A Land of Immigrants II

The USA is a nation peopled through successive waves of immigration

More than 60 million newcomers entered the country since its early days.

Immigrants settle in the US to find political, religious or economic freedom, to find a better life, attracted by the promise of the American Dream.

In the past centuries, 80% of new comers were from Europe.

Today only 15%

 17^th & 18^th Centuries: permanent settlement on the East Coast:

·         A majority of British

·         Northern Europeans: Germans, Swedes, Dutch

 

19^th & early 20^th Century

The two European Waves

1^st wave: Mid 19^th Century

·         1840 ->1860: 10 million immigrants poured into America

·         Northern Europe: British, Dutch, Scandinavians

• Common culture, similar languages & religion
• Homogeneous population
• Birth of the WASP concept

2^nd Wave: 1870 to the 1920s

·         20 million Europeans : 4.5 Italians, 4 Austrian Hungarians, 3.4 Russians and Poles

·         Central and Eastern Europe over-represented

Imact twofold:

Economic: Boosted US industry which was to become world leader

Worked in manufacturing & building railroads

Social: the number and difference created problems and revival of nativist feelings.

 The Ku-Klux-Klan reappeared

Newcomers had different cultures, origins and were not protestants

•  Regarded with suspicion
• Considered as a potential threat to social cohesion

+          They were often poor, illiterate and unskilled and looking desperately for a job

• Blamed for lowering wages
• Accused of taking jobs from “old stock” American workers 

The Quota Acts of the 1920s

America practiced an open-door policy towards newcomers. With one exception:

Immigration restriction for Asians :

·         1882 to 1943 for the Chinese

·         From 1907 for the Japanese

First change in 1917: Introduction of Literacy test

1921 and 1924:

·         Legislation to limit new entries

·         1921 & 1924 Quota Acts: imposed quotas according to country of origin and number of residents already in the US in 1890.

·         Objective: restore an ethnic balance

•  restrict immigration from Southern and Eastern Europe
• “Old Stock” immigrants (Anglo-Saxon origin) were welcome
• 43% immigrants from Great Britain
• Birth of the idea of preferential immigration

 From the Mid 20^th Century to Nowadays

Immigration from the 3^rd World

Since 1960s; radical shift.

·         Leading immigrant group: Mexicans around 27%

·         Settlement in Sunbelt states (California, Texas & Florida)

The Family Reunification Act of the 1960’s

Under Lyndon B Johnson 1965 : legislation named ‘brothers and sisters act’:

Preference to family reunification

Family oriented policy vs merit oriented policy:

•  Skilled workers with no relatives in the state seek asylum in Canada or Australia where qualification is a priority
• US lost educated immigrants

The Immigration Act of 1990

Designed to balance the previous Act:

Visas are divided between:

-          Family immigrants (immediate relatives)

-          Employment-based immigrants (favoring skilled workers)

-          Diversity immigrants (those who win the annual lottery of 50,000 green cards)

Illegals and Refugees

The US has a 2000 mile border with Mexico

•  An increasing influx of illegall aliens.
•  They cross the Rio Grande (called Wetbacks)
•  Many pregnant women cross the border to deliver their babies in the US
•  Hundreds of underground birth clinics.

Origins: Illegal aliens mainly come from Mexico, El Salvador and Nicaragua

Settlement: Same as legal immigrants : Sunbelt states + New York

 1986 : The Immigration Reform and Control Act IRCA : amnesty to all illegals and sanctions for employers hiring aliens.

Many Americans consider aliens as parasites taking advantage of social protection.

However, most of these are underpaid seasonal workers who don’t rely on social services.

REFUGEES

America has always been considered as an asylum for the oppressed

Refugee resettlement

Cuba, Vietnam, Laos Cambodia, El Salvador, Nicaragua

Marielitos

Soviet Jews

Economic refugees