Migration: Who Cares?

Coming to the conclusion that migration should not be thought of as a distinctly national issue, authors Marie Price and Lisa Benton-Short presented data on their research of metropolitan cities experiencing and influx of foreign-born immigrants.

Their new book, Migration to the Metropolis: The Rise of Immigrant Gateway Cities, reveals that 20 major cities across the globe account for 37 million of foreign-born residents. Or, one in five immigrants will choose one of those cities as their end destination.

Audience reception to the authors’ July 15 presentation of their book was best summarized by Maryland State Delegate Ana Sol Gutierrez (Dem.):

“So what?”

By the authors’ own admission, the research leaves more questions than answers. The statistics are simple enough: immigration is a global phenomenon, with cities across the globe experiencing at minimum one million in foreign-born residents. In some cities, immigrants make up a substantial number of the areas population.

Price and Benton-Short conclude that the immigration policy is at least equally important at the local level as it is nationally.

“Integration and accommodation happens at the local scale,” said Price. “You can have national policies, but people live in places, and all sorts of things happen at schools, on streets, and in the work force. So local policies, local institutions, and local leaders really do matter.”

While research provides in-depth looks at the demographics of major metropolitan areas—such as New York City, Washington D.C., and San Francisco in the United States—it never delves into how or why immigrants choose these destinations over countless others.

The authors hope their work draws peoples attention from such a national viewpoint, and make people realize “we’re not alone. Many places in the world are dealing with these issues,” said Price.

Yet Gutierrez’s comment draws to light a lack of knowledge in public policy about the circumstances and needs in high-trafficked immigration cities—in her particular situation, the metropolitan areas surrounding Washington D.C.

“Because there’s a lack of national policy, lots of local jurisdictions are trying to write their own policies,” said Price. “And so you get these places, whether it’s Hazelton, PA or Prince William County, taking matters into their own hands.”

In the long term, Price and Benton-Short see their research as a starting point. The next step, they concede, requires a much more intensive kind of research.

“I guess the next level is more work on our part,” said Benton-Short. “And it’s really where we lack the resources. What we really need to do is go out and interview people—lots and lots of them—why did you come here? What has been your experience?”

Benton-Short added: “If we can write a grant and get money to have lots of graduate students to go out with us into the field, we can get you those kind of answers.”

Gutierrez’s quick response drew audience laughs, but showed the immediacy of the situation as she looked ahead to Maryland’s early 2009 General Assembly meeting:

“Yeah, but I need them for January 2.”

Ben Giles is an intern at the American Journalism Center, a training program run by Accuracy in Media and Accuracy in Academia.