Economy Drives Down Immigration–Documented and Undocumented

From Fox News Latino:

As the economic and demographic landscapes of both Mexico and some countries in Latin America undergo tectonic shifts, and our own economic growth continues to wane, suddenly, in a remarkably short time, immigration to America, both lawful and unlawful, has fallen – dramatically.

And while most of us are not more than a generation or two away from the immigrant’s experience, most Americans, strangely, ignore what current immigration trends say about our economic condition. But, the rise and fall of immigrants coming to America, both lawful and unlawful, speaks to the state of our economy – and it should concern us all.

Recent U.S. census figures show that the new arrival numbers of Mexican nationals, the largest immigrant group residing in the United States (some in violation of U.S. immigration law), have tumbled to almost negligible levels. In fact, fewer than 100,000 who entered into the United States unlawfully in 2010 hailed from Mexico; significantly lower than the 525,000 who did the same from 2000 to 2004 according to reports.

We are not only seeing a decrease in border crossings overall, but interestingly enough, we are now seeing a significant increase in the percentage of those entering the country with required documents. Recent figures indicate that 38 percent of total border crossings in 2011 were made with documentation; while in 2007, only 20 percent had entered with required credentials. Read more….

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