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Immigration : The United States

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The United States of America was founded by immigrants. In fact, foreigners have shaped nearly every aspect of American culture. Unless a person is of Native American descent, their family has an immigration story whether they are aware of it or not. Today in the U.S., many individuals believe that immigrants are more of a strain to society than they are a benefit. The truth is that immigration is an extremely complex subject that has multiple manifest and latent functions and dysfunctions. Some of the biggest arguments today against immigration are that immigrants increase already tough competition for low-skilled jobs and that they put an increased strain on the economy. What is often left off of these arguments are the positive functions that immigration can add. One such fact is that some immigrants come with capitol or a skill to start a business. Most people who come to this country are depicted as poor, helpless families seeking jobs and free social aid. This description is more accurate if one is talking about political refugees or those seeking asylum here. But if one is attempting to describe legal immigrants, this could not be farther from the truth. Most visas to get into the country are very strict, and require the person to have a skill to perform a job, or be seeking a higher education. Until recent law changes allowed family members to immigrate to the U.S., nearly all legal immigrants were high-skilled and well-educated because of harsh limits on the number

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