Although it is cliche to note, the United States has always been a nation of immigrants. The fact is, according to Herman and Smith in their acclaimed book Immigrant, Inc., no other country in the history of mankind has accepted over 70 million immigrants. About 50 percent of Americans have close immigrant lineage or share immigrant ancestry.
Whether immigration is a good thing or a scourge, we like to think of our country as an immigrant-friendly place - with borders that are among the most open in the world - which is not the case. But according to the Migration Integration Policy Index (MIPEX), which rates the EU nations, Norway, Switzerland, Canada, and the U.S. efforts to integrate immigrants - the U.S. ranks ninth on the list. Sweden, Portugal, and Canada are the three leading countries respectively. Nonetheless, for John Gartner, a psychologist at Johns Hopkins University, immigrant traits are built into an American's DNA...Read more
Benzinga: Immigrants: Restless Dreamers, Economic Pillars
Thomas Huddleston
Policy Analyst, Migration Policy Group
Thomas Huddleston is a policy analyst at the Migration Policy Group, a European think-and-do-tank. He coordinates MPG’s research for European cooperation on national integration policies, including the second and third editions of the Migrant Integration Policy Index (MIPEX) (published in February 2011) and the third edition of the European Commission’s Handbook on Integration.
