The Change of American Immigration Laws - Report Example

How American Immigration laws have changed for the better Immigration is the act of entering a country with the intent to live there permanently probably because of work or other unavoidable circumstances. Immigration laws in America encompass a wide range of situations that involve all the processes that take place when a foreigner comes to America for a temporary visit or to stay permanently. The laws are set to give immigration status founded on issues such as family reunification, in demand work skills, capital investment and other factors that are deemedrational. The immigration laws also cover refugees and other group of displaced people who come to seek residences in the United States of America. Immigration laws in America dates as back as 1790 when the Naturalization act, which was aimed at naturalizing foreigners, was enacted by the then congress. Ever since the laws have changed for the better making it easier for immigrants and refugees from various countries to seek immigration approval1,this has led to millions of men and women from around the globe migrating to America and in turn, they have been fundamental in boosting the country’s economy. The Naturalization act of 1790 restricted the approval of immigration to white people and hence many of the Hispanics could not be recognized by this system of law. The Hispanics thus continued to live in harsh conditions since they were termed as second-class citizens and were thus not eligible for many government services. The failure to be recognized by the government also promoted the act of illegal immigration where the people who opted to migrate to America used backdoor means to get into the country. Due to these difficulties endured by theHispanics, they started organizing themselves in groups to advocate for their rights. The 1790 naturalization act was reviewed in 1795 to increase the residency requirement for one to be recognized as a citizen from two years to five years hence providing adequate time. It added another requirement of giving a three years notice of the intention to apply for America citizenship and in 1798 the residency requirement was increased to fourteen yearsby the congress. This ensured that a person was properly known before being granted the right of citizenship and thus it helped in curbing the problem of admitting foreigners who were criminals. The three to five years notice to the government before a person applied for citizenship was also fundamental in ensuring that a person’s conduct was clear before being approved. In the 19thcentury, the naturalization law continued to be reviewed and the law for the first time recognized all children born in America to be citizens of the country irrespective of the origin of their parents. The law stated that all persons born or naturalized in United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof to be citizens of America and therefore they were entitled of all the privileges that comes with citizenship in any given country2. This was critical to the Hispanics in their fight for recognition since it meant that their future generations would not experience the harsh conditions they had experienced. In the 20thcentury, the congress legislated the Anarchist Exclusion Act in 1901 to exclude anarchist from being admitted to the country. This was after president William McKinley was murdered by a person of immigrant ancestry who had been recognized as a citizen and thus stayed in the country legally. The Act was further reviewed to add a literacy requirement and uphold the banning of persons who were immigrating because of poor health condition or illiteracy. This streamlined the migration of people to America and played an important role in controlling the people who were getting into the country In early i920s, the United States Congress passed an immigration Act, which led to enactment of national immigration quotas in order to limit the number of people who were getting into the country from the one country of origin. The quota was based on the number of people from the various neighboring countries who were living in the country by 1910 and was thus relevant as it gave accurate estimations. A president’s act in 1932 by President Roosevelt shut down immigration due to the great depression that had hit the country and it was complemented by deliberate deportation of foreigners to Europe and neighboring countries. This led to a rapid decrease in the number of immigrants during that the period and the act actually proved to be helpful to the economy of America, which was being restructured. The Immigration and Nationality Act Amendments of 1965 abolished the system of the quotas, whichwere based on the nation of origin and instead introduced the hemisphere classification3.There was then established the Eastern and Western hemispheres, which were much effective and efficient than the restrictions, based on the countries of origin. Immigration since then has been in form of chains where immigrants who have already settled in America sponsor their relatives and facilitate their process of settling in America. The senate assured the local residents that the chain form of immigration was not going to interfere with their jobs or the ethnic mix in the country. This has eased the process of settling in America and has proved to be beneficial to the government in its efforts of eliminating the challenges that are associated with immigration. The Immigration Reform and Control Act that was enacted in 1986 by Congress and signed into law by Ronald Reagan was fundamental in reforming the immigration laws for the advantage of both the immigrants and the local residents. The law made it illegal the process of knowingly or unknowingly employing a person who is not recognized by the law, which had become very rampant during that time4. It imposed monetary and other punishments for those found employing illegal foreigners who had not gone through the process of identification and registration with the government. Regulations promulgated by the act, required employees to present a documentary proof of their legal eligibility to accept being employed in the United Statesin order to avoid the misunderstanding that existed then. The act thus brought to an end the problem of employing foreigners who had committed crimes and were being sought by their respective countries to face charges. The new law also promoted transparency between employers and their employees and hence increased accountability when performing the various duties assignedin the course of the work. The act approved a group of recurrent agricultural immigrants who had been previously barred from getting into the country. This was advantageous in boosting the agricultural sector thatconsequently led to a positive impact on the country’s economy and contributed significantly in making the Americans to be self-sustainable in agriculture.5The act also recognized the illegitimate emigrants who come into United States earlier than January 1982 who had resided in the country ever since they migrated. They were mandated to substantiate that they were not guilty of criminalities and that they had very little information pertaining United States history and government in order to rule out the possibility of admitting criminals. The Immigration Reform and Control Act caused some American employers to discriminate against workers who had foreignparentage out of fear that they may not be qualified. This led to a notable reduction in the Hispanic employment during that period but the situation later changed for their advantage since the locals got used to them and developed trust with them. There were also incidences were the Hispanics were subjected to lower payments because the employers argued that there was a high risk that was associated with hiring them. This prevailed because the system of subcontracting where a United States citizen agreed to provide an agreed number of employees to perform the assigned task at a fixed wagehad been adopted. This system made the employers not to be liable directly to their workers and thus they were not answerable to the issues they raise. In the 21stcentury, the laws have continued to be improved to get rid of any loophole that might be in the laws and thus prevent any malicious person from getting a chance. This was mainly after the terrorist attack in 2001, which led to deaths of over 2000 local Americans who were innocent6.The terrorists were mainly foreigners who had entered the country using visas that belonged to students and tourists hence the loophole that prevailed in the system were exposed. Various acts have been passed to reinforce the system and limit the possibility of foreigners who are criminal or terrorists finding their way into America. The Acts have made the public to develop a positive attitude towards accommodating foreigners and at the same time,they have become sensitive to people who may want to impose themselves as needy refugees when they are actually criminals. This has led to a peaceful coexistence between the Latinos and the Americans hence solving the challenge of enmity that existed previously between the two groups. President Obama recently has been involved in smoothening further the immigration system by providing a clear set of laws that clearly stipulate what should be done in every step of migration. He has ensured that the people who have been living in the country but have not been granted citizenship are protected from deportation, which was being advocated by majority of the natives. This has made it easier for the immigrants without criminal records to acquire jobs at reasonable terms, which previously were very difficult.7 He has retaliated of his firm commitment to completely reform the sector and bring to an end all the problems that have been there since the sixteen century. The congress is also busy advocating for the rights of the Hispanic community since many people have recognized the economic benefit that is associated with them. The reformation of the immigration laws in America has led America to be recognized for its immigration rules and currently the bureaucracies that are associated with migration have been removed. The large number of Hispanic migrants has led to a large inflow of the people who have in turn caused the Americans to enjoy some benefits that have been associated with the inflow.Though many people oppose the idea that immigrants have brought some benefits to America their indirect impact on wages and prices cannot be ignored. Since most of the people who migrate to United States have little level of education compared to the local natives there has been provision of cheap labor in the area they have settled in large numbers. The employers and manufactures because of the reduction in labor cost they translate the reduction to the prices of the commodities they offer. The Latinos also contribute significantly to the economyof America as evidenced by reports on their contribution where it had been revealed that they contribute upto around four percent of the total gross domestic product. The regions, which experienced a large influx of Hispanics, have reported reduced levels of crime rate and other social injustices while those that did not have the immigrants the social injustices have only reduced by a small percentage8.This is probably because the immigrants were keen to observe the law and thus they discouraged and avoided all kinds of activities that they may make them breach the law. Higher immigration was also associated with reduction in homicide rate and incidences of racial discrimination, which were very common before. This is because the natives were able to interact with the foreigners and understand them hence breaking the barrier between them enabling the two communities to live together peacefully. The Hispanics have thus grown to be very powerful economically and politically hence making them to be a very significant group in national agendas. This has been clearly witnessed during recent presidential campaigns were the candidates were using all means possible to acquire their support. It is evident that the American immigration laws have changed for the better over time and many problems that existed in the previous centuries have been solved. The president, the congress and basically all other law makers need to ensure that the process of immigration is completely streamlined by providing long lasting solutions. The Hispanic community and the other foreign groups need also to continue advocating for their rights in order to bring to an end any form of discrimination that may be prevailing. Bibliography Kennedy, John F. 2008. A nation of immigrants.New York: Harper Perennial. Barak, Gregg, Paul Leighton, and Jeanne Flavin.2010. Class, race, gender, and crime: the social realities of justice in America.(Lanham, Md: Rowman& Littlefield, 2010). Borjas, George J. Issues in the Economics of Immigration. (Chicago; University of Chicago press, 2000). Dowling, Julie A., and Jonathan Xavier Inda.Governing immigration through crime a reader.(Stanford, Calif: Stanford Social Sciences, an imprint of Stanford University Press, 2013). Freilich, Joshua D., and Rob T. Guerette.Migration, culture conflict, crime, and terrorism.( Aldershot, England,2006). Higham, John. Strangers in the land patterns of American nativism, 1860-1925.(New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2002). Hollifield, James F., Philip L. Martin, and Pia M. Orrenius.Controlling immigration: a global perspective. (Stanford, California : Stanford University Press, 2014). LeMay, Michael C., and Elliott Robert Barkan.U.S. immigration and naturalization laws and issues: a documentary history.(Westport, Conn: Greenwood Press, 1999). Pinder, Sherrow O. The politics of race and ethnicity in the United States Americanization, de-Americanization, and racialized ethnic groups.(New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013) Read More