From the years 1892 to 1954 immigrants entred the at Ellis Island, the primarly location for entering America.
A new study of US Census data reveals that 13.1 million immigrants, both legal and illegal, have come to the country in the past 10 years, despite a net decline of 1 million jobs during the same time period. That is quite a different scenario than in the 1990s when the US economy created 21 million jobs and 12.1 new immigrants entered the US.
The vastly different economic situations appeared to have no real affect on immigrants.
Although new immigration is still high, the 2.4 million immigrants arriving in 2008 and 2009 are a decline from number earlier in the decade, according to the Census Bureau.
More green cards were issued from 2000 to 2009 than during any other decade in the nation’s history, and illegal immigrants continued to arrive in strong numbers, although research indicates that the numbers fell during the last few years.
With jobs being the top issue in Washington at moment including the Bush Tax Cuts and jobless benefits extension, it is possible that the new information could pull immigration into the country’s economic debates for more regulation and policy.
The states showing the largest increase in immigrant populations over the past decade were Nebraska, Maryland, North Carolina, Washington, Arkansas, Mississippi, Alaska, Kentucky, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina and Tennessee.
The study seems to indicate the immigration is a complex process and that people are motivated to leave their native countries by more than economic opportunities in the US. Factors such as political freedom, corruption in their home country, wanting to be with relatives and America’s strong public service programs are all reasons why people choose to immigrate. The economy has little impact on these other factors and so many immigrants could still justify the journey.