ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION

Illegal Immigration

Illegal Immigration

Introduction

Illegal immigration is immigration across national borders in a way that violates the immigration laws of the destination country. Illegal immigrants are also known as illegal aliens to differentiate them from legal aliens. In politics, the term may imply a larger set of social issues and time constraints with disputed consequences in areas such as economy, social welfare, education, health care, slavery, prostitution, legal protections, voting rights, public services, and human rights. Conversely, Illegal emigration refers to unlawfully leaving a country (Michael, 2007).

Illegal immigration to the United States

Illegal immigration to the United States refers to the act of foreign nationals violating U.S. immigration policies and national laws by immigrating to the United States without proper consent from the United States government. The Illegal immigrant population of the United States is estimated to be about 11 million people, down from a historic peak of 12.5 million people in 2007.According to a Pew Hispanic Center report, in 2005 57% of illegal immigrants were from Mexico, 24% were from other Latin American countries, primarily from Central America,9% were from Asia, 6% were from Europe and Canada, and 4% were from the rest of the world (Michael, 2007).

Effects of illegal immigration on America

Immigration is a hot discussion topic in America. In a few states, illegal immigration has become so prevalent and its negative effects so dire that the state government has declared certain counties to be in a “state of emergency”—a protocol generally used in the wake of hurricanes, floods, mass riots or other catastrophes (Michael, 2007).

Over 1.2 million legal and illegal immigrants settle on American soil each year. Since 1990, the number of aliens living in the United States has mushroomed 43 percent; the Latino population alone doubled between 1980 and 2000, constituting 40 percent of all U.S. growth. Today, 1 in 10 people in America is a foreigner. Over the next 25 years, 84 percent of the United Kingdom's population growth is expected to come from immigration (Beth , 2008).

Effects on federal budgets

The hard work and perseverance of America's early immigrants did much to help the U.S. become the richest and most powerful nation in the world. By 1869, as a result of the industrious nature of its population, America had attained the highest per-capita income in the world. That phenomenal wealth, together with a burgeoning population, created the world's first consumer-driven economy. But economic tragedy struck. The stock market crash of 1929 gutted the American economy and thrust the nation into unprecedented economic hardship.

It was in the midst of this economic depression that American politicians laid the foundation for a welfare state. From this time forward, the American government became the crutch on which failing citizens could lean. Concurrent with the rising popularity of the federal welfare programs was the burgeoning rise of immigration into America (Beth , 2008). Immigrants began streaming into America where many of the poorest and least educated were no longer required to subscribe to the traditional American work ethic and instead ...