The Relationship between Immigration and Poverty

731 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Negative effects of immigration

“In 2009, the U.S. admitted over 1.1 million legal immigrants, just 6.5 percent of whom possessed employment skills that in demand in the United States” (Report by Immigration Progress). American is a nesting ground for immigrants from all around the world. An important issue in the United States is the problem of illegal immigration. An illegal immigrant is someone who migrates to another country, and breaks the immigration laws of a destined nation. The United States has by far the most immigrants than any other country and this is a catalyst to many of the problem that America is facing today. Due to the increase in Immigration, there is an increase in poverty and economic downfall in the United States. Factors like education, job conflicts, welfare, and unemployment all play a vital role in proving the theory.

Most immigrants are not admitted to high paying jobs because they do not possess the education or skill level that are in demand in the labor force. Nearly 31 percent of foreign-born residents over the age of 25 are without a high school diploma, compared to just 10 percent of native-born citizens (Report by Greenhaven Press). This is considered an understatement because with the struggling economy in the United States and unemployment rates at a high, a bachelors or masters degree is a

Patel 2 must for most high paying jobs.And in May 2010, the unemployment rate for high school dropouts reached 15 percent, compared to just 4.7 percent among those with at least a bachelor’s degree (Report by GP). This causes many immigrants to work minimum wage jobs which is not enough to support a family according to Forbes. But many journalists and students believe that the sole reason why immigrants come to America is to work for...

... middle of paper ...

...tion-helps-american-workers-wages-and-job-opportunities/>.
Raphael, Steven. "Immigration and Poverty in the United States." Immigration and Poverty. Institute for Research on Poverty, 8 Jan. 2010. Web. 25 Feb. 2014. .
Rector, Robert. "Importing Poverty: Immigration and Poverty in the United States: A Book of Charts." Heritage, 25 Oct. 2006. Web. 25 Feb. 2014. .
Ruark, Eric A., and Matthew Graham. "Immigration Is Increasing Poverty in the United States." Poverty. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. Opposing Viewpoints. "Immigration, Poverty and Low-Wage Earners: The Harmful Effect of Unskilled Immigrants on American Workers." 2011. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 25 Feb. 2014.

Show More
Related

  • The Glass Castle Stereotypes

    1391 Words  | 3 Pages

    Poverty in America is a very complex issue that can be looked at from many directions. There are a plethora of statistics and theories about poverty in America that can be confusing and at times contradicting. It is important to objectively view statistics to gain a better understanding of poverty and to wade through the stereotypes and the haze of cultural views that can misrepresent the situation.The official poverty line in America begins with a person making at or below $12,060. To calculate the poverty line for a family, an additional $4,180 is added to the base of $12,060 for each additional member(“Federal Poverty Level Guidelines”). According to the last U.S. census, over 45 million or 14.5% of Americans are at or below the poverty line(Worstall). At this level, the U.S. poverty level has not changed much from the 1970s when the government began a “War on Poverty.” However,

    Read More

  • Immigration Impact on U.S Social Change: A Critical Review

    1239 Words  | 3 Pages

    America is undergoing significant social change. While in 1960, white people made up 85 percent of the population, in the latest census it was projected that by 2043, the United States would “be the first post-industrial society in the world where minorities will be the majority” (Deasy, 2012). The 1965 Immigration Act is said to have opened the door to waves of new immigration from Mexico, Latin America and Asia, and the cumulative social impacts have been far reaching. The purpose of this annotated bibliography is to critically review a handful of research papers that explore some of the impacts that immigration has had on the United States, with a particular focus on the research methodologies adopted. It finds that while many papers focus on the use of quantitative research methodologies to measure

    Read More

  • Undocumented Immigrants Should NOT Receive Public Assistance

    1953 Words  | 4 Pages

    There are over twelve million undocumented immigrants living in the United States. Many came to America to work, go to school, or be reunited with family members who are already residing here. Most migrants want to work and pursue the “American dream”. There are many barriers for residents to achieving success at the work and life balance. The immigrants fall back on public assistance to support them.

    Read More

  • The Burdens of Illegal Immigrants and Illegal Immigration

    1044 Words  | 3 Pages

    The United States is admitting more than 800,000 legal immigrants a year, with at least 200,000 more illegal immigrants settling permanently as well (National Review 12.13.93). This figure can also be bolstered by the "commuter" immigrants, illegal immigrants which cross the border for a period of time to work in low-paying, labor intensive jobs. These immigrants are creating one of the biggest burdens facing the government of the United States today, unemployment.

    Read More

  • Illegal Immigration Infestation in the United States

    770 Words  | 2 Pages

    Becerra, David, et al. "Fear Vs. Facts: Examining The Economic Impact Of Undocumented Immigrants In The U.S." Journal Of Sociology & Social Welfare 39.4 (2012): 111-135. Web. 1 Dec. 2013.

    Read More

  • Immigration: Important to the Success of America

    910 Words  | 2 Pages

    The United States of America has the largest foreign-born population in the world. With nearly thirteen percent of the total population being foreign-born, one may find it hard to imagine an immigrant-free country (U.S. Bureau of the Census). Immigration has been an integral part of the United States’ overall success and the country’s economy since it was established and without it, would have never been founded at all. Although there are some negative issues associated with immigration and many native-born Americans believe to be more of a problem than a solution, overall it actually has a positive effect. Immigrants in America, among other things, fill jobs where native-born Americans may not want to work or cannot work, they contribute to Social Services and Medicaid through taxes and they help provide the backbone of America, especially by working jobs that natives may have not even considered.

    Read More

  • Dancing in The Dark by Morris Dickstein

    1054 Words  | 3 Pages

    Edelman, Peter. "Poverty in America: Why Can't We End It?" The New York Times. The New York Times, 27 July 2012. Web. 15 May 2014.

    Read More

  • Immigration Helps America

    1203 Words  | 3 Pages

    Immigration can be defined as passing foreigners to a country and making it their permanent residence. Reasons ranging from politics, economy, natural disasters, wish to change ones surroundings and poverty are in the list of the major causes of immigration in both history and today. In untied states, immigration comes with complexities in its demographic nature. A lot of cultural and population growth changes have been witnessed as a result of immigration. In the following paper, I will focus on how immigration helps United States as compared to the mostly held view that it hurts America.

    Read More

  • Immigrant Labor in the United States

    1273 Words  | 3 Pages

    First, immigrants come to the U.S. to work and bring valuable skills which help grow the economy despite the negative views surrounding their part in the U.S. economy. Since the 2008-2009 recession the view on immigration and its effects on the economy has been more negative than positive (Peri, 2012). A study done by Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government found that about 50 percent of American adults believe that immigrants burden the country because they, “take jobs, housing, and healthcare”, while the other 50 percent believe that, “immigrants strengthen the country due to their hard work and talents” (Delener & Ventilato, 2008). Over the past decade, “over half of the increase in the U.S. labor force,… was the result of immigration-l...

    Read More

  • The Effect of Illegal Immigration on the US Economy

    892 Words  | 2 Pages

    The United States of America, being a country founded by immigrants, is known all over the world as the land of great opportunities. People from all walks of life travelled across the globe, taking a chance to find a better life for them and their family. Over the years, the population of immigrants has grown immensely, resulting in the currently controversial issue of illegal immigration. Illegal immigrants are the people who have overstayed the time granted on their US, visa or those who have broken the federal law by crossing the border illegally. Matt O’Brien stated in his article “The government thinks that 10.8 million illegal immigrants lived in the country in January 2009, down from a peak of nearly 12 million in 2007.”(Para, 2) While some argue that illegal immigrants burden the United States of America and its economy, others believe that they have become essential and are an important part of the US, economy.

    Read More

  • The DREAM Act

    1274 Words  | 3 Pages

    Ruark, Eric A., and Matthew Graham. "Immigration Is Increasing Poverty in the United States." Poverty. Ed. Roman Espejo. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from "Immigration, Poverty and Low-Wage Earners: The Harmful Effect of Unskilled Immigrants on American Workers." FairUS.org. 2011. 3-17. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 21 Apr. 2014.

    Read More

  • Katherine Newman's No Shame In My Game

    893 Words  | 2 Pages

    Race and urban poverty remain the major problems pressing challenges which the United States has yet to address.Technology,race relation and global economy during the last 30 years have necessitated newly innovative analyses and policy responses. Common threads which throughout many of the studies were reviewed here is the dynamics to migration. In “When Work Disappears”, welcoming immigrants provided reasonable data which highlight the issues of ghetto poverty affecting minorities. In “ No Shame in My Game”, hispanics immigrants are factoring towards the changing demographics in parts of Harlem. Canarsie,Brooklyn, migration of African-Americans into a working/middle-class neighborhood gives conservative backlash from a liberal community.

    Read More

  • The United States and Illegal Immigration

    1096 Words  | 3 Pages

    Nadadur, Ramanujan. “Illegal Immigration: A Positive Economic Contribution to the United States.” Journal of Ethnic & Migration Studies 35.6 (July 2009): 1037-1052. Academic Search Complete. Web. 25 March 2011.

    Read More

  • Illegal Immigration

    1839 Words  | 4 Pages

    Malanga, Steven. “How Unskilled Immigrants Hurt Our Economy.” City-Journal (New York, NY) Summer 2006 7 Jun 2004 < http://www.city-journal.org/html/16_3_immigrants_economy.html>

    Read More

  • How Does Immigration Cause Poverty

    534 Words  | 2 Pages

    First, in Immigration is Increasing Poverty in the United States, the article states “The immigrant population reflects the system’s lack of emphasis on skill… Illegal immigrants are the least-educated group, with nearly 75 percent having at most a high school diploma. Overall, 55 percent of the foreign-born population has no education past high school, compared to 42 percent of the natives.” This could have been great evidence

    Read More

More about The Relationship between Immigration and Poverty

Open Document