South-North Immigrants' Settlement and Opportunity Structures in the U.S.

The increased migration to the U.S. from developing countries in Latin America and Asia has aroused concerns that new immigrants will impose new costs on U.S. citizens and the government. Less concern has been given to how current policy is affecting the social well being of immigrants them-selves. This article makes the case that the new immigration, motivated by kinship ties and family reunification provisions of U.S. immigration law leads to a clustering of new immigrants into areas that are no longer attracting large numbers of native born Americans. It is argued that the concentration of these groups into “high immigration regions” will limit their access to employment and education opportunities that would facilitate their spatial assimilation and upward mobility.

South-North Immigrants' Settlement and Opportunity Structures in the U.S. Journal Articles