USA Immigration Interesting Facts
- Over the past quarter-century, illegal immigration has been one of the hottest topics of political debate in the United States. As many illegal immigrants cross the border undetected, it is difficult to accurately project the number who enter each year, though it is estimated to be between 250,000 and 300,000. An immigrant is considered illegal for either unlawful entry into the country or overstaying a visa.
- The first majority group of immigrants and second generation immigrants were the Irish. After the Irish were the Chinese, then in the late 20th and early 21st century, it was Hispanic and Latin-American immigrants, the majority of which are of Mexican descent.
The Hispanic population is the largest-growing ethnic group in the United States, growing at a rate that far surpasses any other for high birth and immigration rates. The census bureau predicts that by 2050, the Hispanic population will surpass the number of non-Hispanic whites. California and Texas are home to the majority of Hispanic Americans in the country. - For many decades, social studies and history classes referred to the immigration diversity of the United States as a "melting pot," meaning a land where people from many different cultures and backgrounds with variant ethnicity, skin color, religious ties and language come together to form one single nation.
While the concept is undoubtedly an ideal image of humanity, it is not a reality. From the beginning of the immigration boom in the 19th century through the 21st century, there exists no homogeneity of people in the United States, but rather distinct ethnic communities, regions, schools and social groups.
The first immigrants located in burrows among other immigrants from their mother country. Irish communities, Jewish districts, Little Italys, the Polish quarter; nothing has changed over the past century. Ethnic and religious communities exist side-by-side all over the country, rubbing against one another like pieces in a salad rather than a melting pot. - The Population Reference Bureau projects that about 7,200 immigrants and refugees arrive in the U.S. every day. Of those, about 2,200 are legal immigrants and refugees arriving on visas or petitions, while the remaining 5,000 are unauthorized entries, the majority of which are at the U.S./Mexico border. Of the 5,000 attempts, nearly 4,000 are caught by border agents, leaving 1,000 illegal immigrants entering every day.
- The only ethnic group to ever be singled out and excluded from immigration during a time of peace were the Chinese. The Chinese exclusion act of 1882 restricted all future Chinese immigrants from entering the country. The Chinese Exclusion act was replaced by the Asian Exclusion Act of 1924, and was not repealed until 1943 with the passing of the Magnuson Act.
Ellis Island, the iconic port of entry for immigrants entering the United States via the Atlantic Ocean, processed more than 12 million immigrants from 1892 to 1954.