Chapter 3 Migration

Migration is defined as: – the long term relocation of an individual, household or group to a new location outside the community of origin –Immigration is migration TO a new location –Emigration is migration FROM a location –Net Migration- the difference between the number of immigrants and the number of emigrants

Why Do People Migrate? Reasons for migration –Most people migrate for economic reasons –Push and pull factors Economic: people move away from places with poor economic opportunities and toward places with better ones Cultural factors –Forced migration (e.g., slavery and political instability) –Refugee- people who have been forced to migrate from their homes and cannot return for fear of persecution because of their race, religion, nationality, or political opinion –Political Freedom Environmental factors

Why Do People Migrate? Reasons for migration –Push and pull factors Intervening obstacles- environmental or cultural feature that hinders migration Transportation technology = limited environmental intervening obstacles

Ravenstein’s 11 migration “laws” Distance Migrants Move Most migrants relocate a short distance and remain within the same country Long-distance migrants to other countries head for major center of economic activity

Why Do People Migrate? Distance of migration –Internal migration (within the country) Two types: –Interregional migration = movement from one region to another –rural to urban in search of jobs –Intraregional migration = movement within a region- movement within urban areas, from older cities to newer suburbs

Why Do People Migrate? Distance of migration –International migration (from one country to another) Two types: –Voluntary –Forced Migration transition –International migration is most common in countries that are in stage 2 of the demographic transition –Internal migration is more important in stages 3 and 4.

Voluntary Migration –Luxury of choice –Ex. Europeans to United States Involuntary (forced) Migration –Results from the imposition of power by stronger peoples over weaker ones –Ex. Transatlantic Slave Trade

Forced Migration – the Atlantic Slave Trade

Ravenstein’s Laws of Migration Most migrants move only a short distance. (Distance Decay) There is a process of absorption, whereby people immediately surrounding a rapidly growing town move into it and the gaps they leave are filled by migrants from more distant areas, and so on until the attractive force [pull factors] is spent. Each migration flow produces a compensating counter-flow. Long-distance migrants go to one of the great centers of commerce and industry. Natives of towns are less migratory than those from rural areas. Males are more likely to migrate long distances (today females constitute 55% of U.S. immigrants) Families are less likely to make international moves than young adults. Economic factors are the main cause of migration.

Distance Decay weighs into the decision to migrate, leading many migrants to move less far than they originally contemplate. Voluntary Migration – Migrants weigh push and pull factors to decide first, to emigrate from the home country and second, where to go.

Gravity Model Spatial interaction (such as migration) –Used to estimate the flow of migrants to a particular place Population 1 x Population 2 Distance Between Them

International refugees = those who have crossed one or more international borders and encamped in a country other than their own Intranational refugees = those who have abandoned their homes but not their countries

Refugees: Sources & Destinations Fig. 3-1: Major source and destination areas of both international and internal refugees.

Hurricane Katrina Migrants A major natural disaster represents an environmental push factor for forced migration.

Scene from The Grapes of Wrath The Dust Bowl in the 1930s led to forced migration from the Great Plains to California and elsewhere.

Migration Patterns Global migration patterns U.S. immigration patterns –Colonial immigration –19th-century immigration –Recent immigration Impact of immigration on the U.S. –Legacy of European migration –Undocumented immigration –Destination of immigrants within the U.S.

Why Do People Migrate? Characteristics of migrants –Most long-distance migrants are Male Adults Individuals –Families with children = less common

Why Do People Migrate? Characteristics of migrants –Gender Traditionally, males outnumbered females In the United States today, 55 percent of immigrants = female –Family status In the United States today, about 40 percent of immigrants = young adults, aged 25–39 Unauthorized immgirants=Mexican on average four years of education

Where Are Migrants Distributed? Global migration patterns –Net out-migration: Asia, Africa, and Latin America –Net in-migration: North America, Europe, and Oceania-why? –Europe from Asia –North American from Asia and Latin America The United States has the largest foreign-born population-approx. 40 million (12% of the population) (

Global Migration Patterns Fig. 3-2: The major flows of migration are from less developed to more developed countries.

Net Migration (per population) Fig. 3-3: Net migration per 1000 population. The U.S. has the largest number of immigrants, but other developed countries also have relatively large numbers.

Migration to U.S., by Region of Origin Fig. 3-4: Most migrants to the U.S were from Europe until the 1960s. Since then, Latin America and Asia have become the main sources of immigrants.

Where Are Migrants Distributed? U.S. migration patterns –Three main eras of migration Colonial migration from England and Africa Nineteenth-century immigration from Europe Recent immigration from LDCs-1970’s to today The reasons for migrating: economic

Where Are Migrants Distributed? Impact of immigration on the United States –Legacy of European migration Europe’s demographic transition –Stage 2 growth pushed Europeans out »65 million Europeans emigrate Diffusion of European culture

First Peak of European Migration 1840s & 1850s- 4.3 million people migrate to the U.S. 250,000 during the peak years 95% came from Northern and Western Europe (2/5 Ireland and 1/3 Germany)

Second Wave 1860s- immigration to the U.S. declines due to the Civil War 1880s- Second peak most immigrants come from NW Europe Migrate for Land

Third Peak Nearly a million people each year immigrated during the first 15 years of the twentieth century million immigrants –Great Britain, Ireland and Germany –¼ Italy, Russia and Austria-Hungary – million U.S. residents were born in a foreign country or had a foreign-born parent (14% of the population)

New York Harbor and Ellis Island Ellis Island is connected to New Jersey by bridge. Liberty Island and the Statue of Liberty are south of Ellis Island.

Ellis Island

Immigrants to the US

Where Are Migrants Distributed? Impact of immigration on the United States –Unauthorized immigration 2008 = estimated 11.9 million unauthorized/ undocumented immigrants –About 5.4 percent of the U.S. civilian labor force- about 8.3 million working as unauthorized –Around 59 percent are undocumented immigrants from Mexico

Where Are Migrants Distributed? Impact of immigration on the United States –Destinations California = one-fifth of all immigrants and one- fourth of undocumented immigrants New York = one-sixth of all immigrants –Chain migration-migration to a specific location because of relatives previously migrated there.

Migration from Asia to the U.S. Fig. 3-5: The largest numbers of migrants from Asia come from India, China, the Philippines, and Vietnam.

Migration from Latin America to the U.S. Fig. 3-6: Mexico has been the largest source of immigrants to the U.S., but immigrants have also come from numerous other Latin American nations.

Undocumented Immigrants in the US Fig. 3-7: California, Texas, and Florida are the leading destinations for undocumented immigrants to the U.S.

U.S. - Mexico Border at Tijuana The U.S. side of the border is uninhabited and separated from Mexico by a fence

Why Do Migrants Face Obstacles? Immigration policies of host countries –U.S. quota laws The Quota Act (1921) The National Origins Act (1924) Global Quota of 620,00 and no more than 7% from one country Does not apply to refugees or spouses, children, and parents of U.S. citizens –Temporary migration for work Guest workers- in Europe and Middle East Time-contract workers-in Asia

Why Do Migrants Face Obstacles? Distinguishing economic migrants from refugees –Emigrants from Cuba-after 1959 revolution –Emigrants from Haiti-Duvalier? –Emigrants from Vietnam –Push or political persecution or pull of economic opportunity???

U.S. States as Immigrant Destinations Fig. 3-8: California is the destination of about 25% of all US immigrants; another 25% go to New York and New Jersey. Other important destinations include Florida, Texas, and Illinois.

Guest Workers in Europe Fig. 3-9: Guest workers emigrate mainly from Eastern Europe and North Africa to work in the wealthier countries of Western Europe.

Turkish Kebab Stand in Germany

Emigration from China Fig. 3-10: Various ethnic Chinese peoples have distinct patterns of migration to other Asian countries.

Migration of Vietnamese Boat People Fig. 3-11: Many Vietnamese fled by sea as refugees after the war with the U.S. ended in Later boat people were often considered economic migrants.

Why Do Migrants Face Obstacles? Cultural problems faced while living in host countries –U.S. attitudes towards immigrants-should children of recent immigrants be allowed to attend schools and receive social services??? –Attitudes toward guest workers- Discriminated Often

Anti- Immigration Protest in Spain Spanish youths attacked Moroccan immigrants in El Ejido, Spain after an alleged murder.

Why Do People Migrate Within a Country? Migration between regions of a country –U.S. settlement patterns Colonial settlement Early settlement in the interior (early 1800s) California –Gold Rush in the 1840s Great Plains settlement Recent growth of the South

Center of Population in the U.S. Fig. 3-12: The center of U.S. population has consistently moved westward, with the migration of people to the west. It has also begun to move southward with migration to the southern sunbelt.

Echo Canyon, northeastern Utah Echo Canyon was one of many obstacles to 19th century wagon trains heading west.

Why Do People Migrate Within a Country? Migration between regions of other countries –Russia Komsomol –Government incentives in Brazil and Indonesia –Economic migration within European countries –Restricted migration in India

Interregional Migration in the U.S. Fig. 3-13: Average annual migrations between regions in the U.S. in 1995 and in 2003

U.S. Interregional Migration, 1995

U.S. Interregional Migration, 2003

Migration in Europe Figure 3-20

Brasilia, Brazil Brasilia was created as Brazil’s new capital in 1960 and since then has attracted thousands of migrants in search of jobs.

Why Do People Migrate Within a Country? Intraregional migration in the United States –Migration from rural to urban areas Primary reason = economic migration –Migration from urban to suburban areas Primary reason = suburban lifestyle –Migration from urban to rural areas Counterurbanization

Intraregional Migrations in U.S. U.S. population has been moving out of the city centers to the suburbs : suburbanization and counterurbanization U.S. intraregional migration during 1990s. Developed Countries: suburbanization  automobiles and roads  ‘American Dream’  better services counterurbanization  idyllic settings  cost of land for retirement  slow pace, yet high tech connections to services and markets

Intraregional Migration in the U.S. Fig. 3-14: Average annual migration among urban, suburban, and rural areas in the U.S. during the 1990s. The largest flow was from central cities to suburbs.

Net Migration by County, Fig. 3-15: Rural counties in the southwest and Florida have had net in-migration, while there has been net out-migration from rural counties in the Great Plains