The history of large-scale immigration to America began with the first great wave (from 1629-1641) of Puritan settlement in what were to become the thirteen original Colonies. Thereafter, new settlers came in waves followed by troughs – one wave peaking in the 1720s, another in the early 1750s, and another from the late 1760s until the outbreak of the American Revolution; the troughs between were mostly due to wars in Europe. After the Revolution, there was a pronounced lull in immigration for nearly seventy years until the Irish started arriving in the 1840s in flight from the potato famine.

Then came Germans fleeing the failed revolution of 1848 and the general poverty and authoritarianism of their homeland during that period. Over the next forty years, immigration again alternately surged and plunged numerous times. As the century progressed, the main source of American immigrants shifted from northern Europe to southern and eastern Europe. Transportation became cheaper as railroads penetrated every corner of Europe and steamships grew in size, thereby making the passage to America more available to the poor. Immigration became a well-organized corporate business. There were peaks in 1851-4, 1866-73, 1881-83, and 1905-7. Specific events, like the 1881 pogrom in Russia or regional harvest failures, were responsible for triggering some of these waves.In 1875 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the regulation of immigration was a federal responsibility, and in 1891 the Immigration Service was established to deal with it.

The outbreak of World War I all but stopped the flow of Europeans into America, but mass immigration resumed upon the war’s conclusion. In 1921 Congress passed a new immigration policy commonly known as the national-origins Quota Act, which was revised three years later in the Immigration Act of 1924. The 1921-4 legislation cut the raw number of immigrants, from 800,000 in 1921 to 154,000 in 1924 (in 1929 the yearly maximum, or quota, would be fixed at 150,000, a total that still left the United States far and away the world’s largest recipient of immigrants). 

This legislation also addressed the issue of ethnic balance in immigration. The 1921 Act was motivated in part by a sense that immigration was in some sense an unearned gift to the ethnic group that was allowed to relocate. In particular, immigration was viewed as a gift to those members of the ethnic groups that already lived in America. The 1921 Act allocated, by country of origin, annual quotas equal to 3 percent of that nation’s existing ethnic stock in the U.S. as of 1910. In 1924, this was amended to 2 percent of a nation’s existing ethnic stock in the U.S. as of 1890, in order to avoid over-rewarding groups that had already massively benefited from the great immigration wave between 1890 and 1910.

These quotas dramatically reduced the influx of immigrants from southeastern Europe in favor of those hailing from northwestern Europe. The 1921 and 1924 Acts were partly motivated by a fear of immigrants harboring ideologies hostile to American society. The Russian Revolution and civil war had just occurred, and Americans were afraid of East Europeans bearing Bolshevism.

Immigration regulations remained stable for the next four decades until everything was radically transformed by the 1965 Immigration Act, which set the ceiling for immigrants from the Western hemisphere at 120,000 per year while earmarking fully 170,000 slots for immigrants from nations outside the Western Hemisphere (with 20,000 allowed from any one nation). For the first time in American history, non-Europeans formed the dominant immigrant group, the new arrivals hailing predominantly from Asia, Latin America, the Caribbean, and the Middle East. Between 1968 and 1993, fully 85 percent of the 16.7 million legal immigrants arriving in the United States during that period came from the Third World – including 47 percent from Latin America and the Caribbean, and 34 percent from Asia.

In the 1980s and 1990s immigration policies were further altered when the U.S. government granted amnesty to illegal aliens, raised admission limits, and created a system for validating refugees. Today the United States admits between 700,000 and 900,000 legal immigrants each year. Legal immigration in the 1990s exceeded that of the previous historical peak decade of 1901-1910, when 8.8 million legal immigrants came to America. 

Moreover, the Census Bureau estimates a net annual increase of 500,000 illegal immigrants residing in the United States. This figure represents an increase in the net growth in the illegal-alien population (i.e., the number of new illegal immigrants minus deaths, legalizations, and out-migration). As the Center for Immigration Studies explains: “In 1999 for example, the INS estimates that 968,000 new illegal aliens settled in the U.S. This number was offset by 210,000 illegal aliens who either died or returned home on their own, 63,000 who were removed by the INS, and 183,000 illegal aliens who were given green cards as part of the normal ‘legal’ immigration process.” Estimates of the illegal population in America currently range from 12 million to 20 million. The Census Bureau places the figure at approximately 8 to 9 million; included in this estimate are about 78,000 illegal aliens from countries that are of special concern in the war on terror.

This section of DiscoverTheNetworks focuses primarily on recent and current trends in immigration -- legal and illegal -- and their implications.

The category titled Immigration Trends, Historical Perspectives, Debates and Issues (U.S.) examines the history of immigration to the United States; public opinion about immigration and immigrants; the evolution of America's immigration policies; the distinguishing characteristics of various immigrant populations in America; and the implications of all the above.

The category titled Illegal Immigration: Trends, Debates and Issues (U.S.) examines the major trends that have characterized illegal immigration in recent times. In their article, "The Evolution of the Mexican-Born Workforce in the United States," George Borjas and Lawrence Katz discuss the rising rate of illegal immigration from Mexico to the U.S.: "The latest wave of illegal immigration from Mexico began in the late 1960s, after the discontinuation of the bracero program [a guest-worker program that brought almost 5 million Mexican-born farm workers to the United States between 1942 and 1964, at which time it was abruptly terminated by the U.S.] ... The number of Mexican illegal aliens apprehended by the Border Patrol began to increase soon after the bracero program ended."

The category titled Illegal Immigration: Costs, Crimes, and the Problems It Creates (U.S.) examines how illegal immigration has imposed enormous costs on American society -- in terms of the high rates of violent crime committed by illegals, and as a result of their high rates of dependence on social welfare benefits funded by U.S. taxpayers. In her Winter 2004 article, "The Illegal-Alien Crime Wave," Heather MacDonald writes: "In Los Angeles, 95 percent of all outstanding warrants for homicide ... target illegal aliens. Up to two-thirds of all fugitive felony warrants ... are for illegal aliens. A confidential California Department of Justice study reported in 1995 that 60 percent of the 20,000-strong 18th Street Gang in southern California is illegal; police officers say the proportion is actually much greater.... The leadership of the Columbia Lil’ Cycos gang, which uses murder and racketeering to control the drug market around L.A.’s MacArthur Park, was about 60 percent illegal in 2002 ..."

The category titled Immigration and Terrorism examines how a lack of immigration-law enforcement, coupled with a resultant rise in the incidence of illegal immigration, makes it easier for terrorists to enter the United States and carry out their attacks.

The category titled Combating Illegal immigration looks at what measures can be taken not only to curtail or prevent future illegal immigration, but also to reduce the number of illegals already living in the United States. In his May 26, 2005 article, "Downsizing Illegal Immigration," Mark Krikorian proposes that the only way to shrink the illegal population is "through consistent, across-the-board enforcement of the immigration law." He adds: "By deterring the settlement of new illegals, by increasing deportations to the extent possible, and, most importantly, by increasing the number of illegals already here who give up and deport themselves, the United States can bring about an annual decrease in the illegal-alien population, rather than allowing it to continually increase."

The category titled Amnesty and Guest Worker Proposals examines leftist calls for: (a) amnesty, which would preclude the punishment of any individuals who already have violated American immigration laws and are living in the U.S. illegally; and (b) a guest worker program, which would allow illegal immigrants to continue working in the United States for as long as six years before returning home permanently.

The Sanctuary Policies category examines directives that instruct city employees not to notify the federal government of the presence of illegal aliens living in their communities. Such policies also make no distinction between legal and illegal immigration -- thereby permitting illegal aliens to benefit from city services as well.

The category titled Immigration in Europe examines the immigration policies of various European countries, and some of the problems those policies foster. In the article "Europe's Suicide?", Council of Europe member Morten Messerschmidt is quoted as saying: "Europe will -- maybe not in 20 [years], but rather 30-40 years from now -- have a Muslim majority of population, if nothing is done [vis à vis immigration policies]. That’ll mean the end of our culture and the end of European civilization."

The category titled How Other Countries Deal With Immigration / Emigration examines the immigration policies of nations other than the United States, and how those countries deal with people who cross their borders illegally. In her Autumn 2005 article, "Mexico’s Undiplomatic Diplomats," Heather MacDonald reveals how the Mexican government encourages its countrymen to emigrate illegally to the U.S.  In his May 8, 2006 article, "Mexico's Immigration Law: Let's Try It Here at Home," Michael Waller points out Mexico's own harsh treatment of those who seek to enter its borders illegally.

The category titled Political Correctness and Immigration looks at examples of celebrities, activists, legislators, media personalities, and many others who are reluctant to criticize illegal aliens, and who pander to the open-borders lobby that aims to secure amnesty for all illegals as well as a cessation of all future border controls.

The category titled Demonstrations for Illegal Aliens' Rights discusses the leaders and objectives of mass demonstrations that have been held in favor not only of open borders, but also of expanded rights, amnesty, and ultimately citizenship for illegal aliens. The worldview that animates these demonstrations is also examined. In his March 29, 2006 article, "Who's Behind the Immigration Rallies?", Ben Johnson names many of the key groups and individuals who helped organize, promote, or fund the large-scale rallies that took place in cities across the U.S. in the spring of that year.

The Courts and Immigration Policy category examines leftwing efforts to use activist courts to create immigration policy in the United States.