Today’s Europeans in the U.S.

From the Migration Policy Institute: Compared to the overall foreign- and native-born populations, European immigrants on average are significantly older, more educated, and have higher household incomes.

The number of Europeans in the U.S. has been remarkably stable since 1980—about five million legally residing in the country. That is about 16% of all foreign-born persons legally in the U.S. (about 32 million).  Over half of the Europeans will likely become American citizens, to be replaced by new European immigrants.

In 2016, 44% of these immigrants were from Eastern Europe, 20% from U.K./Ireland, 20% from Germany/France, and 16% from Southern Europe. Most of the figures that follow are for 2016.

New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles metropolitan areas accounted for about 31% of Europeans in the United States. 26% ages 5 and over were Limited English Proficient (speaking English lss than “very well”) compared to 49%.

The median age of European immigrants in 2016 was 53 years, compared to 44 for all immigrants and 36 for the U.S. born. European immigrants were more than twice as likely to be seniors (ages 65 and over) compared to the foreign- and U.S.-born populations.

42% had a bachelor’s degree or higher, compared to about 32% of the U.S. born and 30% of all immigrants. Half of all Europeans were employed in management, business, science, and arts occupations, a much higher share than the overall foreign (32%) and native-born (39%) populations. They are much more likely to obtain their green card based on employment than other immigrants (23% vs 12%).

Total remittances were about $160 billion in 2016, up from $40 billion in 2000. Dependence was high in Moldova (22% of GDP), Kosovo (16%), Bosnia and Herzegovina (11%), and Albania (10%).

Diaspora

133 million people who were either born in Europe or reported European ancestry, or 41% percent of all people (323 million) in the United States.

The European-origin diaspora in the United States is composed of approximately 133 million people who were either born in Europe or reported European ancestry, according to tabulations from the U.S. Census Bureau 2016 ACS. The European diaspora accounts for 41 percent of the 323 million people living in the United States.

The German diaspora is the largest of all major European ethnic groups, with 14 percent of all U.S. residents, or 45 million individuals, either reporting German ancestry or having been born in Germany. 14% of the diaspora are with German origins, Ireland (11.6%) and the United Kingdom (9.8%).

Abraham was an immigrant

Abram, later Abraham, is introduced in Genesis 11 as an immigrant from Ur to Haran. Abram’s Journeys did not stop there: this Ur-born immigrant later journeyed to Canaan, with a stay in Egypt as well. Abram’s decision to leave Haran and bring his family to Canaan parallels the stories of many historical and contemporary immigrants who leave the land they know and cross borders in pursuit of a promise — in this case a divine promise that God would bless him, make of him a great nation, and bless all nations to him (Genesis 12:1-5). Indeed, a Abram’s courage and making the journey and his faith in God’s promise mark one of the pivotal moments in the Old Testament narrative.

From Welcoming the Stranger, by Matthew Soerens and Jenny Yang, revised edition, page 86

Asylum seekers at border face stronger headwinds 8 21 18

The Washington Post reports that a judge threatened to hold Atty General Sessions in contempt over a court review of an asylum appeal by a El Salvadoran woman and her daughter.

Immigration Impact says that for border crosses, fewer are getting approvals for asylum. Per TRAC, the share of asylum requests being turned down by immigration judges has skyrocketed since mid-2017.

How it works

Here is what happens for border crossers without proper documentation. They are subjected to a fast-track deportation process called “expedited removal,” unless they express fear of returning to their home countries. These individuals must be referred to an asylum officer for a “credible fear interview” to assess the likelihood of making a successful asylum claim.

During the interview, if the asylum officer finds that there is not a “significant possibility” that the asylum seeker could establish eligibility for asylum, the asylum-seeker can appeal to an immigration judge for a Credible Fear Review (CFR). The judge’s decision on the matter is final. Currently about 500 CFR cases are decided each month, down from about 700 cases per month in 2015-2016.

The data analyzed by TRAC indicate that the share of positive outcomes nationwide from CFRs had fallen to 14.7% as of June 2018 which is less than half of what it was in June 2017 (32.7%).

Depending upon the particular Immigration Court undertaking the credible fear review, the proportion of asylum seekers passing this screening step varied from as little as 1% all the way up to 60%. Thus, whether or not asylum seekers receive favorable CFR court decisions appears to be largely driven by which Immigration Court and judge heard their cases.

Sessions’ remarks on October 12, 2017

The system is being gamed. The credible fear process was intended to be a lifeline for persons facing serious persecution. But it has become an easy ticket to illegal entry into the United States.

Here are the shocking statistics: in 2009, DHS conducted more than 5,000 credible fear reviews. By 2016, that number had increased to 94,000. The number of these aliens placed in removal proceedings went from fewer than 4,000 in 2009 to more than 73,000 by 2016—nearly a 19-fold increase—overwhelming the system and leaving those with just claims buried.

The increase has been especially pronounced and abused at the border. From 2009 to 2016, the credible fear claims at the border went from approximately 3,000 cases to more than 69,000.

Waiting times for green cards

Family and employment green cards have waiting lists. The waiting times vary depending on the country from which the applicant is immigrating due to country-specific caps. According to Stephen Yale-Loehr, an expert on immigration law at Cornell Law School, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is currently processing green cards for persons who have been waiting for these years (India and Mexico illustrated):

Family based 

Immediate family: spouse, minor child or parent of U.S. citizen, no caps.

First preference (F1) – unmarried sons and daughters, 21 years of age and older, of U.S. citizens.
India May 2011, Mexico August 1997. That is, Indians in this category who applied in May 2011 are now being processed.

Second preference (F2A) – spouses and children (unmarried and under 21 years of age) of lawful permanent residents. India July 2016 Mexico 2016

Employment based

1st preference: Has extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business or athletics, or Are an outstanding professor or researcher, or Are a multinational manager or executive who meets certain criteria. India January 2012 Mexico May 2016

2nd preference immigrant worker: Is a member of a profession that requires an advanced degree, or Have exceptional ability in the sciences, arts, or business, or Are seeking a national interest waiver. India March 2009 Mexico closed as cap was reached.

Here are the procedures for applying for a green card.

Military spouses vulnerable to deportation

“As many as 11,800 military families face deportation issues, group says” is the headline in the Military Times in an April 1, 2018 article. It goes on:

No previous estimate, official or unofficial, has been available on just how many of the 1 million married military members currently on active duty, National Guard or Reserve status may be dealing with the stress of having a spouse, dependent or parent deported.

American Families United, a non-profit immigration advocacy group, calculated the estimate using 2011 U.S. Census statistics, which found that 6.3 percent of the 129 million married Americans are married to foreign-born spouses. The Pew Research Center found that one in four of those foreign-born spouses are in the country illegally.

“So we derived the total of military (active and reserves) married to people with inadmissibility-type immigration issues by taking the total (1 million), multiplying by the national percentage of foreign-born (6.3 percent, so 63,000 current U.S. military are married to immigrants), and then the 25 percent of the total which have problems with immigration law: 15,750. Of that, Pew’s data indicates 75 percent are from sources characterized by entry without inspection and similar issues, that would be about 11,800,” American Families United President Randall Emery said.

Balkanization of immigration management

From an analysis of the history of immigration management in the U.S.:

The federal departments tasked with immigration responsibilities are so dispersed that it foments balkanization. Within the Department of Homeland Security, the Commissioner of CBP (Customs and Border Protection, the Director of ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement), and the Director of USCIS (U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services) currently are among two dozen DHS officials — including the leadership of Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Secret Service, the Transportation Security Administration, and the US Coast Guard — that report to the DHS Deputy Secretary.

At the State Department, the Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs (approving visas) reports to the Under Secretary for Management, and the Assistant Secretary for Population, Refugees, and Migration reports to the Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights.

Within the Department of State, the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration has primary responsibility for formulating policies on population, refugees, and migration, and for administering the US international refugee assistance and admissions programs

The Office of Refugee Resettlement is within the Administration for Children and Families in Health and Human Services.

EOIR (Executive Office for Immigration Review, or immigration courts) reports to the Dept of Justice Deputy Attorney General, and the Immigrant and Employee Rights Section is part of the Civil Rights Division that reports to the Associate Attorney General at the Justice Department.

At the Labor Department, the Office of Foreign Labor Certification (temporary work visa certifications) is housed in the Employment and Training Administration, which is one of 21 agencies that report to the Deputy Secretary. Similarly, the Wage and Hour Division (also for temporary work visa management), reports to the Deputy Secretary of Labor.

As a consequence, immigration leadership responsibilities are nested at the third tier down within these federal departments and are dispersed across eight agency heads. These agency heads report to deputy secretaries that have many other important departmental responsibilities. In other words, there is no clear chain of command for immigration governance.

The dispersed system of immigration governance already begs for reorganization. An expanded governance would best be led by an Interagency Council on Immigration, staffed by top officials from each department. A strong council could coordinate the administration of laws and could recommend policies to ensure more coherent governance. It could even establish a clear chain of command, especially in times of migrant emergencies (such as the 2014 influx of Central American children). That said, a strong council is unlikely due to bureaucratic turf battles.

From Immigration Governance for the 21St Century

 

Attitudes about immigration by region

From a 2015 survey: Americans overall are more likely to say that newcomers from other countries strengthen American society (50%) than they are to believe that they represent a threat to American customs and values (34%). Sixteen percent affirm or reject both statements, or offer no opinion.

Areas of the country that have been historical centers of immigration hold the most positive views of immigrants, but attitudes are more positive than negative in every region. A majority of Americans living in the West (55%) and Northeast (54%) believe that newcomers from other countries provide a positive contribution to the U.S. Fewer than half of those living in the South (48%) and Midwest (46%) agree. Close to four in ten Americans living in the Midwest (38%) and South (37%) say immigrants constitute a threat to traditional American culture and values.

With the exception of Wyoming, attitudes about immigrants are the most negative in the Deep South and the Appalachia region. Nearly half of residents in Wyoming (48%), Alabama (47%), and West Virginia (47%) believe that immigrants pose a threat to American culture. More than four in ten residents living in Kentucky (44%) and Arkansas (44%) also believe that immigrants represent a threat to American culture and values. Conversely, roughly six in ten Americans living in Hawaii (60%), Massachusetts (60%), California (58%), Rhode Island (58%), and New York (58%) say that immigrants are a positive influence on American society.

Transformation of Mexico in one generation

“Since the early 1990s average income in Mexico has increased by a third and educational attainment by more than half. Today a quarter for young people in their teens will end up going to college, three times a percentage of those who did in the early 1990s. The Mexican economy is now the 15th largest in the world and is projected to become the seventh or eighth largest by 2050. Mexico is gradually becoming a more middle class society as well, with around 40% of all Mexicans and a majority in most big cities part of the middle class. In many ways, Americans in the 1950s and 60s took a similar journey in the postwar economic boom. Life expectancy has expanded by four years over the past generation. It is now only two years less than that in the United States.

“Mexico has managed to transform itself over the past generation in surprising ways and this transformation is a big piece of the puzzle why Mexicans suddenly stopped migrating in large numbers a decade ago and haven’t started again since. Mexico may have a long way to go to become the country most Mexicans wanted to be, but few if any would have predicted the dramatic changes in a generation.”

From Andrew Selee, Vanishing Frontiers, 2018