Immigration Persuasive Speech Outline

Thesis Statement: America is a nation of immigrants, the generations of immigrants have made important contributions to the United States that has helped us build a strong economy and make America the engine of the world.

I. Topic Sentence 1: Immigration from Latin America and the resultant growth of the nation's Hispanic population are two of the most important and controversial developments in the recent history of the United States.

a. The first significant influx of Latino immigrants to the U.S. occurred during the California Gold Rush, or just after most of the modern boundary between the U.S. and Mexico was established at the end of the U.S.-Mexican War (1846-48).

b. The demographic landscape of Hispanic Americans began to change dramatically

Topic Sentence 2: Immigration gives the United States an economic advantage in the world economy.

a. Immigrants bring innovative ideas and entrepreneurial spirit to the U.S. economy.

b. Immigrants started 28 percent of all new U.S. businesses in 2011, employing one in 10 U.S. workers.

c. Immigrants represent 18 percent of small business owners in the United States—exceeding their share of the overall population (13 percent)—and are more likely than those born in the U.S. to start a small business.

i. Source: "Get the Facts: Immigrants and the Economy - Five Reasons Why the U.S. Economy Needs Immigrants." Americas Society and Council of the Americas.12 Feb. 2013.12 Sept. 2016. http://www.as-coa.org/articles/get-facts-immigrants-and-economy-five-reasons-why-us-economy-needs-immigrants

III. Topic Sentence 3: Hispanic and Latin Americans come from diverse social, economic, and geographic backgrounds making them all very different depending on their family heritage and national origin. However, these cultural diverse backgrounds have had a cultural influence in the American culture.

a. Hispanic and Latin American cuisines are very popular in the U.S. and have had a significant influence on American cuisine and eating