Immigration: Patterns, Policies, and Social Impacts in the United States

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Immigration: Patterns, Policies, and Social Impacts in the United States

Learning Objectives

Summarize the general patterns of immigration to the United States
Describe how restrictionist sentiment has increased in the past 100 years
Identify the concerns about immigration policy today
Discuss the scope of and issues related to illegal immigration
Outline the process of naturalization
Explain the connection between globalization and immigration
Describe the United States' policies toward refugees

Patterns of Immigration to the United States

The Early Immigrants

Immigration to the United States has occurred in waves, often influenced by economic opportunities, political unrest, and social factors in both the U.S. and immigrants' countries of origin.

Xenophobia: The fear or hatred of strangers or foreigners, which often led to nativism—policies favoring native-born citizens over immigrants.
The Anti-Chinese Movement: In the late 19th century, Chinese immigrants faced significant discrimination, culminating in exclusionary laws.

Major Immigration Policies

Policy	Target Group	Impact
Chinese Exclusion Act, 1882	Chinese	Effectively ended all Chinese immigration for more than 60 years
National Origin System, 1921	Southern Europeans	Reduced overall immigration and significantly reduced likely immigration from Greece and Italy
Immigration and Nationality Act, 1965 (Hart-Celler Act)	Western Hemisphere and the less skilled	Facilitated entry of skilled workers and relatives of U.S. residents
Immigration Reform and Control Act, 1986 (IRCA)	Illegal immigrants	Modest reduction of illegal immigration

Restrictionist Sentiment Increases

The National Origin System

Restrictionist sentiment refers to the growing opposition to immigration, particularly from certain regions or groups. The National Origin System established quotas that favored immigrants from Northern and Western Europe, reflecting prevailing biases of the era.

Contemporary Social Concerns

Benefits and Concerns of Immigration

Potential Benefits	Areas of Concern
Provide needed skills	Drain needed resources from home country
Pay taxes	Send money home
May come with capital to start business	Less-skilled immigrants compete with already disadvantaged residents
Maintain growth of consumer market	Population growth
Diversify the population	Language differences
Maintain ties with countries worldwide	May include people with destructive tendencies, such as terrorists and other criminals
Offset low birth rate among U.S.-born nationals	Illegal immigration

Immigrant Adaptation to the United States

Less Encouraging Signs	Positive Signs
Lower divorce rates, less likely to form single-parent households, but rates equal/exceed natives by second generation	Immigrant families less likely to rely on public assistance; second-generation immigrants often do as well or better than natives
Children in immigrant families tend to be healthier, but the advantage declines	Second-generation immigrants achieve in education, wages, and household income
Immigrant children attend schools that are disadvantaged	Majority (65%) proficient in English as an ethical obligation of all immigrants

Illegal Immigration

Scope and Issues

Illegal, undocumented, and unauthorized immigrants are terms used for people who entered the country without proper documents.
Illegal immigration is often linked to social problems and significant costs for citizens and noncitizens.
Sanctuary cities and civil rights groups have become prominent in the debate over enforcement and humanitarian concerns.

Naturalization: The Path to Citizenship

Requirements for Naturalization

Be 18 years of age
Have continually resided in the U.S. for at least five years (three years for spouses of U.S. citizens)
Have good moral character (absence of conviction for selected criminal offenses)
Be able to read, write, speak, and understand English
Pass a test in U.S. government and history administered orally in English

Sample Naturalization Test Questions

What do the stripes on the flag represent?
How many amendments are there to the Constitution?
Who is the chief justice of the Supreme Court?
Who was president during World War II?
What do we call the first 10 amendments to the Constitution?
What are two rights in the Declaration of Independence?
Name one right or freedom from the First Amendment.
When was the Constitution written?

The Global Economy and Immigration

Transnational Migration

Transnationals: Immigrants who sustain multiple social relationships that link their societies of origin and settlement.
The presence of transnationals is an example of pluralism.
Global economic disparities encourage movement across borders.

Refugees

U.S. Policies Toward Refugees

Policies have evolved to address humanitarian crises and international obligations.
Environmental refugees are those forced to leave due to natural disasters or climate change.

2005	2015
Somalia: 10,405	Burma (Myanmar): 18,356
Laos: 8,517	Iraq: 12,676
Cuba: 6,361	Somalia: 6,858
Russia: 5,962	Dem. Rep. of Congo: 7,776
Liberia: 4,289	Bhutan: 5,775
Total: 53,813	Total: 69,920

Spectrum of Intergroup Relations: Immigration

Immigration can result in a range of intergroup relations, from exclusion and segregation to assimilation and pluralism.

Expulsion and segregation are increasingly seen as unacceptable.
Assimilation and pluralism are more tolerable outcomes, with pluralism emphasizing the coexistence of diverse groups.

Additional info:

Figures and maps referenced in the slides provide visual data on immigration patterns, diversity indices, and language use in the U.S.
Tables summarize key policies, adaptation outcomes, and refugee sources, supporting a comprehensive understanding of immigration's social impact.