Immigrants have helped build the U.S. economy into what it is today. This is despite what Republican anti-immigrant xenophobes would otherwise have you believe. For example, Elon Musk was an international student from South Africa before co-founding Paypal and Tesla. He also created SpaceX from the ground up. Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google, immigrated to the United States at age of 6 from Russia. And Steve Jobs was the son of a Syrian immigrant. Each of them has shaped the way we live and work in ways most could barely have imagined just a few decades ago.The Pew Research Center has published many reports on how immigrants have contributed the overall strength of the U.S. economy and on how we interact with each other.
Facts about Immigrants
According to a recent report on U.S. immigration published by the Pew Research Center,
- 34 million lawful immigrants currently reside in the United States.
- Many foreigners live and work in the U.S. after becoming permanent residence ( getting a green card), many others receive temporary work visas.
- Roughly 1 million unauthorized immigrants have been granted temporary permission to live and work in the U.S. through other channels.
Green Card Distribution in 2016
Number and Percentage of Green Card Issued
- 804,793 Family-based 68%
- 137,893 Employment-based 11.65%
- 120,216 Refugees 10.16%
- 48,865 Diversity Lottery 4.21%
- 70,738 Other 5.98%
Proposed Changes of U.S. Immigration Policies
- Washington has been discussing revising immigration policy for years, with an emphasis on shifting the current immigration system away from today’s family reunification and employment-based migration system.
- The new proposal moves “toward a points-based system that prioritizes the admission of immigrants with certain education and employment qualifications,” according to the Pew Research Center.
- Under Trump’s administration, these revised immigration proposals have ignited the public’s attention.
Related Reading:
- Get U.S. Green Card through Family Member
- U.S. Government to Collect Social Media Info on Immigrants
- Google CEO: Trump’s Immigration Order Caused Painful Personal Costs