September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six1 Human Geography By James Rubenstein Chapter 3 Key Issue 3 Why do migrants face obstacles?

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six2 Ellis Island

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six3 The principal obstacle traditionally faced by migrants to other countries was: The long arduous, and expensive passage over land or sea.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six4 Today motor vehicles and airplanes bring most immigrants speedily and reasonably comfortably to the U.S. and other countries.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six5 Major Difficulties Facing Immigrants  Gaining permission to enter a new country.  Hostile attitudes of citizens once they enter the country.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six6 Immigration Policies of Host Countries  The U.S. limits immigration of foreign citizens through a quota system.  Western Europe and the Middle East permit temporary guest workers.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six7 Unrestricted Immigration to the U.S. Ended when  The Congress passed Quota Act of 1921, and  the National Origins Act of 1924.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six8 Quotas Maximum limit on the number of people who could immigrate to the U.S. from each country during a one- year period.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six9 U.S. Quota Laws  Designed to ensure that immigrants continued to be mostly Europeans.  Asians were limited to 5% of all immigrants during the late 19 th century and the early 20 th century.  In 1968, country quotas were replaced by hemisphere quotas.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six10 Global Quotas as of 1978  Current law limits immigration to 620,000 per year.  No more than 7% of quota from any one country.  Numerous qualifications and exceptions alter the limit.  Quota does not apply to refugees and family members of U.S. citizens

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six11 Quota Preferences  Applicants exceed quotas.  480,000 family sponsored immigrants per year (3/4 th are admitted to reunify families)  140,000 employment related immigrants per year.  Others are admitted under a diversity lottery.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six12 Chain Migration Migration of people to a specific location because relatives or members of the same nationality previously migrated there.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six13 Chain Migration  Well-educated Asians immigrate under the preference for skilled workers.  Once admitted, they can bring in relatives under the family- reunification provisions of the quota.  The relatives brought in can bring in other relatives to be reunified.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six14 Brain Drain Large-scale emigration by talented people.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six15 Brain Drain  Countries charge that the skilled worker immigration preference policy of the United States and Europe cause a brain drain.  3/4 th of the immigrants from India and Africa have college degrees.  The average immigrant has received more education than Americans.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six16 Guest Workers Citizens of poor countries who obtain jobs in Western Europe and the Middle East.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six17 Guest Workers  Temporary work migrants in Europe and the Middle East.  ½ of labor force in Luxemburg, 1/6 th in Switzerland, and 1/10 th in Austria, Belgium, and Germany.  They take the low-status, low-skilled jobs.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six18 Guest Workers continued  They earn far more as guest workers, than in their own country.  They reduce their home country’s unemployment.  Inject foreign capital into their home economies.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six19

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six20 Time-Contract Workers Citizens of other countries who are recruited for a fixed period of time.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six21 Time-Contract Workers  Millions of Asians migrated in the 19 th century as time-contract laborers, Recruited for a fixed period to work in mines or on plantations. When contract expired, many would settle permanently in new country.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six22 Time-Contract Workers  Indians went to Africa, SE Asia and Pacific Islands.  Japanese & Filipinos went to Hawaii.  Chinese to the U.S. West Coast.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six23 Time-Contract Workers  More than 29 million ethnic Chinese currently live permanently in other countries (mostly from SE Asia): 3/4 th of population of Singapore. 1/3 rd of Malaysia. 1/10 th of Thailand.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six24 Chinese Asian immigration patterns

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six25 Distinguishing Between Economic Migrants and Refugees.  Important to the United States, Canada, and Western Europe.  Economic migrants are subject to specific regulations.  Refugees receive special priority in admission.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six26 Emigrants from Cuba  U.S. government has regarded emigrants from Cuba as political refugees since 1959 Communist revolution.  1960s- more than 600,000 Cubans admitted to U.S.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six27 Emigrants from Cuba  Second wave began in more than 125,000 left Cuba (“Mariel boatlift”).  U.S. agreed to permit 20,000 Cubans per year into the U.S.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six28 Emigrants from Haiti  Like Cuba, Haitian government ( ) severely persecuted political opponents.  But Haiti was not a Communist country & was not supported by the Soviet Union, like Cuba.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six29 Emigrants from Haiti  The U.S. would not let Haitians aboard boats stay (U.S. claimed they were economic migrants, not refugees).  After lawsuit, the U.S. agreed to admit Haitians.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six30 Emigrants from Haiti  Continuing political unrest in Haiti and poor economic conditions continued to ‘push’ Haitians toward the U.S.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six31 Emigrants from Vietnam  Vietnam War ended in  U.S. evacuated several thousand people from Saigon, who had been U.S. supporters.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six32 The last Huey out of Saigon, Vietnam War

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six33 Emigrants from Vietnam  Thousands more tried to leave by boat, hoping to be picked up by the U.S. Navy.  Some were allowed aboard U.S. vessels but many were turned away.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six34 Emigrants from Vietnam  Second surge of Vietnamese boat people began in late 1980s.  Majority were placed in detention camps, funded by U.N.  Some were allowed into the U.S., Canada, Australia, and France.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six35 Emigrants from Vietnam  1996-Detention camps closed; remaining boat people sent back to Vietnam.  80,000 Vietnamese reached U.S. since end of Vietnam War; another 1 million in other countries.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six36 Emigrants from Vietnam  Vietnam remains a major source of immigrants to the U.S.  Most now come for economic reasons rather than political persecution.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six37 Vietnamese migration patterns

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six38 Cultural Problems living in Other Countries  U.S. attitudes toward immigrants.  Attitudes toward Guest Workers.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six39 U.S. Attitudes Toward Immigrants.  New arrivals have always been regarded with suspicion.  Opposition intensified when migration shifted from Northern and Western Europe.  Recent laws reflect an unwillingness to provide public services to undocumented immigrants.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six40 European Attitudes Toward Guest Workers.  Many Guest Workers suffer from poor social conditions.  Political parties that support restrictions on immigration have grown in popularity.  Western Europe countries pay guest workers to return home.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six41 Middle Eastern Attitudes Toward Guest Workers.  Fear that Guest Workers will spark political unrest and abandonment of traditional Islam.  M.E. countries force migrants to return home to marry and refuse to allow them to return with family.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six42 Migration by Asians nearly a century ago is producing contemporary problems in several countries.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six43 Fiji Islands  Between 1879 and 1920, the British brought Indians as indentured laborers to the Islands.  Today Fiji has more Indians than native Fijians.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six44 Fiji Islands  Indians controlled most of the country’s businesses, and  the Fijians dominated the government and army.  In 1987, the Indian party won the elections.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six45 Fiji Islands  Riots broke out between the two groups.  The Fijian army officers seized temporary control of the government.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six46 Fiji Islands A new constitution in 1990 insured that Fijians would hold the majority seats in the parliament.

September 18, 2015S. Mathews & D. Six47 Anti-Immigrant Arguments  Arguments of anti-immigrant politicians are seductive.  In an economically integrated world, such arguments have little scientific basis.  In a culturally diverse world such arguments have racist overtones.