A majority of the foreign-born population living in the united states today come from
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Government AffairsImmigration reform supporters block a street on Capitol Hill on Thursday, August 1, 2013, in protest against immigration policies and the House’s inability to pass a bill that contains a pathway to citizenship. (AP/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
This brief was originally published on April 3, 2013. It has been updated with current information as of October 23, 2014. For a more recent version of this information, see “The Facts on Immigration Today: 2017 Edition.” Immigration has been a constant source of economic vitality and demographic dynamism throughout our nation’s history. Immigrants are taxpayers, entrepreneurs, job creators, and consumers. But the immigration system is broken and in need of an overhaul. Although the U.S. border is now more secure than ever, decades of ever-increasing border and interior enforcement have exacerbated the dysfunction caused by rigid, out-of-date laws. Immigration reform that comprehensively addresses these systemic problems—including providing a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants living and working in the United States—is supported by large swaths of Americans. Common-sense reform would restore public faith in the system and level the playing field for all Americans, while supercharging the economic benefits from our immigrant population. Below are the latest and most essential facts about immigrants and immigration reform in our nation today. The facts are broken down into the following sections:
Today’s immigrant populationForeign-born population
Undocumented immigrant population
Demographics and political power of new AmericansGrowing in number
And growing in political power
Immigrants and the economyThe economic imperative for immigration reform
The record on immigrants and the economy
The price of inaction and the cost of mass deportation
Federal immigration policyThe Senate’s bipartisan immigration reform billIn June 2013, the Senate passed a bipartisan immigration reform bill with a vote of 68 to 32. The Senate bill remains viable for reconciliation with a House bill until the 113th Congress ends on December 31, 2014.
House’s immigration legislation
Administrative action and Supreme Court decisions
Building a 21st century border
Immigration enforcement is in overdrive
Public opinion polling on immigrationAmericans want immigration reform with a pathway to citizenship
Latino voters have a deep connection to immigration and want reform
In the news: Unaccompanied children at the U.S. southern borderDemographics and violence
The positions of American Progress, and our policy experts, are independent, and the findings and conclusions presented are those of American Progress alone. A full list of supporters is available here. American Progress would like to acknowledge the many generous supporters who make our work possible.
You Might Also LikeWhere do most immigrants come from today?The United States was home to 22.0 million women, 20.4 million men, and 2.5 million children who were immigrants. The top countries of origin for immigrants were Mexico (24 percent of immigrants), India (6 percent), China (5 percent), the Philippines (4.5 percent), and El Salvador (3 percent).
What race migrated to the US the most?Mexicans are the largest group of U.S. immigrants, comprising 24 percent of the total immigrant population in 2019, which is a decline from 30 percent in 2000.
How much of the US population is foreignThe U.S. foreign-born population consists of individuals living in the United States who were not U.S. citizens at birth. In 2020—the most recent data from the American Community Survey (ACS)—an estimated 44.1 million foreign-born people resided in the United States, representing 13.5% of the total U.S. population.
What percentage of U.S. population is descended from immigrants?How many U.S. residents are of immigrant origin? Immigrants and their U.S.-born children number approximately 85.7 million people, or 26 percent of the U.S. population, according to the 2020 Current Population Survey (CPS), a slight decline from 2019.
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