Why do people immigrate to the US?

I always ask why people go to the US. There are many reasons why that not many people are aware of. The whole purpose of people going is to restart their lives and start a new life. Many people don’t have a choice about going to the US. That’s why I did research and to better understand why people left for the US. Some people don’t even have a choice to leave and I can explain why and how.

Some people come to the US  to get money and get out of poverty, according to bushcenter.org. Others don’t have a choice. They are forced by human trafficking and they are usually young when taken away from their families. ACUl (Advance Campus Community) a program that fights for justice, calculated about how many people are trafficked to the US. There are about 14,500 to 17,500 people that are trafficked to the US each year. They are most often coming from Mexico and the Philippines, according to DoSomething.org.

Along with those reasons, people tend to flee due to fear and violence in their country.  The Miami Herald talks about why people are wanting to leave and why they are at the Mexican border. For example, a man named Brian from Nicaragua said he left due to the violence that he has faced. He states “I swore before the flag to defend the people of Nicaragua and not repress the people. There are Cuban officers in Nicaragua. They are responsible for the repression in my country, and they threatened to kill me if I did not join the death squads, the hooded men that [President] Ortega uses to kill the protesters.” He got death threats because he didn’t want to be part of the police. This is why people like him flee their country.

Not many people know when illegal immigrants come to the US it is a struggle for them to find jobs. This is due to them not having papers, so they live in fear of what could happen. Like what if they go to find a job and the owner calls ICE? Not only that, but if they end up working and work with other immigrants this can cause a bigger chance to get caught. This is because when ICE has records of jobs that are most likely able to hire illegal immigrants and tend to raid those workplaces. If these immigrants do find a job, they are usually jobs that don’t pay well, causing people to work for extra long hours, explains The Quinn Law Firm, which is a law firm helps immigrants with their problems. 

“The study found that immigrants across the globe are generally happier following migration—reporting more life satisfaction, more positive emotions, and fewer negative emotions—based on Gallup surveys of some 36,000 migrants from more than 150 countries,” said the Migration Policy Institute. This is because they can get support in the US. When people come they don’t have much money, causing them to apply for many programs that help with money while they get back on their feet. It may take a long time to find a job because many people do not want to hire immigrants. Some helpful things they can get with the help of programs that get you assistants for both legal and illegal immigrants.Some things they can help you are food stamps and free medicare. Some programs are specifically there to help immigrants that are documented  like CAPI and SSI/SSP that help give you money.

Overall, people leave for the US for many reasons. Some don’t even like that they had to leave their homes.. With this, you can now know why people might or might not have a choice. Next time you should ask your parents why they decided to come to the US. You might find it interesting because I sure did when I asked my parents. Though my brother’s perspective was different. This is due to the fact that he didn’t have a choice to come; he was too young to decide.