Immigration to the United States
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 Throughout
time, immigrants have shaped the history of the United States of America. As a
country founded by immigrants hundreds of years ago, many individuals still
flock to the U.S. today seeking political freedom and the opportunity to achieve
their goals. America remains a land of opportunities, and because many
foreigners from all over the world come to live in the U.S., cultural diversity
is cited as one of the country's strengths. Immigration and immigration
enforcement policies remain controversial and divisive topics. Immigration also
has a unique history in the United States. The United States did not
always have to worry about illegal immigration and immigration enforcement.
Instead, in the past,
the country encouraged immigration when they the country was full of vast, open
spaces and primitive transportation and communications.
As transportation became more prominent and transportation costs fell,
foreigners found it more attractive to migrate to the United States.
After the
Civil War ended in the United States, states were faced with issues pertaining
to immigration and thus, began introducing
immigration policies. As a
result, in 1875, the U.S. Supreme Court designated the regulation of
immigration policies to the federal government and not individual states. The first big wave of
immigration to the United States began in the 1880s, and the government reacted
by creating the Immigration Service in 1891. When World War I began the number
of immigrants coming to the United States dropped significantly, especially
regarding immigrants from Europe. After the war ended, the number of
immigrants started to increase again. To deal with the high number of
immigrants
entering the country, the U.S. Congress introduced new immigration policies. The
government introduced the National Origins Quota Act in 1921. The quota limited
the number of legal immigrants to 3% of their current ethnic makeup in the
United States. This immigration quota system was altered three years later and
the percentage was lowered to 2%. In addition, Congress established the U.S.
Border Patrol as part of the Immigration Service.
In addition to immigration rates dropping during World War 1, immigration levels
also dropped during the Great Depression. In fact, the country experienced a
time period of zero growth from immigration, because no one desired to come to a country that was
experiencing a prolonged period of harsh economic conditions and uncertainty.
While immigration increased after World War II, the rates remained relatively low.
This continued for 20 years. In 1952, all the previous immigration policies and laws
introduced by Congress were combined into the Immigration and Nationality Act. Due to the large number of seasonal agricultural workers from
Mexico, the
U.S. and Mexican governments introduced the Bracero Program. In the
following years, more immigration legislation followed. In 1965, Congress
transformed the National Origins Act and gave immigration preference to families so that they could be
united in the U.S. In addition, proponents of the legislation believed the system would bring in a higher number of
skilled immigrants to the U.S. In the past, the majority of immigration visa
applicants were of European descent. Today that is no longer true and the
majority of immigration applications are received from Asia and Latin America. The availability of
immigration visas annually continues to be limited by the U.S. government. In
the past, the U.S. did not have a specific policy regarding
refugees, but this
changed when the Refugee Act of 1980 was introduced.
The number of illegal immigrants attempting
to come into the United States has continuously increased. In addition, the
number of legal immigrants admitted into the country has reached
new highs. It is estimated that legal immigration in the 1990s surpassed the
levels of the last previous peak of legal immigration from 1901 to 1910. During
that time period nearly 9 million legal immigrants were allowed into the United
States. From the period of 1968 to 1993, it is estimated that 16.7 million
immigrants entered the country legally. Of these 16.7 million legal immigrants,
nearly 85% were from developing countries. This percentage is composed of nearly 50%
legal immigrants that came from the Caribbean and Latin America and about a
third that came from Asia. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s some
illegal
immigrants in the U.S. have benefited from immigration policies that have
granted amnesty, created a system for refugees, and
have raised the quotas for the number of legal immigrants allowed. The number of
legal immigrants allowed is anywhere from 700,000 to 900,000 on an annual basis.
While immigration rates to the United States have
consistently risen since the Great Depression, a recent trend has emerged. Due
to the dim economic climate in the United States,
officials say that an increasing number of immigrants are returning home to
Latin America. Immigrants, both legal and illegal, reportedly have no choice but
to return to their native countries due to the limited number of
jobs in
employment sectors that predominantly attract recent immigrants such as the
restaurant, landscaping, and construction industries. Immigration officials in
Mexico City note that while immigration tends to be cyclical, with many
immigrants returning home for the December and January holidays, they are
already seeing an increase in returning immigrants. In fact, it is estimated
that 30,000 additional immigrants will leave the United States due to the
decrease in employment opportunities. Officials remark that
Mexican immigrants
who have lived in the U.S over two years rarely return home, as they generally
have established familial connections in the U.S. and employment prospects are
even worse back home. In addition to the increase in immigrants leaving the
United States, immigration to the United States has decreased in recent years.
According to the U.S. Border Patrol, apprehensions of illegal immigrants were
down 18 percent from 2006 and almost 40 percent from 2005.
Overall, however,
immigration to the United States remains popular, as there are an estimated 12
million undocumented immigrants residing in the country.
The department that deals with immigration services
and benefits is called the USCIS, or U.S.
Citizenship and Immigration Services. The USCIS was
formerly known as the INS or
Immigration and Naturalization Service. In March 1, 2003 the USCIS became a part
of the Department of Homeland Security. However, the immigration enforcement
responsibilities fall under the Bureau of U.S. Immigration and
Customs Enforcement, or ICE.
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