There are four important factors that cause international migration flows. These include economic pressures, social networks and connections between migrant sending and receiving countries, immigrant admissions and immigration control policies, and cultural perceptions of people in developing countries have about immigration and First World immigrant receiving countries.
The rate of migration to the US continues to increase due to changes in factors that cause migration flows. However, economic pressures and immigrant admissions and immigration control policies are major causes of migration flows to the US.
Economic pressures have changed due to globalization. Economic developments in the US and globalization have fueled migration flows through ease of communication and transportation. This has eliminated the distance factor that hindered migration in the past. As a result, globalization has created integrated economies of the world. Migrants can work in the US and send remittances back to their home countries.
Economic disparities existing in developing nations also cause migration flows to the US. The widening gaps of average incomes between poor and rich nations increase the search for better opportunities in the developed nations. The US provides such opportunities to the immigrants.
The US has also acknowledged contributions of immigrants in the development of its economy. As a result, legislators have embarked on reforms so as to derive economic benefits of immigrants. The country has noted that immigrants create more jobs than they can take. In addition, the deportation of immigrants only reduces its economic growth since immigrants are the main source of labor.
The US immigrant admissions and immigration control policies have also increased rates of migration flows to the country. For instance, the US policy on war in Iraq and other foreign policies have encouraged immigration. Such policies have created excess flows of political and economic refugees in the country.
Critics observe that the US foreign policies encourage migration flows. However, the country’s domestic policies have failed to create favorable conditions for immigrants and account for their consequences. In reaction to this, American lawmakers and other concerned bodies such as OneAmerica have formulated policies to account for immigrants at both local and state levels.
Such organizations have formulated policies and passed resolutions and ordinances that protect the US immigrants with regard to their needs and rights. In addition, such policies also look at harmful effects of immigrants on the natives.
The policy of immigrant integration that OneAmerica leads also creates favorable conditions for immigrants. The organization actively concentrates on policies that are not favorable to immigrants and respond to them accordingly.
Several studies have acknowledged contributions of immigrants to the US economy. As a result, they seek harmonization of such domestic policies with the immigration policy. The main aim is to increase the working population of the middle class. The argument is that states should not exploit immigrant workers but should give them opportunities so that they can join the middle class.
Others also argue that deportation leads to fear among immigrants and has negative effects on workers unionization. This leads to disempowerment of the workforce. Proponents of favorable immigration policy call for integration the policy just like in tax and education policies.
We can see how economic pressures in the developing nations fuel migration flows to the US. At the same time, favorable foreign policy and immigration policy of the US are also responsible for influxes of immigrants in the country.