The Immigration Debate

This book sheds light on one of the most controversial issues of the decade. It identifies the economic gains and losses from immigrationâ€"for the nation, states, and local areasâ€"and provides a foundation for public discussion and policymaking. Three key questions are explored: What is the influence of immigration on the overall economy, especially national and regional labor markets? What are the overall effects of immigration on federal, state, and local government budgets? What effects will immigration have on the future size and makeup of the nation's population over the next 50 years? The New Americans examines what immigrants gain by coming to the United States and what they contribute to the country, the skills of immigrants and those of native-born Americans, the experiences of immigrant women and other groups, and much more. It offers examples of how to measure the impact of immigration on government revenues and expendituresâ€"estimating one year's fiscal impact in California, New Jersey, and the United States and projecting the long-run fiscal effects on government revenues and expenditures. Also included is background information on immigration policies and practices and data on where immigrants come from, what they do in America, and how they will change the nation's social fabric in the decades to come.

Academy of Parish Clergy Top Ten List Immigration is one of the most complicated issues of our time. Voices on all sides argue strongly for action and change. Christians find themselves torn between the desire to uphold laws and the call to minister to the vulnerable. In this book World Relief immigration experts Matthew Soerens and Jenny Yang move beyond the rhetoric to offer a Christian response to immigration. They put a human face on the issue and tell stories of immigrants' experiences in and out of the system. With careful historical understanding and thoughtful policy analysis, they debunk myths and misconceptions about immigration and show the limitations of the current immigration system. Ultimately they point toward immigration reform that is compassionate, sensible, and just as they offer concrete ways for you and your church to welcome and minister to your immigrant neighbors. This revised edition includes new material on refugees and updates in light of changes in political realities.

This issues-based reference work (available in both print and electronic formats) shines a spotlight on immigration policy in the United States. The U.S. is a nation of immigrants. Yet while the lofty words enshrined with the Statue of Liberty stand as a source of national pride, the rhetoric and politics surrounding immigration policy all-too-often have proven far less lofty. In reality, the apparently open invitation of Lady Liberty seldom has been without restriction. Throughout our history, impassioned debates about the appropriate scope and nature of such restriction have emerged and mushroomed, among politicians, among scholars of public policy, among the general public. In light of the need to keep students, researchers, and other interested readers informed and up-to-date on status of U.S. immigration policy, this volume uses introductory essays followed by point/counterpoint articles to explore prominent and perennially important debates, providing readers with views on multiple sides of this complex issue. While there are some brief works looking at debates on immigration, as well as some general A-to-Z encyclopedias, we offer more in-depth coverage of a much wider range of themes and issues, thus providing the only fully comprehensive point/counterpoint handbook tackling the issues that political science, history, and sociology majors are asked to explore and to write about as students and that they will grapple with later as policy makers and citizens. Features & Benefits: The volume is divided into three sections, each with its own Section Editor: Labor & Economic Debates (Judith Gans), Social & Cultural Debates (Judith Gans), and Political & Legal Debates (Daniel Tichenor). Sections open with a Preface by the Section Editor to introduce the broad theme at hand and provide historical underpinnings. Each section holds 12 chapters addressing varied aspects of the broad theme of the section. Chapters open with an objective, lead-in piece (or "headnote") followed by a point article and a counterpoint article. All pieces (headnote, point article, counterpoint article) are signed. For each chapter, students are referred to further readings, data sources, and other resources as a jumping-off spot for further research and more in-depth exploration. Finally, volume concludes with a comprehensive index, and the electronic version includes search-and-browse features, as well as the ability to link to further readings cited within chapters should they be available to the library in electronic format.

"What part of illegal don’t you understand?" This oft-repeated slogan from immigration restrictionists illustrates the contentious quality of the immigration reform debate in the United States: a debate that has raged on unresolved since at least 1986 when our immigration system was last reformed. This impasse is due, in large part, to widespread misinformation about immigration. This short and accessible textbook takes a critical perspective on immigration law and policy, arguing that immigrant "illegality" is itself produced by law, with tremendous consequences for individuals and families. Across six chapters that examine the conceptual, historical, economic, global, legal, and racial dimensions of immigration to the United States, Prieto argues that illegal immigration is a problem of policy, not people. History and cutting-edge social science data guide an analysis of the actual, empirical impact of immigration on U.S. society. By debunking myths about immigration, the reader is invited to form their own opinion on the basis of fact and in light of the unequal treatment different immigrant groups have received since the nation’s founding. Myth and Reality in the U.S. Immigration Debate synthesizes key lessons from the fields of sociology, law and society, history, economics and critical race studies in a digestible and engaging format. This text will serve as an introduction to the study of immigration and a primer for those who wish to engage in a sober and compassionate conversation about immigrants and immigration in the United States.

This book is a response to the binary thinking and misuse of history that characterize contemporary immigration debates. Subverting the traditional injunction directed at migrants to ‘go back to where they came from’, it highlights the importance of the past to contemporary discussions around migration. It argues that historians have a significant contribution to make in this respect and shows how this can be done with chapters from scholars in, Asia, Europe, Australasia and North America. Through their work on global, transnational and national histories of migration, an alternative view emerges – one that complicates our understanding of 21st-century migration and reasserts movement as a central dimension of the human condition. History, Historians and the Immigration Debate makes the case for historians to assert themselves more confidently as expert commentators, offering a reflection on how we write migration history today and the forms it might take in the future.

Attempts to debunk some of the myths surrounding immigrants and their place in the work force, arguing that their advantage lies in their work ethic.

Includes statistical tables and graphs.

A well balanced, critical analysis of UK migration policies, in a European context, from entry controls through to integration and citizenship of interest to academics and policy makers alike.