Rachele Bland Essays - Demographics Of The United States

Rachele Bland Melton 11/20/17 Is the American Dream attainable for the non-American? INTRODUCTION: Get attention/attention-getter opening: Minorities have never met minor prejudice. Instead, they've approached American society cautiously, developing tools to unlock the doors that we've unjustly closed in front of them. Establish Credibility and Goodwill: Regardless, the flag waves with an assumption, unwavering, that we live in the land of opportunity; why? The pieces of our nation that hold small pieces of other nations within them are held back more so by our judgment than by a border or a sea. Thesis Statement: The American Dream should exist in America, rather than strictly for the American, and should represent the prosperity of our country, rather than the prosperity of our white men. Benefits Immigrants compose a large portion of our population While strides are being made in Washington towards progressive immigration laws, current regulations are still flawed There are an estimated 9 million Asian American votes; 4% of all eligible voters Immigration Modernization Act would reduce the budget deficit by $135 billion in the first decade Over the next 4 years, the number of eligible votes (Latino) nationwide is expected to increase by more than 4 million people to 27.7 million 10.4% of Latinos complete a bachelor's degree, compared with 24,4% for the entire population As a percentage of eligible voters, Latinos make up 11.3% of the population Under Plyler v. Doe, the law prohibits public schools and personnel to deny access to education based on immigration status Americans are more inclined to support than oppose legislation similar to the Dream Act now under consideration in the senate. That legislation would begin to address the status of some illegal immigrants already in the country One of the Provisions of the 2009 version of the Dream Act required that beneficiaries be between the age of 12 and 35 at the time the bill was enacted. Within a few years, undocumented students graduating from high school would again have no pathway to legislation II. Diversity The immigrant population is becoming more diverse The United States contain large proportions of immigrant populations from several different areas, of which should be provided more fair opportunities In 1960 a full 75% of the foreign-born population came from Europe, while in 2012, only 11.8% came from Europe. Asians recently surpassed Latinos as the fastest growing group of new immigrants to the United States. Asian Americans make up 5.1% of the population Immigrants occupy a large portion of our educated population: By 2020 Latinos will make up 22% of the nation's college aged population. In 2007, Latinos represented about 12% of full-time college students. Despite these statistics, Latinos still continue to graduate at much lower rates from higher education, reflecting an achievement gap. Within the Latino population, Cubans have the highest population of high school graduates enrolled in college. Guatemala, Mexico, and El Salvador represent the three largest national origin groups among undocumented population of the United States. Immigrants are adding to progressive communities of LGBTQ, women, etc. In the 1960's 2/3 of the US had populations in which less than 5% of individuals were foreign born. In 2012, 61% of our foreign born population lived in the west and south. Today, women outnumber men in foreign-born population. There are almost 1 million gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and LGBT immigrants in the US today. III. Discrimination A. Opportunities for immigrants need to be expanded, as many immigrants find it difficult to advance in the American economic sphere. 1.6 million skilled immigrants are un or underemployed More than half of the foreign born immigrants are home owners Less than one in five immigrants live in poverty Immigration reforms for undocumented citizens in five years would increase the earnings of all Americans by $618 billion in the next decade In 2010, immigrants represented 5.2% of the labor force B. Immigrants receive a bad rap and are labeled as with a criminal blanket. With the 2001 folding of immigration and naturalization services into the department of homeland security, the undocumented have become an expanding component of criminalized class. Latinas are often portrayed as attracted to public assistance and more likely to take advantage of public welfare The top 1% of Americans make more than the bottom 40% The incarceration rate for immigrant men ages 18 to 39 is 0.7% (2000) C. Immigrants find it hard to seek advancement because of their unfair treatment when reaching for educational opprotunities In 1932 US Supreme Court case Plyler v. Doe, the court held that states could not discriminate against students enrolling in K-12 public schools in the United States on the basis of their legal status. Although undocumented students can apply to most