By Jack Bernard, contributing columnist
PEACHTREE CITY, Ga. | With over 340 million residents, America is an immigrant nation, the “new world.” Except for about five million native Americans, all of this country’s ancestors once came from another country.
I am the child of a French immigrant, my father. My mother’s parents came from Avelino, Italy. Plus, I have lived in two of the three states with the largest immigrant populations: California (27%) and New York (23%). In Georgia, where I have lived longer than anywhere, our immigrant population is a bit smaller, 12%, although Gwinnett County is 27%.
Relatively recent immigrants, documented and undocumented, represent about one in seven of us, or 15% of the USA population. Generally, immigrants live in cities, where Miami-Dade County which is predominantly immigrant. Rural areas have fewer residents that are foreign born, with three fourths of rural counties being less than six percent immigrant.
Regarding documented immigrants, nearly half (43%) come from Asia, especially India and China. Over a fourth (29%) come from North America, in particular Mexico. The majority remaining one fourth come from Europe (14%), with South America and Africa making up the rest.
Some immigrants come here for school or to be with family. But close to half, 45%, come for work. They represent 18% of all employees, three in seven workers, and 15% of Georgia’s employees. Over 20% of people employed in healthcare nationwide are foreign born.
It is hard to determine exactly what the figures are related to undocumented immigrants, which is where the key current policy questions lie. It is estimated that there are 14 million unauthorized people in the nation. Between 2021 and 2023, the number of undocumented immigrants increased by 3.5 million people, the largest increase in US history.
Americans generally support legal immigration. It is the unregulated border security that they have a problem with. Two thirds of GOP voters now want undocumented workers deported, up from 54% a few years ago.
Still, it is usually the jobs that Americans do not want that are filled by the undocumented. Many times these are jobs like fixing a roof, which usually is done by men who do not speak a word of English.
Our immigration problem is fixable. The solution is not to hire unqualified men and put masks on their faces to intimidate frightened men, women and children.
I am generally not a fan of President George W. Bush, but he believed in coming up with a bi-partisan approach to immigration reform. His plan was excellent, but rejected by both parties. And to this day, the two parties continue to fight over the issue rather than solve the problem. To quote the Brookings Institute- the Bush plan “failed after encountering a crossfire of objections from both the left and the right.’”
To summarize, President George W. Bush’s 2007 plan was built around these points:
- Securing our Southern border;
- Holding employers responsible for who they hire;
- Providing temporary visas for those already here;
- Getting undocumented immigrants out of the shadows; and
- Assimilation via learning our language and other means.
If there was the desire, Republican and Democratic political leaders can still pass and implement this plan. All it takes is the political will.
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