Assimilation, now more than ever

Jewish World Review ^ | May 22, 2012 | Rich Lowry

[reaganaut1]

In the most predictable demographic revolution ever, the Census Bureau reported that nonwhite babies now make up a majority of all births.

This shift was inevitable as long as the basic architecture of the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act remained in place. It ended the old system of per-country quotas and -- together with subsequent liberalizations -- unleashed a flood of immigration from Latin America and Asia. So long as about a million new immigrants entered the country every year, a demographic transformation was assured as a matter of mathematics.

By 2010, the immigrant population was 40 million, following the highest decade in immigration in our history. According to the Center for Immigration Studies, the immigrant population had doubled since 1990, nearly tripled since 1980 and quadrupled since 1970. Hispanics went from about 4 percent of the population in the mid-1960s to 16 percent in 2010.

Ted Kennedy and other architects of the 1965 law predicted that nothing much would come of the law's changes. "Our cities will not be flooded with a million immigrants annually," Kennedy insisted, and "the ethnic mix of this country will not be upset." Forty-five years later, Hispanics are roughly 26 percent of all births, blacks 15 percent, and Asians 4 percent.

These categories aren't quite as clear-cut as advertised. About half of Hispanics identify their race as white on the census, a phenomenon that was neglected until The New York Times started calling George Zimmerman a "white Hispanic," apparently on grounds that an unambiguously Hispanic man couldn't possibly be involved in a racially charged shooting of a young black man.

At its best, this country absorbs immigrants and makes them fully American. The question is whether we can do it now, with our common culture under assault

[reaganaut1]

It's tough to assimilate immigrants with an average IQ of 2/3 (Hispanics) or 1 (blacks) standard deviation below the mean. Lowry won't mention that, and he fired Derbyshire for pointing out such facts.

Why should people "assimilate" when we subsidize their current culture? Cut back the welfare state and there will be a movement back to the nuclear family with married parents, because the government won't be the surrogate father.

Lowry rarely says anything insightful.

[skeeter]

Ted Kennedy and other architects of the 1965 law predicted that nothing much would come of the law's changes. "Our cities will not be flooded with a million immigrants annually," Kennedy insisted, and "the ethnic mix of this country will not be upset."

We'll always remember Fat Uncle Ted as the consummate liar, his true legacy.

[Caipirabob]

I don't know who you guys hang out with but I have "immigrant" friends and family who are borderline genius. They are brilliant people of Christian faith and yeah, they are Latino. Analysts, business owners and others who are also core conservatives.

It kills me when I see then grouped with "Hispanic" immigrants. Yeah, there are a lot of low lifes who get into this country. There are also a lot of low lifes who are born here.

We do need to assimilate and acclimate these cultures. If we don't the rats will.

We also need to shut down the borders to the point where people fear treading where they should not. We have to plug the leak before we can deal with the mess the flood has left. Once we repair that, we can create a reasonable immigration process that grants entry to deserving future Americans, not welfare state riff-raff.

[Carriage Hill]

"By 2010, the immigrant population was 40 million."

By 2010, the immigrant illegal alien population was 10-20 million, and probably many more... thanks to criminally-left-wide-open borders and no national security."

Fixed it, Lowry.

[SMARTY]

I don’t care what color they are as long as they are documented, get a SSN and pay taxes JUST LIKE I DO!!! :)

[Wurlitzer]

“I don’t care what color they are as long as they are documented, get a SSN and pay taxes JUST LIKE I DO!!!”

---

For the most part, I agree with you however there are some real factors that the PC world refuses to acknowledge.

We have people coming to this country legally and illegally who don’t even know how to use a flush toilet. One of my factories had to install signs telling them not to stand on the toilets. They are generations behind us and it is unlikely they will, as a group, become a positive force in our country for at least a few generations if ever.

There are those cultures which just could not, would not keep up with civilization and take your pick for the reason. Mudslimes go to the top of this list of inferior cultures.

The ALL ARE EQUAL kumbaya nonsense just is not reality. All cultures are not equal and it is highly unlikely ALL will contribute to a better culture in the USA.

Add to that, there are those who want to bring and maintain their failed cultures and languages while attempting to reap the benefits provided by advance cultures in the USA. Those people can and will be nothing but a drag on us as we attempt to advance.

To be a little specific to just one culture, if Hispanics would only show their desire to assimilate into the American culture by embracing English and come here legally they would be a huge positive force in this country as they are among the hardest working people I know. In their case, their culture would contribute greatly to our advancement but only if they learn the language and come here legally.

We can all site exceptions to the rule and the destroy America liberals use this everyday however the bell curve of cultures, races, religions show significant differences and certainly not equality.

[SMARTY]

You're right, I didn't want to go there but I have to agree.

The problem is that the government does nothing to incentivise assimilation... the opposite is what actually takes place.

Stay backward, illiterate, dependent, anti-American and you WILL be rewarded!!!

[Wurlitzer]

“The problem is that the government does nothing to incentivise assimilation... the opposite is what actually takes place.”

---

Absolutely, could not have said it better.

[kabar]

The U.S. adds one international migrant (net) every 36 seconds. Immigrants account for one in 8 U.S. residents, the highest level in more than 90 years. In 1970 it was one in 21; in 1980 it was one in 16; and in 1990 it was one in 13. In a decade, it will be one in 7, the highest it has been in our history. And by 2050, one in 5 residents of the U.S. will be foreign-born.

Currently, 1.6 million legal and illegal immigrants settle in the country each year; 350,000 immigrants leave each year, resulting in a net immigration of 1.25 million. Since 1970, the U.S. population has increased from 203 million to 310 million, i.e., over 100 million. In the next 40 years, the population will increase by an additional 130 million to 440 million. Three-quarters of the increase in our population since 1970 and the projected increase will be the result of immigration. The U.S., the world’s third most populous nation, has the highest annual rate of population growth of any developed country in the world, i.e., 0.963% (2011 estimate,) principally due to immigration.

Growth in the immigrant population has primarily been driven by high levels of legal immigration. Roughly three-fourths of immigrants in the country are here legally. With nearly 12 million immigrants, Mexico was by far the top immigrant-sending country, accounting for 29 percent of all immigrants and 29 percent of growth in the immigrant population from 2000 to 2010. The median age of immigrants in 2010 was 41.4 compared to 35.9 for natives.

87 percent of the 1.2 million legal immigrants entering annually are minorities as defined by the U.S. Government and almost all of the illegal aliens are minorities. By 2019 half of the children 18 and under in the U.S. will be classified as minorities and by 2042, half of the residents of this country will be minorities. Generally, immigrants and minorities vote predominantly for the Democrat Party. Hence, Democrats view immigration as a never-ending source of voters that will make them the permanent majority party.

Since the 1965 Immigration Act, our pro-population growth immigration policies have fueled major demographic changes in a very short period of time. In 1970, non-Hispanic whites comprised 89 percent of the population; today they are 66 percent; and by 2042, they will be 50 percent. The Democrats, under the banner of multiculturalism and diversity, have forged a political coalition that depends on individuals coalescing around racial and ethnic identities rather than the issues. The continuing and increasing flow of minority immigrants, mostly poor and uneducated, provides a natural constituency for the Democrats, which see them as their principal source of political power.

There is no correlation between our immigration policy and our economic needs in terms of the skills needed to be competitive in the global economy. Nor is there any connection between job creation and the numbers that are brought in.

[spetznaz]

Exactly ...and I can speak of African immigrants. It may help if FReepers did a quick search on the education level of African immigrants, before accusing them of being stupid (or any number of things ...2 days ago it was blaming them for bringing flesh-eating bacteria to American rivers, like the one that caused some lady to lose her limbs to necrosis, even though it would actually work the other way round looking at the incidence of the bacteria that causes necrotizing fasciitis in American rivers versus African. The FReeper later said, to be fair, that it was sarcasm and he'd forgotten the /S tag).

Contrasting African immigrants versus African-Americans, as well as contrasting African immigrants against other immigrants (including Asian immigrants). It always amazes me when FReepers paint a whole community with a broad brush. Low IQ African immigrants. That's hilarious. Even the 'Lost Boys' who came from the Sudan as refugees (Christian teenage boys fleeing persecution and death from the Islamic north), and who couldn't speak a lick of English nor understand an iota of what the average American takes for granted (e.g. pizza), assimilated VERY well. As for the non-refugees, e.g. people like me who had gone to the US for tertiary education, let's just say you should Google the average GPA for African students contrasted against the average for Americans, and the average for other immigrants (and yes, including the much vaunted Asian immigrants).

Several studies back this up. Eg:

In a side-by-side comparison of 2000 census data by sociologist John R. Logan at the Mumford Center, State University of New York at Albany, black immigrants from Africa average the highest educational attainment of any population group in the country, including whites and Asians.

There was also another study I am trying to source that showed average GPAs, and guess which group had a higher average GPA than (again, the much vaunted) Asian and Indian immigrants? I can say for my part when I was in college I really didn't have any competition. It is VERY difficult to slack and act the fool when you come from a continent that is unforgiving, and where they are many people hungry for the position you have, and where failing (in school, life, name it) can mean a truly miserable life (and I don't mean food stamps, a car, an iPhone, and a big screen plasma TV yet allegedly 'poor'). In Africa, like in India and Latin America, being poor can be a veritable death sentence, and the only social safety net is the grave. People tend to not slack, and if they do things sort themselves out quite efficiently.

I am not trying to 'prove' anything with numbers (even though I am throwing some out), but rather showing that painting a whole people with a broad-brush can be a double-edged sword. It is hard to attract people to your side by calling them 'stupid.' (I know, speaking for myself, that my stay on FR has been extremely enjoyable, but every now and then silly stuff happens ...like some guy trying to show me why I was inferior to him because of some story about the sons of Noah. Dude got banned). People speak of assimilation with one side of their mouth, then with the other call people stupid.

And please ...I am not here saying we should all hold hands and say all cultures are equal. They are not, and as an African I will be the first to say that there are a whole lot of crazy stuff that happens in the continent. A lot of really bad, and sad, things. However, it is not all disease and machete attacks and chasing white women to rape them or whatever fits as African-fantasy for some. There is also a lot of good, such as some of the fastest growing economies in the world, the fastest growing middle class (that is already bigger than that of India), and the fastest urbanization rate in the world. I always say the West threw away Africa (and to a lesser extent Latin America) to the Chinese, and some day it will regret doing so. If Guam is an 'unsinkable aircraft carrier' per US military doctrine, I wonder what an entire continent filled with resources, with a burgeoning middle class with rapidly increasing purchasing power hungry for Chinese goods, and basing for Chinese military and geo-political assets, would mean if Guam is that important. But hey, as another FReeper so astutely put it ...Africa is only good for beetle dung. I will yield to his sagacious insight.

Anyways, it is said it is easier to catch flies with honey rather than vinegar. You are wrong when you claim African immigrants (note, African immigrants) are too stupid to be assimilated. However, you are also correct in saying that as well, since we would have to be dang stupid to join a group that considers us too dumb to chew gum and walk at the same time.

Especially considering that for 'stupid people' with 'low IQs' we seem to do quite well compared to native born Americans and foreign born (non-African) immigrants. Thus, if we are 1 standard deviation below the mean, then that says something about the other groups. You must be confusing us with your local grown group. Just because two people look the same doesn't make them the same. There are no food stamps in most African countries, and ebonics means not getting a job.

According to a Princeton study on African immigration to the US:

English:

a) Native US Born:

Speaks English very well - 79.6%

Speaks English well - 13.0%

Doesn't speak English well - 6.2%

No English - 1.2%

b) Foreign born non-African:

Speaks English very well - 37.8%

Speaks English well - 24.8%

Doesn't speak English well - 23.8%

No English - 13.6%

c) Foreign born Africans:

Speaks English very well - 61.7%

Speaks English well - 24.9%

Doesn't speak English well - 10.6%

No English - 2.9%

Education:

a) Native US Born:

4+ years college - 27.1%

1-3 years college - 28.7%

High school Graduate - 33.2%

Less than high school - 11.0%

b) Foreign born non-African:

4+ years college - 26.6%

1-3 years college - 17.5%

High school Graduate - 27.0%

Less than high school - 28.9%

c) Foreign born Africans:

4+ years college - 42.0%

1-3 years college - 25.7%

High school Graduate - 22.9%

Less than high school - 9.4%

[kabar]

The problem is the numbers. It weighs against assimilation. Moreover, our false narrative that diversity and multiculturalism are strengths encourages people to hang on to their cultural and linguistic differences.

And then there are programs like affirmative action that reinforce those differences because they offer benefits to identifying as a minority and victim. 87% of the 1.2 million LEGAL immigrants who enter annually are minorities as defined by the USG. They become entitled to such benefits as minority business set asides and affiramtive action in job consideration, entrance into college, etc.

Finally, 57% of all immigrant headed households with children are on at least one major welfare program. Milton Friedman said that, “You cannot simultaneously have free immigration and a welfare state.” We have both.

[G Larry]

Just as in Europe, caucasians in America are contracepting and aborting themselves out of existence.

[kabar]

You failed to mention the number of African immigrants. Their numbers are small and insignificant compared to where the bulk of immigrants come from. Generally, today's immigrants are less educated and less skilled than the native born population. This is a major change from the days of the big immigration waves in the early 1900s when immigrants had a higher education level than native born Americans.

As an aside, do you believe that immigrants from Africa should receive special benefits due to their race, e.g., affirmative action, minority business set asides, etc.?

[spetznaz]

As an aside, do you believe that immigrants from Africa should receive special benefits due to their race, e.g., affirmative action, minority business set asides, etc.?

Why would we want something we don't need? I was managing an $8 billion portfolio at the age of 22/23 ...why would I need special 'assistance?' Most of my friends, even the ones who had to work two jobs - one at a nursing home and the other at a 7-11 - never applied for 'help.' In Africa you help yourself or you are on the street. Why would you ask me whether Africans should receive special benefits due to their race? The very fact that they made it to America, when so many others would have wanted to do so, is all the blessing they require ...from there on it is up to their sweat and will.

I am really not trying to sound brusque or what-not, it is just that I find the question ...well ...alien. Again, I think people tend to confuse us with your local grown product just because we look like them. Trust me ...there is no love lost at all between us and the local grown product. There is a nickname used ....'akata.' Google it. It had an ok meaning originally, but it took on a new meaning.

To be honest with you, when I was in the US I detested affirmative action. Why? Because it meant that my accomplishments would always be viewed by some as the result of some sort of quota, when the truth was I literally worked twice as hard as the next guy.

[spetznaz]

You failed to mention the number of African immigrants. Their numbers are small and insignificant compared to where the bulk of immigrants come from. Generally, today's immigrants are less educated and less skilled than the native born population

As for the numbers ...small or huge, I was responding to a FReepers statement that we are somewhat diluting the aggregate cranial-capacity of America. Even if it was one African immigrant per decade, the fact that some FReeper though that one chap is somehow subliming American brain power into loosely associated ganglion functions still deserved a response.

[kabar]

Why would we want something we don't need? I was managing an $8 billion portfolio at the age of 22/23 ...why would I need special 'assistance?'

This isn't just about you. These policies are on the books. They apply just as much to you as they do to an immigrant from Haitii or Mexico or China. Don't you think that they should be abolished period? Here is an example:

The Virginia Department of Minority Business defines a minority individual as “an individual who is a citizen of the United States or a non-citizen who is in full compliance with United States immigration law and who satisfies one or more of the following definitions:”

1. “African American” means a person having origins in any of the original peoples of Africa and who is regarded as such by the community of which this person claims to be a part.

2. “Asian American” means a person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, the Indian subcontinent, or the Pacific Islands, including but not limited to Japan, China, Vietnam, Samoa, Laos, Cambodia, Taiwan, Northern Mariana, the Philippines, a U.S. territory of the Pacific, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, or Sri Lanka and who is regarded as such by the community of which this person claims to be a part.

3. “Hispanic American” means a person having origins in any of the Spanish-speaking peoples of Mexico, South or Central America, or the Caribbean Islands or other Spanish or Portuguese cultures and who is regarded as such by the community of which this person claims to be a part."

I know a number of African and Carribean immigrants. You are correct that they don't identify with our native born black population. They don't see themselves as victims and want to achieve success through hard work and education. As a result, they are far more successful.

By and large, their children and grandchildren will not have that same ethos mainly due our educational system that will brainwash them into our culture of dependence and diversity. They will identify more as members of racial and ethnic minorities than as Americans.

The bottom line on immigration is that we are bringing in too many people and we don't have a merit based system. We don't need to import hundreds of thousands of high school dropouts annualy.

[spetznaz]

I agree that the policies are not just about me. However, there is precious little I can do about them. I am not even in the US right now (I had traveled to the US a week ago for some R&R whitewater rafting on the Shenandoah to the point where it becomes the Potomac at the intersection of three states - West Virginia, Virginia and Maryland), and flew back home this weekend. I cannot affect American laws when I am not even American, and asking me what I think of them will give you the same answer 10 times out of 10. That when I was working in the US I would always feel people think I am where I am due to favor rather than merit, and that really used to stick in my craw like a bone in the throat!! It meant I had to ALWAYS outperform, just to prove to folk I actually deserved to be there because of what is between my ears and not because of excess melanin, and that is tiring.

But there is nothing I can do about it, is there?

As for your comment on the kids and grandkids of immigrants becoming 'naturalized' in a bad way - that is actually something I totally agree with. If I had stayed in the US and got married and kids there, I always planned on having my kids take their primary and secondary education (especially grade 3 to 12) outside the US. A person I am close to had her sister do that ...sent the child from North Carolina to some private school in Kenya. I agree with you on that one, especially when there is a lot of peer pressure to conform.

I really hope I am not coming across as acerbic (don't mean to if I am, it is just something that's been on my mind for around a decade now. Just imagine if you had to prove to your wife every day that you were a man? Or your wife had to prove to you every day, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that she loved you? That's what affirmative action meant to me when I was in the US. I can tell you that there are probably not more than 10 FReepers who hate it more than I do).

[Road Glide]

Your post is dead-on.

Lowry is dreaming. His dreams have no basis in reality.

Unfortunately, he is not the only “conservative” who harbors such foolish notions. Just look around, even right here on this forum.

Mr. Derbyshire, on the other hand, is a realist who “sees things as they are”. He wrote an elightening book about that (”We Are Doomed! Reclaiming Conservative Pessimism”).

Assimilation worked in times past, up until the 1960’s. Before then the nation, as a matter of public policy, restricted those who were allowed to immigrate and become candidates for citizenship. Those admitted were limited to cultures, countries and races that were primarily similar to those already here. As such, assimilation became a “fait accompli”.

But after the mid-60’s this changed 180 degrees. We now began limiting admittance of “those already like us”, and opened the gates to millions upon millions who were as unlike us as could be found.

This has become exacerbated by the growth of a technology that permits newcomers to remain attached to their old cultures and nations (TV Espanol) and ignore ours.

We’ve created a recipe for our own dismemberment as a nation based upon unity of culture, beliefs, and ethnicity.

There ain’t gonna be much “assimilation” no mo’...

[kabar]

I understand your frustration about affirmative action and how it diminishes your achievements. It is time to eliminate such programs based on race and ethnicity. We could use criteria such as economic status to assist deserving individuals an opportunity to compete in educational pursuits along with other merit-based criteria.

My larger point is that we need to review our current immigration policies because they are hurting rather than helping our country compete in the global economy. And this is not just a US problem. The immigration issue is becoming more prominent throughout the developed world. Without going into the many reasons why, it is an issue that will only grow in importance and visibility.

Unfortunately, emotion and demagoguery cloud any real discussion of the issue. Anyone who believes America is somehow immune from the impact of immigration because of our false belief that we can continue to assimilate huge numbers of people from all corners of the globe is delusional. Demography is destiny.

[kabar]

Republicans must take the lead on the initiation of a dialogue with the American people on immigration. The status quo is not an option because the demographic changes wrought by immigration will slowly strangle the Republican Party and an amnesty will just hasten the process putting the final nail in the coffin of this country and the GOP.

Americans should have an opportunity to decide whether our immigration policies are to serve the long-term interests of all Americans or the short-term interests of corporate and special (often political, religious and ethnic) interest groups. Legal immigration is a controllable variable that can be adjusted in the national interest if we have the political will to do so. And illegal immigration can be stopped and reversed if we as a nation make a resolute commitment to secure our borders and enforce our existing laws.