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Demographics

Immigrants in the U.S. Labor Force

New CBO Report Underscores Diverse Contributions of Foreign-Born Workers

A recent report from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) underscores not only the diversity of the foreign-born labor force in the United States, but also the myriad roles that immigrant workers play in the U.S. economy.  The report, which analyzes data from the Current Population Survey, finds that 15.5 percent of the U.S. labor force was foreign-born in 2009, up slightly from 14.5 percent in 2004.  Moreover, immigrant workers and their native-born counterparts differ significantly in terms of occupation and education, as well as where in the country they live.  As other, more detailed analyses have confirmed, this suggests that immigrants and natives are filling different niches in the U.S. labor market and are therefore not in direct competition with each other for most jobs.

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Published On: Wed, Aug 04, 2010 | Download File

Strength in Diversity: The Economic and Political Clout of Immigrants, Latinos, and Asians

America enjoys a demographic diversity that has long been a principal strength of the U.S. economy and civil society. Immigrants, Latinos, and Asians play critical economic roles as workers, entrepreneurs, and consumers.  As a result, they will be crucial players in the nation’s efforts to recover from the current recession.  Moreover, the immigrant, Latino, and Asian communities are key voting blocs that successful politicians cannot afford to ignore, particularly in close elections.

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Published On: Fri, Jul 02, 2010 | Download File

Reforming America's Immigration Laws: A Woman's Struggle

While immigrant communities across the nation endure the long wait for immigration reform, there are roughly 19 million immigrant women and girls currently in the U.S. Immigrant women, particularly the undocumented, are often more vulnerable than their male counterparts, lack the same economic opportunities, and experience exploitation while crossing the border, while working and even in their own homes. In short, immigrant women have become the silent victims of a broken immigration system.

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Published On: Mon, Jun 28, 2010 | Download File

Immigrant Women in the United States: A Portrait of Demographic Diversity

The 18.9 million immigrant women and girls in the United States in 2008 present a portrait of demographic diversity on many fronts.  An analysis of Census Bureau data reveals that immigrant women are not easily categorized or stereotyped—and that many common myths about immigrants are shattered when we look carefully at the demographic diversity of these women.

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Published On: Mon, Jun 28, 2010 | Download File

The 2010 Census: The Stakes of an Accurate Count

Every 10 years, as required by the U.S. Constitution, the federal government undertakes a massive nationwide effort to count the residents of the United States, who now number more than 300 million.  The results form the basis for the apportionment of congressional districts and the distribution of hundreds of billions of dollars in federal funds, as well as serving to guide a wide range of community-planning decisions across the country.DD  The Census is, however, no stranger to controversy, such as the suggestion by some activists that immigrants sit out the Census this year to protest the federal government’s failure to enact comprehensive immigration reform.DD  Yet, among demographic groups like immigrants and ethnic minorities who are typically under-counted in the Census, a boycott would be self-defeating.  Moreover, anyone living in an area afflicted by a large under-count of any sort stands to lose out on political representation and federal funds.DD  For instance, an undercount of Latino immigrants would impact anyone living in a state such as California, New York, or Illinois that has a large population of Latino immigrants—meaning that everyone in those states stands to lose political representation and access to economic and educational opportunities if their residents aren’t fully counted in 2010.

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Published On: Wed, Mar 03, 2010 | Download File

Protecting Children in the Aftermath of Immigration Raids

Study Finds Significant Behavioral Changes in Children After Raids

Children of unauthorized immigrant parents are often forgotten in debates over immigration reform.  There are roughly 5.5 million children living in the United States with unauthorized immigrant parents—three-quarters of whom are U.S. born citizens.  These families live in constant fear of separation.  The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) estimates that over the last 10 years, more than 100,000 immigrant parents of U.S. citizen children have been deported from the United States.  

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Published On: Mon, Feb 22, 2010 | Download File

Granting Refuge: Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitians in the United States

Following the devastating earthquake which struck Haiti on January 12, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano on January 15 announced “the designation of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitian nationals who were in the United States as of January 12, 2010.”  The “designation will allow eligible Haitian nationals in the United States to continue living and working in our country for the next 18 months.”  This means that the 100,000-200,000 Haitian immigrants whom the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) estimates are now in the United States on a temporary basis or without authorization will not be subject to removal as long as there is no functioning country to which they can return, and provided that they do not have criminal records.  However, Haitian nationals who qualify for TPS are not receiving permanent residence in the United States or an “amnesty” if they were unauthorized.  There are currently 535,000 Haitian immigrants in the United States, with most living in Miami and New York, as well as Boston, Orlando, and Atlanta.

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Published On: Fri, Jan 22, 2010 | Download File

Immigration: Breaking Down the Problems and Focusing on the Solutions

What's Wrong with Our Broken Immigration System and How Do We Fix It?

The Problems

While some characterize our immigration crisis as solely an issue of the 11 to 12 million unauthorized immigrants living in this country, our problems extend beyond the number of undocumented people to a broader range of issues. The lack of a comprehensive federal solution has created a slew of lopsided, enforcement-only initiatives that have cost the country billions of dollars while failing to end unauthorized immigration. The first step, however, in devising solutions to our problems is understanding the scope of them. IPC’s latest report addresses several key areas, including how our current immigration system functions, the structural failure of our system, issues stemming from an inadequate federal response and long-delayed immigration reform.

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Published On: Fri, Jan 01, 2010 | Download File

The Immigration Policy Center's Top 10 Resources of 2009

As the year comes to a close, The Immigration Policy Center brings you its top 10 list of resources from 2009.  

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Published On: Fri, Dec 18, 2009 | Download File

Immigrant Workers Contribute in Large Metropolitan Areas

The Fiscal Policy Institute (FPI) recently released a report highlighting the contributions of immigrant workers in the 25 largest metropolitan areas in the U.S. FPI’s report broadens a growing understanding that immigrant workers make important economic contributions to the U.S. and to their local economies. Immigrants are likely to be of prime working age, work in occupations across the economic spectrum, and contribute robustly to economic growth in each of the 25 metropolitan areas studied and in the United States as a whole.

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Published On: Tue, Dec 01, 2009 | Download File