The Pros And Cons Of Immigration Into The United States

The United States of America is considered by most a land of immigrants, a place where most of the populace can trace its ancestry to almost every part of the globe. Many people in America believe that diversity in principle, contributes to the melting pot of cultures and ideas that makes society stronger. Even though the United States prides itself in welcoming people from all over the planet, the immigration system is still loaded with problems. In the past several years these problems have come to the leading edge of American politics, because of a sharp divide between citizens who consider it an important part of life and those who fear it. Right now there are efforts to keep English only government resources and jobs draw from Americans

Regulations for immigration into the United States is based on reunifying families, skills that are considered valuable to the economy, the protection of refugees, and promoting diversity. The Immigration and Naturalization Act is the frame of law currently governing immigration policies. It allows 675,000 immigrants from around the world to stay in America permanently per year. The immigration category for families allows citizens to bring certain family members to the United States. Every year there are about 480,000 family based visas available. For a family member to be allowed into the United States they must either be an immediate relative or be the family preference system. To be counted as an immediate relative you must be the spouse of a citizen, a child under 21 years of age, or a parent of a child older than 21. To balance the immense number of immigrants from family relationships, Congress created a very complicated system to calculate the maximum number of family preference visas for the year. They determine the number of family preference visas by subtracting the amount of immediate relative visas issued the last year and the amount of illegals that were parolled from 480,000. If there are any unused employment visas, then they are added to the family visas. By law, there may never be less than 226,000 family visas available, but the total number almost never drops

The United States admits refugees based on their inability to go back to their homeland because of well founded fear. This danger can be caused by race, their membership of a social group, religion, political opinion, or even national origin. Refugees usually apply for admission into the United States from a “transition country” that is not their homeland. The admission of refugees creates multiple circumstances such as the risk they face leaving, whether or not they have family or not in the United States, and if they are even chosen by the U.S. Every year the Congress, in consultation with the President determine how many refugees will be allowed into the country. The total limit is then broken down into limits for each region of the world. For those refugees that are already in the United States who fear persecution upon returning to their country can apply for asylum within the States. To be granted asylum the person must petition within their first year of arriving in the U.S. There is not a limit to the amount of people that can receive asylum there also is no specific category for determining who may seek asylum. Post September 11, 2001, the amount of refugees accepted into the United States dropped exceptionally. During the last couple years more people have been accepted due to better security