Does Immigration Contribute to a Better America?

DOES IMMIGRATION CONTRIBUTE TO A BETTER AMERICA?

Since before America became independent in 1776, peoples of many different ethnic backgrounds have been washing up on its shores. There have always been citizens who did not welcome the new comers on the assumption they were taking the job opportunities of the true, entitled citizens or negatively diversifying America. Now, here in modern America, resides every ethnic group in the world and there are clearly new entrepreneurial opportunities available every day. However, some people are still opposed to immigrants, even though they themselves or their ancestors were immigrants at one time. Seeing as the history of America is built on immigration, I do believe that immigration contributes to a better America.

America is built on the back of slaves and immigrants. Virtually all of the people in America are immigrants or the descendants of immigrants. The earliest immigrants and slaves made the land workable and created a viable agricultural economy. Europeans, like Lewis and Clark, mapped out America. Foreigners and their children filled the factories during the industrial revolution. And even more European immigrants conquered the west by any means necessary. Therefore for any American, who is not a Native American, to say immigrants should not be allowed in America should also return to their country of origin. As American citizens become comfortable in their wealth they perceive the new comers as intruders who threaten their social status.

The assumption that immigrants steal American's jobs is a misconception. "they don't just take jobs; they create them too. When they spend their wages, they boost demand for people who produce the goods and services that they consume" (Philippe Legrain). There is no fixed number of jobs and immigrants are not substitutes for American workers. In the labor market there is room for both. Because the immigrants are not educated they do not even compete on the same level for jobs as Americans and it's also why they are willing to accept menial low-paying jobs. Just like adding women to the workforce didn't take any jobs from men, immigrants don't steal American's jobs. There's a cycle of job creation that keeps the economy going. Immigrants make up the unskilled area of the working class. They do jobs that Americans do not want, like cooking, cleaning, sewage and picking fruit; menial labor, for wages most Americans would not accept. Immigrants prop up the economy. Without immigrants the price of such services would raise dramatically because the Americans forced to do those jobs would demand fair pay.

A global immigration market is emerging where governments allow it. Specialists gather where they can ply their trade and where there is a demand for their services. Just as it's cheaper to outsource some jobs; it is also cheaper to import cheap labor. As long as Americans increase their living standards there will always be a demand for cheap labor because Americans are too comfortable to do everyday menial tasks they did in the past. In most countries immigration is illegal. The movement of goods and services through trade is legal, so why outlaw the movement of goods and services that people can provide? Most immigrants would not settle in the country they immigrated to if laws made returning to their homeland more amiable. According to Brimelow, "It may be time for the United States to consider moving to a conception of itself more like Switzerland: toleration a fairly large foreign presence that comes and goes, but rarely if ever naturalizes." (Peter Brimelow) However, with the current migration restriction quota countries maintain, this freedom of movement in and out of the USA is all but impossible. The risks for immigrant's going back without getting caught are so high it's easier to just stay here forever.

Some people fear that the culture