United States Government: Democracy in Action

"Immigration to the United States"

Introduction
In this chapter you have learned that the United States is a nation of immigrants and has a long history of attempts to regulate this entry of immigrants into the country. Immigrants come to the United States because of "push factors," reasons people want to leave their country of origin, and / or "pull factors," reasons people want to come to the United States . Push factors can include lack of economic opportunities, wars and compulsory military service, political tyranny, religious oppression, and population pressure. Pull factors can include the opportunity for economic advancement, the opportunity for a higher standard of living, the democratic political system, and the opportunity for social advancement. The areas in the United States that immigrant settle are often influenced by where support for a transition into a new culture exists and where the opportunities for the "pull factors" are the greatest. In this activity you will examine how immigration has affected the United States.

Objective
Through this activity you will research the impact of immigration on the United States.

Directions
Research credible websites and complete the questions and activity that follows:

Where to begin
www.census.gov
www.uscis.gov

Take notes as well as record the websites you visit and answer the following questions:

1			Find the latest legal immigration statistics for the United States. List the year and total immigration.
2			From what areas of the world did the United States experience the greatest immigration in the above years you found?
3			What states in the United States have the largest influx of immigrants? Why do you think this is so?
4			How is illegal immigration defined in the United States? What are some problems associated with illegal immigration?