The immigration debate has taken on a very divisive tone recently with the expiration of the DACA Program as well as President Trump’s purported comments about the desire to welcome more immigrants from countries such as Norway as opposed to “shithole countries” such as Haiti, Nigeria and Somalia.
The rhetoric surrounding the immigration debate has split Americans into various camps often reflecting political affiliation, racial identity, ethnic background and geography. Various camps have doubled-down on their rhetoric with accusations of racism and bigotry on the one side, and lawlessness and disrespect for the rule of law on the other.
Putting aside the merits of the DACA program as well as the president’s alleged derogatory comments about certain countries, it is necessary to take a calm and measured look at immigration policy and the impact it has on the well-being, or lack thereof, on the nation’s future.
Immigration
According to the US Census Bureau, there were 43.3 million immigrants living in the U.S. in 2015, constituting 13.5% o the population. According to the PEW Institute, the majority of immigrants are settled in four states: California, Texas, New York and Florida.
By 2065, no one single ethnic group will make up the majority of the American population. The percentage of White citizens will decline from 62% in 2015 to only 46% by 2065, whereas the percentage of Latinos will increase from 18% in 2015 to 24% by 2065 and the Asian population will jump from 6% to 14% over the same period. Blacks are expected to increase ever so slightly from 12% to 14% of the general population.
Why We Need New Immigrants
Opponents of immigration often bring up valid points to backup their argument, especially with regards to illegal immigration. Among these arguments:
- Many immigrants rely on government-funded social services such as Medicaid, welfare and housing assistance, thereby putting pressure on the budgets of the federal, state and local governments.
- Immigrants are often slow to assimilate and resist learning English.
- Members of some immigrant communities introduce criminal elements, gangsters and even terror-sympathizers into society. Further, many immigrants bring with them sexist and anti-Semitic attitudes, and are overall intolerant to different religions and lifestyles.
- Some recent immigrants may harbor residual allegiances to their home countries, calling into question their loyalty to the United States.
While some of the above concerns maybe legitimate, it is important to point out that these arguments are often exaggerated and reflect a certain bias against people who are of different backgrounds. Further, many of today’s arguments against immigrants from Asia, Latin America and the Middle East were similarly made against Irish, Italian and Eastern Europeans in the early 20th Century.
The fact is that the U.S. desperately needs immigrants to continue to power its growing economy, which cannot be sustained by a shrinking young native population due to lower fertility rates among native groups. In fact, it is the younger immigrant workers, who are expected to fund the future social security benefits that will be collected by an aging native population. In other words, much of the social security benefits to be collected by white retirees in the U.S. will be increasingly funded from the paychecks of younger latino workers and employees.
Japan, as well as several Western European countries, whose economies are growing at historically low rates, are seeking immigrants to help pump life into their societies. Several countries are offering citizenship or permanent residency to people who make an investment or purchase a home in the country. Recently, an Italian city even announced that it was selling homes for only 1 Euro to entice people to populate their nearly deserted community.
The bottom-line is that low fertility rates in developed countries are resulting in societies with a higher percentage of aged and retired workers and slower growing economies. In the absence of a reversal of this demographic trend, developed societies will need to replenish their workforces from younger people from areas with high birth-rates such as Latin America, Southeast Asia, the Indian Subcontinent, Africa and the Middle East.
The above is not meant to advocate for open borders or to oppose strict regulations on immigration. However, while it is important to tighten border security, it is equally important to focus on assimilating new arrivals to our societies to protect the cohesiveness of the nation. Immigrants should be immersed in new programs to learn English, study American history, integrate with others from different backgrounds and observe values of tolerance and equality.
Ideas for Assimilating New Immigrants
First, all new immigrants should be expected to understand that they are heading to heterogeneous societies that tolerate differences in ethnic background, religion, political beliefs and ideology. If an applicant for immigration to the United States cannot accept that he/she may have Black neighbors, Jewish co-workers, lesbian managers, etc. then they should be denied acceptance.
Second, new immigrants should be expected to have a minimum level of English proficiency before entering our borders.
Third, all new arrivals should be placed on short-term probation. This means if a new immigrant is arrested for a crime, then their residency status will be revoked and that they will be deported to their country of origin.
Conclusion
Immigration, like any other human phenomena, has its positive and negative attributes. However, when trying to craft a new immigration policy, we should steer away from bigotry and xenophobia on the one hand as well as calls for lawlessness, anarchy and dilution of the American identity on the other.