Everyone in the United States descended from slaves or immigrants. Immigration has been a constant battle for the U.S., with the first laws being placed in the late 1700s – mid 1800s. Micah Andrew and Walter Issitt addressed the history of immigration in our nation in their article “Immigration restrictions debate”. In earlier times, immigration restrictions were mainly based on two aspects: xenophobia, the fear of people from other countries, and to control the population. Today, restrictions are mainly based on economic and social effects. Many immigration laws, such as the Naturalization Act, were placed to limit people of European and Caucasian decent. The Chinese Exclusion Act was also passed, making it illegal for anyone from China to migrate. The “quota system,” which was abandoned forty years after being established, was used to restrict the number of immigrants from each ethnic group. In the 1920’s, border security was introduced. In the 1950’s, the McCarran-Walter Immigration and Nationality Act was passed,
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The more immigrants that attain working permits implies more immigrants will go out and get jobs. This does not mean they will take jobs from citizens. Stuart Anderson states “An important reason why immigration is beneficial is that it encourages a more productive use of human capital in the U.S. economy” (9). He also explains that many critics assume that “every illegal immigrant deported from the country opens up one of a fixed number of jobs, which would then be filled by a U.S.-born worker” (9). However, that is not how it works. And low-skilled workers can actually help the workforce become more productive. Several say that immigrants are poorer and less educated (9). Though that is not the case for every immigrant, for a large amount it is. That is why they are willing to do lower paid jobs. They are willing to do the jobs that most American citizens will not
The more immigrants that attain working permits implies more immigrants will go out and get jobs. This does not mean they will take jobs from citizens. Stuart Anderson states “An important reason why immigration is beneficial is that it encourages a more productive use of human capital in the U.S. economy” (9). He also explains that many critics assume that “every illegal immigrant deported from the country opens up one of a fixed number of jobs, which would then be filled by a U.S.-born worker” (9). However, that is not how it works. And low-skilled workers can actually help the workforce become more productive. Several say that immigrants are poorer and less educated (9). Though that is not the case for every immigrant, for a large amount it is. That is why they are willing to do lower paid jobs. They are willing to do the jobs that most American citizens will not