issues that they are today. For instance, the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 and Alien Contract Labor laws of 1885 and 1887 were intended to prevent workers from specified countries from entering the country (Early American immigration policies, 2017). In other words, over the past century and a half or so, foreigners have increasingly been regarded as some type of political, economic or…

Legal Immigration Is Good for the United States

With the United States opening its boarders to thousands of legal immigrants each year, immigration has become one of the most hotly debated issues in the country. However, what has largely fueled this debate has to do with the impact of both illegal and legal immigrants on the United States' economy, crime rates as well as education and environment. While some continue to advocate for the reduction of immigration within the U.S., others are of the opinion that legal immigration impacts positively on the U.S. In terms of diversity and economic gains amongst other unique benefits. It is important to note that when legal immigration is viewed from a critical perspective, the United States does benefit greatly from the same. This text will clearly and concisely highlight some of these benefits.

Immigration in the United States: An Overview

Considered a complex demographic…

References

Arnold, K.R. (2011). Anti-Immigration in the United States: A Historical Encyclopedia. California: ABC-CLIO.

Estrom, P. (2007, June 7). Immigration: Google makes Its Case. Retrieved February 12th, 2012, from Business Week website:  http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/jun2007/db20070606_792054.htm 

Geigenberger, J. (2008). The lasting Value of Legal Immigration for the United States of America. Norderstedt Germany: GRIN Verlag.

Griswold, D. (2009, July 21). As Immigrants Move in, Americans Move Up. Retrieved February 14th, 2012, from CATO Institute website:  http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=10650

GEOPOLITICS OF ILLEGAL MIGATION IN THE U.S.

Illegal Immigration

Slowing or stopping the flow of immigrants across the U.S. Mexico border has remained a hot political issue for several decades. The events of 9/11 only added fuel to the fire and politicians have repeatedly promised to plug the leaky border. Although the budget and manpower of the Border Patrol has been tripled since 9/11, leaders in congress felt more needed to be done. In 2006 the Secure Fence Act was passed into law, which authorized funding to build 700 miles of fencing along the most troublesome stretches of the Mexico/U.S. border (Ellis, 2011). By the end of 2008 only 120 miles had been completed. In 2006 the Secure Border Initiative awarded a billion dollar contract to Boeing to build a virtual fence along the border and by the end of last year only 53 miles had been completed. The past…

References

Coleman, Matthew. (2008). Between public policy and foreign policy: U.S. immigration law reform and the undocumented migrant. Urban Geography, 29, 4-28.

Ellis, Ashton. (2011, Jan. 21). Border fence update: Governing elites use promises to ease resistance for illegal immigrants' amnesty. Texas Insider. Retrieved Oct. 20, 2011 from  http://www.texasinsider.org/?p=41295 

Jackson, Melinda S. (2011). Priming the sleeping giant: The dynamics of Latino political identity and vote choice. Political Psychology, 32, 691-716.

PEW Hispanic Center. (2011). The Mexican-American Boom: Births overtake immigration. Retrieved Oct. 20, 2011 from  http://pewhispanic.org/files/reports/144.pdf