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Sociology 134. The Peopling of America. Story: Ali and Samra Sabir; a young couple from Pakistan. Won a special lottery for a work visa Residing in New York City; celebrated their first fourth of July in 1999. Picnic: chicken and rice dish; potato chips; cricket (passed on lasagna)
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Sociology 134 The Peopling of America
Story: Ali and Samra Sabir; a young couple from Pakistan • Won a special lottery for a work visa • Residing in New York City; celebrated their first fourth of July in 1999. • Picnic: chicken and rice dish; potato chips; cricket (passed on lasagna) • Clash between strict Muslim beliefs and American life styles • Ali wants his family to remain in America, become citizens, but not become Americans • Question: Is this possible?
Overview of Peopling of America • Involuntary participants • American Indians • Africans • Mexicans in Southwest • Immigration: Concepts and History • Terminology • Tensions over immigration • Immigration Policy
Overview, continued • Current Immigration Policy and Numbers • Current Immigration Controversies
Involuntary Participants • “The Indian Problem” • Removal • Reservations • Urbanization (1/4 on or near reservations) • Slavery and Its Aftermath • Concentration in South; Great Migration;Return Migration • Why did the net migration flow switch directions? • The Original Mexican Americans • Citizenship, but discrimination and prejudice
Concepts • Over 70,000 foreigners arrive in the U.S. each day • Immigrants (2,200) • Over 60,000 are tourists, students, and workers on temporary visas • Approximately 5,000 are illegal immigrants, but about 4,000 of these are apprehended quickly; around 1,000 or so remain for some time
Concepts, continued • Generations: 1st, 2nd, 3rd • Refugee (outside the U.S.) • Asylee (inside the U.S.) • We are the leading receiver of immigrants in most years; 2000: 10% of the U.S. population was foreign born
Tensions Over Immigration • Mexico (2nd leading country of origin of immigrants in our history) • Who is first? • Tensions over origins (Germans, Irish, Italians, Asians, Mexicans) • Tensions over numbers (why are numbers important?) • Costs and benefits • Effects on countries of origin?
Immigration and Immigration Policy: Open Borders, 1780-1875 • 1790: individuals who were “free” and “white” could become naturalized citizens; it was 1952 before Asians could become naturalized citizens • 1870: extended to aliens of African nativity and individuals of African descent; anyone born in U.S. is automatically a citizen (14th Amendment)
Restrictive Policies, 1875-1965 • 1875: prohibitions on entry of convicted criminals and prostitutes • 1882: prohibitions on entry of those likely to become a public charge • 1882: Chinese Exclusion Act • 1903: excluded anarchists and revolutionaries • Early 1900s: Gentlemen’s Agreement with Japan
Nativism and Policies • Nativism: immigration is dangerous for our society—especially from certain countries • 1924: Quota system favoring Northern and Western European countries • 1952: all aliens became eligible for naturalization
Purposeful Immigration Policies, 1965-Present • Immigration and Nationality Act Amendments of 1965: • Abolished national origins quota system • Established preferences based on relationship to U.S. citizens and permanent residents and labor needs • Refugee Act of 1980 • IRCA of 1986 • 1996: additional funds for Border Patrol; restrict benefits available to immigrants
Changes in Numbers • 1881-1890: 4.7M from Europe; .06M from Asia, .4M from America • 1981-1990: .8M from Europe; 2.7M from Asia, 3.6M from America • 1991-1995: .8M from Europe, 1.6M from Asia, 2.7M from America
Current Immigration Policy • Legal Immigration: flexible cap of 421,000 to 675,000 (too much or too little?) • Refugee/Asylee • Illegal Immigration (5M in 1996, increasing by 275T each year; probably 6.5M in 2002; 2% of U.S. population) • Naturalization 1999: 840,000 • Rights of Immigrants
Current Immigration Controversies • Costs and Benefits of Immigration • Illegal Immigration • Refugees • Citizenship and Naturalization • Culture and Identity