After reading, studying, and discussing the chapter, students should be able to:Learning Outcome 3.1.
1: Describe the difference between international and internal migration. Migration can be international (between countries, either voluntary or forced) or internal (within a country, either interregional or intraregional).Learning Outcome 3.1.2: Identify the principle sources of immigrants during the three main eras of U.S.
immigration. The United States has had three main eras of immigration The principal source of immigrants has shifted from Europe during the first two eras to Latina America and Asia during the third (current) era.Learning Outcome 3.2.1: Describe the history of interregional migration in the United States.
Migration within the United States has primarily occurred from east to west, though at varying rates. Recently, interregional migration has also occurred from north to south.Learning Outcome 3.2.2: Describe interregional migration in Russia and Canada. The world’s largest country has a distinctive pattern of interregional migration, a legacy of the era of Communist rule.
Learning Outcome 3.2.3: Describe interregional migration in China and Brazil. Canada, China, and Brazil also have unequal population distributions. Canadians have been migrating from east to west , Chinese have been migrating from the rural interior to the large coastal cities, and Brazilians from the large coastal cities to the interior.
Learning Outcome 3.2.4: Explain differences among the three forms of intraregional migration. Three intraregional migration patterns are from rural to urban areas, and from urban to rural areas.Learning Outcome 3.3.
1: Provide examples of political, environmental, and economic push and pull factors. People migrate because of a combination of push and pull factors. These factors may be political, environmental and economic. Most people migrate for economic push and pull reasons.Learning Outcome 3.
3.2: Summarize the flows of migrant workers in Europe and Asia. People migrate for temporary work, especially from developing countries to developed countries, where they take jobs that are not desired by local residents.Learning Outcome 3.4.1: Identify the types of immigrants who are given preference to enter the United States.
Immigration is tightly controlled by most countries. The United States gives preference to immigrants with family members already in the country and to those who have special job skills.Learning Outcome 3.4.2: Describe the population characteristics of unauthorized immigrants to the United States.
The United States has more than 11 million unauthorized immigrants, who are in the country without proper documents. Most have emigrated from Mexico. Learning Outcome 3.4.3: Describe characteristics of immigrants to the United States.
In the past, most immigrants were males, but now an increasing share of immigrants to the United States are women and children.Learning Outcome 3.4.4: Compare American and European attitudes towards immigrants.
Americans and Europeans have divided and ambivalent attitudes toward the large number of immigrants, especially those arriving without proper documentation.Chapter OutlineIntroduction. Migration captures the interest of geographers because it is so fundamentally geographic: The act of migrating affects both the place of origin and the migrant’s destination. Geographers are interested in how and why people migrate.Key Issue 1: Where Are Migrants Distributed?Nineteenth-century geographer E.G.
Ravenstein’s “laws” are the basis for contemporary geographic migration study. The “laws” are organized into three groups that help us understand where and why migration occurs. These “laws” are mentioned throughout the chapter.Geographer Wilbur Zelinksy identified a migration transition, which consists of changes in a society comparable to those in the demographic transition.
International migrants typically leave countries in stage 2 of the demographic transition for stage 3 and 4 countries. Internal migration is more important for countries in stages 3 and 4.International and Internal Migration Migration is divided into two types: international and internal. International migrants may be voluntary or forced.
While international migration gathers a lot of attention, most migration is internal within a country. There are two types of internal migration. Interregional migration is the movement from one region of a country to another. The movement within the same region of the country is called intraregional migration.International Migration Patterns Global migration patterns reveal that most people migrate from developing countries to developed ones.
International migrants may be voluntary or forced. Asia, Latin America, and Africa have net out-migration while Europe and North America experience net in-migration. While other countries have higher percentages of foreign-born residents, the United States has the largest number, with 40 million foreign-born residents.U.S.
Immigration: Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries Three distinct eras of migration are observed in the United States. First, from the late 1700s to 1840, most migrants were from Europe, mainly Great Britain and forced migrants from Africa. All of the colonies in the United States were established on the Atlantic Coast.U.S.
Immigration: Mid-Nineteenth to Early Twentieth Century From 1840 until the outbreak of World War 1, the source regions for new migrants coincided with the Industrial Revolution diffusing from its hearth in Great Britain. The majority of the immigrants that came to the United States in the second half of the nineteenth century came from Germany, Ireland, and Scandinavia. In the early twentieth century many of the immigrants came from Eastern and Southern Europe.U.
S. Immigration: Late Twentieth to Early Twenty-first Century After World War II most new migrants to the United States came from Asia and Latin America. Asians and Latin Americans have come to the United States in recent decades after many of their countries entered stage 2 of the demographic transition.Key Issue 2: Where Do People Migrate Within a Country?Migration between Regions of the United States The history of interregional migration in the United States was largely an east-to-west phenomenon with the exception of an early start in California. More recently the center of U.S.
population has been moving slowly southward, but interregional migration in the twenty-first century is relatively small.Migration between Regions in the Two Largest Countries The world’s largest countries in land area are Russia and Canada. Interregional migration has been an important means to opening up regions of these large countries for economic development. Migration in Canada was voluntary and in Russia during the Soviet Era it was sometimes forced.Migration Between Regions in China and Brazil The world’s largest countries in land area other than Russia, Canada, and the United States are China and Brazil. Government policies encourage interregional migration in Brazil by moving the capital of the Brazil from the densely populated southern coastal city of Rio de Janeiro to the sparsely populated interior city of Brasilia.
The Chinese have restricted the migration of people from the interior to the coast.Migration from Rural to Urban Areas Intraregional migration is more common than interregional migration. Ravenstein felt that people were much more likely to migrate to a closer location. More developed countries underwent urbanization (moving from rural to urban areas) with the industrial era. This trend is now occurring in LDCs.Migration from Urban to Suburban Areas In MDCs today, most intraregional migration is from the central city to the suburbs (suburbanization).
Nearly twice as many Americans migrate from the cities to the suburbs each year as migrate from suburbs to cities. People typically move to the suburbs because they believe that their quality of life will improve.Migration from Urban to Rural Areas The late twentieth century saw a trend to move from urban to rural areas (counterurbanization). People move from urban to rural areas for lifestyle reasons. With modern communication and transportation systems, rural locations are not as isolated as they used to be.
Key Issue 3: Why Do People Migrate?Reasons for Migrating Most people migrate for economic reasons, but may be also influenced by political or environmental factors. Economic, political, and environmental push factors and pull factors combine to motivate a migrant to leave their present home and influence their choice of destination.Political Push and Pull Factors A difficult question in immigration policy is how to distinguish between economic migrants and refugees. Refugees are pushed out of a country by political factors. People that have been forced to migrate for similar political reasons as refugees but have not crossed an international boundary are called an internally displaced person.
The United States, Canada, and Europe accept refugees but do not accept all economic migrants. Someone that has migrated to another country and hopes to be recognized as a refugee is called an asylum seeker.Environmental Push and Pull Factors People will sometimes migrate for environmental reasons. They are pulled toward physically attractive regions and pushed from hazardous ones.
Many people are forced to move by water-related disasters because they live in a vulnerable area like the floodplain of a river. A lack of water will often force people to migrate from an area.Economic Push and Pull Factors Most people migrate for economic reasons. They migrate from areas with limited job prospects to areas where jobs are available. The United States has always been a magnet for migrants because of the economic opportunities. Economic migrants are often not admitted into a country unless they possess special skills.
Europe’s Migrant Workers Immigrants serve a useful role in wealthy European countries because they take low-status and low-skilled jobs that the residents won’t accept. The guest worker program in the 1960s and 1970s allowed immigrants to temporarily move to a country to obtain a job. Turkey and North Africa are the leading source of economic migrants to Europe. Many immigrants from Eastern Europe find work in the wealthier Northern European countries.
Asia’s Migrants Workers Many Chinese have traditionally emigrated to find work in other countries around the world. China’s booming economy is actually attracting immigrants from neighboring countries to China. Wealthy oil-producing countries in Southwest Asia are also attracting a large number of immigrants from poorer countries in the region.Key Issue 4: Why Do Migrants Face Obstacles?Intervening obstacles that make it difficult to migrate were once primarily physical, but are now largely political. Migrants used to face a long, arduous, and expensive passage by land and sea. Transportation improvements have diminished the importance of environmental features as intervening obstacles.
Now the biggest obstacle for migrants is the lack of a passport or visa.U.S Quota Laws The United States has long used quota laws to limit the source regions and numbers of new migrants. Quota laws were historically preferential to Europeans. Today’s quotas give preference to talented and skilled workers in wanted professions which in the long run harms the countries these professionals are emigrating from.
This situation is called brain drain. Family members of U.S. citizens are also given preference.Characteristics of Unauthorized Immigration Migrants who enter the United States without proper documents are called unauthorized immigrants.
More than half the unauthorized immigrants in the United States emigrated from Mexico. They are also most likely to be employed in construction and hospitality industries. The states with the largest number of unauthorized immigrants are California and Texas. Thirty-five percent of unauthorized immigrants have been in the United States for 15 years or more.
Many unauthorized immigrants migrate disproportionally to states that have large cities and where previous migrants have located (in a process called chain migration). Proximity to the U.S.-Mexico border also plays a role for some Mexican migrants. Due to the recession that started in 2008, the number of unauthorized immigrants has declined because there are fewer job opportunities in the United States.Mexico’s Border with the United States The United States has constructed a barrier along the U.
S.-Mexico border that covers approximately one-fourth of the border’s length, but locating the border is difficult in remote areas. Mexicans oftentimes urge understanding and sympathy for the plight of the immigrants trying to cross the border. Ironically, many Mexicans want stronger security along their southern border with Guatemala.
Gender of Migrants Ravenstein theorized that men were the more likely than women to migrate long-distances. This had been the case until the 1990s, after which women were more likely to migrate long-distances then men. The increased female migration partly reflects the changing role of women in society.Age and Education of Migrants Ravenstein also theorized that most long-distance immigrants were young adults seeking work. This pattern continues in the United States, though an increasing number of children are also migrating with their families.
The typical unauthorized Mexican immigrant has a year more of education than the average Mexican.Immigration Concerns in the United States Recent immigrants have long faced hostility from non-foreign-born citizens in the United States. Arizona and Alabama have passed laws that favor stronger enforcement of authorized immigration. Many Americans want more effective border patrols so that fewer unauthorized immigrants can get into this country.
Controversy even extends to exactly what to call the unauthorized immigrants in the United States. People that advocate for more rights for these individuals prefer the term undocumented immigrant. Illegal alien is a term used by groups who favor tougher restrictions and enforcement of immigration laws.Immigration Concerns in Europe It has become much more difficult for non-Europeans to immigrate to a European country, while it is much easier for Europeans to migrate to other European countries.
Recent immigrants to Europe also encounter resistance from citizens. Hostility to immigrants has become a central plank in the platform of political parties in many European countries. The severe global recession of the twenty-first century has reduced the number of immigrants to Europe and the United States.European emigration has had impacts around the world, but especially on American culture.
Indo-European languages are now spoken by half of the world’s people. Europe’s most prevalent religion, Christianity, has the world’s largest numbers of adherents. European art, music, literature, philosophy, and ethics have also diffused throughout the world.
