Imperialism (ANALYSIS PAPERS) - Essay Example

The Debate over Immigration Restriction The concern as to what a certain policy may bring to the country is always of paramount consideration to the policy makers. International relations such as trade, foreign aid and immigration are not exempt to this. As immigration policy is so crucial to the country, it is of much importance to look at its different angles before policy makers commit to a decision. The economic approach of decision-making would be to weigh the benefits and the costs of the decision and push through if it gives more benefits than costs.

The concern of those who want to restrict immigration is the effect on the quality of life of Native Americans by the influx of foreign people. The main consideration as stated is the evil effects to the political, social and moral standard of the community assuming that the current group of immigrants is of inferior quality to the past (Fetter). Prescott Hall has aptly stated these apprehension as his observation dictates that the immigrants are among the lowest class in their native country and the addition of such to the American community would degrade the quality of its people (1906).

Particularly, they stand as rival to the resources that should be abundantly enjoyed by the Americans including labor opportunities and hefty wages. In simple economic concept, the addition of immigrants to the labor force, adds to the current supply of labor which dampens its price. Other social perils such as crime, juvenile delinquency and even illiteracy are also among the ones mentioned by Hall, concluding that the immigrants post higher number in these figures. Owing to America’s philatrophic inclination, the absence of restriction could have been an act of extending help to the non-Americans, providing them opportunities for a better quality of life, however one observation says that even this process is a vain endeavor in altering the condition of the poor from other countries (Fetter).

Those who are against the immigration restriction are those who believe that the immigrants are not perils, rather contributors to the American society, mentioning the likes of Andrew Carnegie, Samuel Gompers and James J. Hill to include the list of desirable immigrants (Warne). Warne believes that immigration has brought the country the industrious, the God-fearing and the courageous men from around the world (1916). Mr. James Bryce has also excellently concluded that the assimilation of Americans with other races actually enlivens intellectual fertility and boosts the creative power of the country to a higher level of production (1891).

The debaters continued on to dispel the figures proving higher crime rate, juvenile deliquency and illiteracy of the immigrants are not necessarily brought by the influx of immigrants in the country but of geographical differences. The debate can continue, stating different reasons and different angles, depending on which aspect weigh more to a particular person. Having studied the points raised by both parties, the restriction on immigration is still the wisest move as it does not really limit the quantity of the immigrants than can settle in the land, but it just aims to screen the quality of these people so that it would be assured that their presence compensates what is lacking in the American society and that the assimilation would surely be successful.

It is not to stop immigration to zero, but to make sure that whoever enters the land would be an asset rather than a liability. The resriction is not to deprive others of the opportunity to reside in America but to challenge them to put forth their best in the land that they want to settle in. Works CitedBryce, James. The American Commonwealth. The MacMillan Company, 1891.Fetter, Frank A. "Population or Prosperity." American Economic Review (1913): 3.Hall, Prescott F. Journal Of Social Science (1906): 78-91.

Warne, Frank. The Tide of Immigration. New York: D.Appleton & Co., 1916.