Foreign Immigration into the United States
The total number of immigrants per year (including illegal and refugees) is somewhat less than it was in the peak years at the start of the 20th century, when the US population was less half as large its current population. The rate of US immigration relative to the population is low rather than high. US immigration as a proportion of population is about a third of what is was in the peak years.
The United States as the great "melting pot" has become a myth. The reality is that there is a continued geographic concentration of minority groups in certain regions and in specific metropolitan areas. This holds true especially for Hispanics and Asians, who tend to enter the US through "gateway cities" such as Los Angeles and New York and then remain there.
Hispanic workers earn less than non-Hispanic workers. In 1999, 23.3% of Hispanics and 49.3% of non-Hispanic Whites earned $35,000 or more. In this same year, 22.8 percent of Hispanics were living in poverty, compared with 7.7% of non-Hispanic Whites.
However overall immigrants fare well in terms of income with adult, foreign-born, naturalized citizens actually has higher adjusted gross incomes (averaging $40,502) than families with U.S.-born citizens only ($35,249).
According to the most comprehensive study ever done on immigrants, the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) found that in all their combined roles, immigrants make indispensable contributions to our economy. They compose an increasingly essential proportion of our workforce. Through their tax payments, they help finance the costs of schools, health care, roads, welfare payments, Social Security, and the nation’s defense. Of course, immigrants are also users and beneficiaries of these g ...