How Cities and Metropolitan Areas are Integrating Immigrant Populations
A new report by Americas Society/Council of the Americas (AS/COA), Welcoming America, and the University of Southern California’s Center for the Study of Immigrant Integration (CSII) explores the quiet revolution taking place in U.S. cities and metropolitan areas, where municipalities are actively devising and implementing strategies to better welcome and integrate new Americans.
The report Opening Minds, Opening Doors, Opening Communities: Cities Leading for Immigrant Integration identifies 63 city-level institutions in places as diverse as Nashville, Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, and Salt Lake City where local authorities are promoting immigrant integration. Months of conversations with the directors of local offices promoting support for immigrant populations paint a picture of a country where authorities and community stakeholders are devoting time and effort to strengthen social cohesion by welcoming rather than rejecting newcomers. The report will be launched at Americas Society/Council of the Americas in New York on Tuesday, December 15 at 6:30 p.m. (print copies will be available). More information about the event here.
Over the past few months the tenor of the debate around immigrants and refugees in the United States has frequently gone beyond realities and figures, touching on deep concerns about identity in a changing America. This timely report provides a fact-based approach to the efforts that municipal governments as well as civic and business leaders are making to defuse potential tension and capitalize on the considerable impact that immigrants make in boosting the U.S. economic and civic vitality.
KJ