Let immigrants save the heartland

Washington Post ^ | 04 20 2204 | Unnamed Editorial Board

[yesthatjallen]

The population of Providence, R.I., has barely held even since 2020. Had it not been for some 8,300 immigrants who settled in Providence County, it would have shrunk by 1.3 percent by last year. Same in South Bend, Ind., where some 1,700 immigrants into Saint Joseph County barely filled a gap left by locals ditching town.

Immigrants slowed demographic decline in more than 1,100 counties from 2020 to 2023, according to census estimates. Their numbers made up more than the entire growth of the population in 131 of them. The demographic reality casts immigration in a different light, not as a burden but as an opportunity: a powerful tool to lift vast swaths of America that prosperity has left behind.

It would require smart policy and political will — neither of which is plentiful in Washington, but Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s (R) idea of busing migrants to cause political pain in blue jurisdictions could, unwittingly, be put to valuable use: encouraging migrants to rekindle economic development in depopulating cities such as Buffalo, Akron or Detroit, which have struggled to keep up with the economic transformations of the past 30 years.

SNIP

[Vigilanteman]

Why does this attitude of the “smart left” bring back memories of the kids on the honor roll and advanced classes that couldn't get laid?

I was one of those kids that couldn't get laid and it was mostly because I prioritized studies. I married the love of my life at age 28 and had a wonderful life with her raising three kids who grew up to be happy, successful and not bed wetting liberals.