For thousands of years, people have emigrated from one country to another. People move for many reasons. They may be seeking new opportunities for jobs, or they may be trying to escape from religious or political persecution. They may be living in unacceptable living conditions and / or wish to move away from a government they do not like. Most all people who relocate are seeking greater freedom. Many years of people entering a region can quickly change a country’s population.
The large increase in population causes problems for the country to which a person moves. Whether immigration is a contribution to society or a negative impact on the government it is up to the immigrant to decide, even though it is Congress who passes the laws concerning them. Immigration may have its advantages, but it is the disadvantages that have a greater impact on society. There are a wide range of harmful effects that immigration has on society, including the loss of jobs for the American citizens, the transfer of new diseases, and the overcrowding of areas that cannot be expanded. Congress has tried to limit these problems by passing laws that state the condition that a person must be in to enter the country. Unfortunately, this has not stopped people from entering.
In many cases, people wishing to enter the country do so unlawfully by sneaking across borders to enter without being stopped. These people are called illegal immigrants and they create a threat to society. The threats can go as far as the transferring of new diseases to people. Many of the immigrants have not received treatment for the disease and have not been vaccinated at all.
The threat of drug dealers, mostly along the Mexican border, and mentally ill people are also growing problems. Many immigrants, both legal and illegal, are often unaware that they have some kind of mental disorder and often go through life remaining untreated for it, which could threaten the society that they enter and increase the possibility that people may cause extreme damage to property or other people. The threat of criminals entering the country is also a problem that people are worried about. The fact that a convicted criminal may enter the country five years after serving their term does not mean that they are unable to commit a crime again. This is one of the most disturbing threats that people face dealing with immigration.
Unemployment and language issues among immigrants are also another concern in our society. Even though these are major threats that concern everyone in the country, perhaps the most costly problem of immigration is overcrowding. Due to immigration in the United States since World War I, the government has had to spend more money each year to develop apartments, schools, and jobs. Since the overcrowding of buildings, neighborhoods, and schools has increased over the years, Congress has tried several times, without success, to pass laws to help this problem.
New laws are passed everyday, but still have no effect on the amount of immigrants that enter the country. Not all people view immigration negatively. Some even welcome them into their community, helping them find housing and jobs. Immigration increases the base of technical knowledge. Many immigrants who have come to the United States have become famous for their work in arts, sciences and other fields. For example, Albert Einstein from Germany, Alexander Graham Bell from Scotland, and Irvin Berlin from Russia.
Immigrants also give people in the country they have moved to the chance to learn different traditions, languages, and values. Some say that immigration causes overpopulation, but others see a different view. They believe that emigration has helped overpopulated nations. For example, after World War II, emigration helped reduce unemployment in some countries. Immigration has been going on for thousands of years and will continue to do so, whether our society is for or against it.